- 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, 3 peeled and 1 minced
- 6 small dried chili peppers or 1 teaspoon chili flakes
- 1 pound bucatini
- 2 tablespoons salt
- Heat 1/3 cup of the olive oil in a small skillet over a medium flame. Add the peeled garlic and chili; cook 2 minutes, or until the garlic is golden and the chili peppers are swollen (or the chili flakes are aromatic). Cool the garlic and chili 5 minutes, then crush in a mortar with a pestle into a coarse paste.
- Add the remaining 1/3 cup of olive oil to the skillet over medium heat and cook the minced garlic until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Stir in the prepared garlic-chili paste and cook 30 seconds.
- Meanwhile, bring 5 quarts of water to a boil. Add the bucatini and salt and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water. Transfer the bucatini to a serving platter, fold in the chili-garlic sauce and the reserved cooking water, and serve hot.