RECIPE – “No-Cook” Tomato Pasta w/ Burrata, Basil & Garlic
by Henry Gould – July 29th, 2020
It’s getting hot, so the last thing you want to do is spend an hour over a hot stove. Even BBQing can be a bit too “sweat inducing” these days.
Since tomatoes are coming into their seasonal perfection, your best bet for a summer lunch / dinner is this awesome pasta. All you need to do is boil and strain pasta, then mix with the uncooked tomato sauce at the last minute.
Obviously topping the pasta with burrata is optional, but I mean… who wouldn’t want that?? You could, I suppose, grate over a harder, aged cheese like parmigiano, but something soft and creamy like burrata is better.
If you can’t find burrata, some sliced bocconcini or even a spoon of ricotta would be nice as well.
RECIPE – “No-cook” Tomato Pasta w/ Burrata, Basil & Garlic
Serves 5-6 people
- 1 x 500g package of good quality dry pasta
- 6-8 fresh tomatoes (heirloom, cherry, or another type of local tomato will make all the difference. Or one you’ve grown yourself!)
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely grated
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil (the good stuff)
- 1 bunch fresh basil, washed
- 1 pinch dried chili flakes
- Burrata cheese
Wash your tomatoes then chop them by hand with a knife until quite broken down. If you wanted, you could add them to a food processor / blender and puree. The pasta would still be great, just not as rustic as the hand chopped version.
Add to a large bowl that would fit all the pasta when cooked, then sprinkle over a generous amount of sea salt, black pepper, chili flakes and the grated raw garlic. Drizzle with a lot of your good olive oil – probably 1/3 – 1/2 cup in total. You can always add more at the last minute.
Mix around until well incorporated, then allow to sit for at least 30-45 minutes, or overnight. The salt will pull the liquid from the tomatoes and create a lovely sauce.
Get a large pot of water boiling, season with sea salt, then add your pasta and cook until 30-60 seconds less than the package instructions. When done, drain the pasta then toss with the raw tomato mixture. Toss, toss toss for at least a minute, then tear in your fresh basil and continue tossing. If it looks too dry, add some more olive oil.
Serve with the fresh burrata cheese over the top of each portion.