I have been on a pasta-craving tear. Normally, I’m a meat + veg kind of girl but lately, those carbs are calling my name. So when I started hearing about one-skillet pasta dishes – meaning no boiling water, no draining in a colander – I knew I had to figure out how to hack this method to be gluten-free. First up? One Skillet Pasta Puttanesca.
One Skillet Gluten-Free Pasta Puttanesca is officially going into the regular rotation.
I read that the one-skillet pasta method doesn’t work well with gluten-free pastas because they don’t have enough starch to thicken the sauce the way wheat-based pastas do. While that might be true of some gluten-free pastas, I had a feeling that rice pasta would work.
And it did! I have to tell you, I did not miss boiling water and draining pasta, or having to wash the two dishes that doing that would have created. As an added bonus, I think the end result is even better this way; the pasta is so much more flavorful when cooked in the sauce as opposed to water, and the starch from the pasta thickens the sauce.
It’s like a magical win-win situation.
I’m going to offer you this recipe with a caveat; all gluten-free pastas vary, and your cook time might be different than mine. Also, the pasta might cook before the water has been adequately absorbed / reduced. It might take a big of tweaking on your part, but I can tell you that this method does indeed work, and I’ll be sharing more recipes like this one soon!
Let’s talk wine pairing: Tomato based sauces can work with either white, red, or rosé, so you can go with which you prefer, or what you’re in the mood for in the moment! You may have noticed that I’ve been singing the praises of Clean Crafted wine lately; it has been such a major life upgrade for me that I’m basically screaming about them from the rooftops. Here are some that would be perfect with this Pasta Puttanesca:
white (crisp & mineraly) – The Resident Pinot Gris
white (full bodied & creamy) – Gallivant Chardonnay
rosé (fruity & crisp) – Etnico Gran Reserva Rosé
red (earthy & light) – Fiddleneck Pinot Noir
red (earthy & bold) – Hushkeeper Cabernet Sauvignon
One Skillet Gluten-Free Pasta Puttanesca
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 22 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Main Course, Pasta
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
no boiling or draining required
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, (thinly sliced)
- 1 tablespoon minced anchovies ((about 6–8 fillets))
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, (plus more for serving, if desired)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 28 ounces canned peeled tomatoes ((OR diced tomatoes))
- 3 cups water
- 12 ounces gluten-free rice spaghetti, (broken in half)
- 1/2 cup chopped Kalamata olives
- 1/4 cup capers, (rinsed if salted, drained if brined)
- small handful parsley, (minced, plus more for serving, if desired)
- small handful basil, (minced, plus more for serving, if desired)
- grated Parmesan for serving, ( if desired)
Instructions
- In a large, high sided skillet over medium heat, heat the oil until shimmering.
- Stir in the garlic, anchovies, red pepper flakes and salt. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until the garlic is golden brown and the mixture is fragrant.
- Add the tomatoes, breaking them up with a spatula (if using whole peeled tomatoes). Add the water and spaghetti. Bring to a strong simmer.
- Cook, stirring often so that the pasta doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan, until the liquid has reduced to a sauce and the pasta is cooked al dente, about 12-14 minutes. When it’s almost done, stir in the olives and capers. Turn off the heat and stir in the herbs.
- Serve immediately. If desired, serve with additional herbs for sprinkling, grated parmesan and red pepper flakes for guests to add to their bowls.
Notes
All gluten-free pastas vary, and your cook time might be different than mine. Also, the pasta might cook before the water has been adequately absorbed / reduced. It might take a big of tweaking on your part. I recommend using a pasta that is 100% white or brown rice. I used Trader Joe’s brown rice spaghetti.
All of the links on zenbelly.com are for information purposes, however some are affiliate links to books, products or services. Any sponsored posts are clearly labelled as being sponsored content. Some ads on this site are served by ad networks and the advertised products are not necessarily recommended by Zenbelly.
Diane says
Can this be called Paleo, Simone?
zenbelly says
No, which is why I didn’t call it paleo. It’s gluten-free.
Jhon says
Great Article!
★★★★★
Alma Beatrice says
I enjoyed your article on topic one-skillet gluten-free pasta puttanesca. Keep sharing such interesting blogs.
kat says
delish!!!!
zenbelly says
so glad you loved it!
roz says
Made with 10 oz of Tinkyada Brown Rice Fusilli, simmered for 15 minutes. No extra water necessary. Yummy!
★★★★★
zenbelly says
Awesome! Glad you loved it!
Linda says
I will have to make this recipe! Fifty three years ago my friend taught me how to make “fried spaghetti”. It was the same process except we cooked it until the noodles became a little crispy.
Every once in a while I cook spaghetti this way and enjoy it a lot.
zenbelly says
yum that sounds good! I hope you love this recipe if you try it.
Viola says
Excited to make this tonight. FYI — the correct spelling in puttanesca has two Ts!
zenbelly says
yup thanks. Looks like I spelled it correctly every time with the exception of the pinterest image. thanks for the heads up
Susan says
This looks yummy! Have you experimented at all with Jap Chae (not for this recipe though)? I had some recently (at The Table at 1440 University) and couldn’t believe that they were made from sweet potato flour. So delicious!! Have you had it before? I’d love to make a recipe with it!
zenbelly says
I’ve had Japchae at Toyose in the outer sunset, and have purchased sweet potato noodles at Asian markets around here. They’re SO good! I always buy them when I see them. I think that’s what I use for my pad thai recipe.
Odile V Meister says
This was for me a new and delicious way to cook pasta. I used some bacon instead of anchovies and capers and I added some sheep feta at the end. Everyone loved it! Thank you Simone!
★★★★★