Spicy Garlic Pasta

A classic Italian dish, this spicy penne pasta has a rich and simple tomato based sauce. Easy to make and cost effective, its called a classic for a reason!

Cooking time? 15 minutes

Serves 4

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Ingredients priced from Asda

300g dried penne pasta £0.29

2-3tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped £0.10

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 green chilli, deseeded and chopped (or to taste) £0.50

2 x 400g cans of chopped tomatoes £0.62

30-40g of pitted black olives, sliced (or to taste) £0.32

salt

sugar to taste

To garnish:

fresh basil leaves £0.70

freshly grated Parmesan £0.90

Total £3.43

If you don’t like it to hot you can always skip the chilli seeds. Be careful to not get them bad lads in your eyes either!

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Cooking Method

Boil the pasta in a pan of salted water according to packet instructions (usually 10-12 mins) and drain.

Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and cook gently until softened but not browned – this should take about 5-8 mins. Stir every now and then. Add the garlic and chilli and cook for about a minute or so – no longer or it will burn and become bitter.

Add the chopped tomatoes and olives, bring slowly to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 mins.

Remove from the heat and season to taste with salt (if necessary, the olives will be quite salty!) and a little sugar.

Add the hot pasta to the spicy tomato sauce and serve garnished with fresh basil and a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese in bowls.