Penne alla vodka
Pasta dish with vodka, cream, and tomato sauce From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Penne alla vodka (Italian: [ˈpenne alla ˈvɔdka]) is a pasta dish of penne in vodka sauce: a tomato and cream sauce with some vodka, and sometimes small meats and vegetables such as sausage, pancetta or peas. Sometimes other pasta shapes are used. Vodka in penne alla vodka emulsifies the sauce and enhances flavor. While most of the alcohol evaporates during cooking, a very small amount may remain. The final dish contains minimal alcohol. It is usually topped with grated Parmesan cheese in amount as desired, as with ground pepper.
Penne alla vodka with grated cheese | |
| Alternative names | Penne vodka, pasta with vodka sauce, Moscow penne |
|---|---|
| Course | |
| Place of origin | |
| Created by | Debated and/or unknown |
| Invented | c. 1980s, possibly earlier |
| Cooking time | 8 minutes to 10 minutes |
| Main ingredients | Penne, cream, tomatoes, onion, vodka |
| Ingredients generally used | Chili flake, garlic, cheese, sausage, pancetta, peas |
The recipe became very popular in Italy and in the United States around the 1980s, when it was offered to discothèque customers.[1] Penne alla vodka remains popular in Italian-American cuisine.[2]
Origins
Summarize
Perspective
The exact origins of penne alla vodka are unclear, and to some extent the subject of urban legend and folklore. The first use of vodka in a pasta dish recorded in a cookbook is attested to 1974, when the Italian actor Ugo Tognazzi published the cookbook L'Abbuffone (meaning 'the bouffe-men', named after Tognazzi's movie La Grande Bouffe), which included his recipe of pasta all'infuriata (lit. 'furious pasta'), described as a sort of pasta all'arrabbiata, made with ½ kg of penne, ½ kg of fresh peeled tomatoes, a shot of vodka, chili pepper, oil, garlic, and bay leaves. Tognazzi suggested also that, if using a Polish vodka with chilli ("formidable, tremendous, very strong, very hot, deadly"), the fresh chilli pepper can be omitted.[3]
There have been multiple, often conflicting, claims to the invention and history of the dish; one author claims that it was invented at Dante, a restaurant in Bologna.[4] One cookbook claims that it was invented in the 1980s by a Roman chef for a vodka company that wanted to popularize its product in Italy.[5] The dish may have been common in Italy before becoming popular in America in the early 1980s.[6]
On October 25, 2016, the Italian Association of Confectionery and Pasta Industries named it the symbolic dish of the 18th World Pasta Day organized in Moscow, as symbol of friendship between Italy and Russia.[7] Barilla later found penne alla vodka was the second most sought-after dish of pasta in search engines, behind only pasta alla bolognese.[8]
Composition
The ethanol of the vodka enhances and balances the flavors of the tomato and cream.[9]
Similar tomato and cream sauces without vodka are sometimes known as parma rosa or rosatella.[10][11]
In media
Disco Sauce: The True Story of Penne Alla Vodka was released in 2022 by director Roberto Serrini. The documentary examines the history, composition and variations of penne alla vodka. The film features chef Pasquale Cozzolino, chef Gaetano Arnone, chef Jae Lee, chef JJ Johnson, chef Jeremy Spector and molecular gastronomist Hervé This.[12] Disco Sauce is a platinum Viddy,[13] Platinum MarCom[14] and Taste Award[15] winner.
The May 4th, 2024, episode of Saturday Night Live featured a sketch about penne alla vodka in which it was depicted as a tolerated, but not particularly good, dish often served at events such as weddings, funerals, and anniversaries.[16][17]
See also
Media related to Penne alla vodka at Wikimedia Commons
References
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