Simply Italian, and simply glorious

WHEN it comes to pasta, Gino Angelini of Angelini Osteria in Los Angeles has the touch. All’ amatriciana means “in the style of Amatrice,” near Rome. And that means luscious Italian plum tomatoes cooked down to a sauce with a little onion, a little hot red pepper and, most importantly, guanciale, the cured pork cheek with a distinctive sweet pork flavor. Most cooks here substitute pancetta, but Angelini cures his own guanciale for this dish. Instead of the traditional bucatini, a fat spaghetti with a hole in the middle, Angelini prefers the squat, ridged tube pasta called bombolotti. This shape is tricky to cook perfectly al dente, but it offers what may be the perfect proportion of surface to volume for this particular sauce.

To finish off the dish, Angelini grates a spare amount of sharp pecorino Romano over the top. Parmesan just doesn’t give the amatriciana the same punch.

The genius of this dish is its simplicity, which also means you can’t compromise on ingredients. Buy good pasta, imported Italian plum tomatoes and, if you can get it, guanciale. If not, then substitute the best pancetta you can find.

Angelini uses bombolotti -- essentially, half-rigatoni -- made by di Sanzio; the shape is called Le Monelle on the package. Look for it at stores such as Pizzicotto, 11758 San Vicente Blvd., in Brentwood, (310) 442-7188, and Mario’s Deli, 740 E. Broadway, Glendale, (818) 242-4114. But artisanal spaghetti or bucatini will do nicely as well, or Trader Joe’s sells a “bite-size” rigatoni.

Angelini Osteria, 7313 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 297-0070

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Bombolotti all’ amatriciana

Total time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4

Note: Guanciale, cured pork cheek, is available by mail from specialty sources such as Corti Bros., in Sacramento, (800) 509-3663, and BuonItalia in New York, (212) 633-9090 or www.buonitalia.com.

3/4 pound bombolotti pasta

Salt

1/4 pound guanciale

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 clove garlic, unpeeled

2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped

1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 tablespoon grated pecorino Romano

1. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente, 12 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, cut the guanciale into strips about 2 inches long and one-fourth-inch thick.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add the guanciale and cook until lightly brown, another minute (it will not cook like bacon). Add the onion and cook another minute. If necessary, spoon excess fat from the pan. Add the tomatoes and cook 2 minutes. Add salt to taste and the red pepper flakes. Discard the garlic.

4. Drain the pasta and add to the skillet. Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano and pecorino Romano. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil and toss together.

Each serving: 259 calories; 174 mg. sodium; 20 mg. cholesterol; 11 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams protein; 1.92 grams fiber.