Aglio e Olio is a traditional Italian pasta dish. Identifying it with countrified home cooking, cucina rustica, for it is made without seasonal or store-bought ingredients, many attribute its origin to the poverty-stricken and traditionally isolated region of Abruzzo; however it is quite popular elsewhere in the country. In keeping with its casalinga quality, it is traditionally made with fettuccine, which, unlike fancy pasta shapes, could also be prepared from scratch in the kitchen. The robust fragrance of the olive oil, the crisp freshness of the garlic, the quality of the grated cheese and the pasta itself are all essential in a dish where nothing can be masked.
The sauce consists entirely of minced or pressed garlic lightly sauteed in olive oil, plus hot pepper flakes (dried red chili peppers). Finely chopped parsley is added as a garnish. Antonio Pinto, a Neapolitan cook, recommends to add a couple of fresh tomatoes to the boiling oil after frying the garlic. When made alla milanese, bread crumbs are added to the sauteed garlic and permitted to color slightly, to give the sauce a light liaison.
*Source Wikipedia
Aglio e Olio Pasta
Ok there are a few simple things regarding Aglio e Olio Pasta that I do like. The ingredients to this great pasta can be found in any cupboard or pantry just as easily as the simple tomato sauce pasta. The taste and aroma of the pasta is just simply divine. The symphony of garlic, oil, butter, and basil/parsley is just mind bogglingly good. Now there are a couple of secrets to making good aglio e olio pasta.
And secret number one is? As Julia Child would say: BUTTER.
Yes. BUTTER.
Add some olive oil in a skillet, then add the butter (a half a stick) then bring to a boil with some chopped garlic. When its boiling, add the chopped tomatoes. Let it simmer in low heat for awhile. Toss the noodles to evenly coat it.
Aglio e Olio
Tossing the Noodles
Add some chili flakes and top it off with some green. Some add Basil, some add parsley or oregano, whichever way you go the garnish is there for fragrance and color. You can use some grilled chicken or pan-seared chicken to top it off, bacon bits, or even Bangus! (Milkfish) to the recipe. Which ever way you go, I’m sure this dish will be quick and easy to make!
The Finished Product
It was election night and well while we were waiting for the unofficial and partial count to tally up to something meaningful (or basically to gauge if we would be lamenting our faith for the next 6 years) the food club decided to come together again and hold another “club” meeting. Almost everyone was present and Didi Tiu-Tang was sorely missed because she backed out last minute due to election related reasons. (LOL)
We settled on Omakase to satisfy Between Bite’s and Frannywanny’s craving for Sushi. And since Richard of Ya Kun Kaya has never been to Omakase, we had to bring them there. Fran did the ordering and reserving for the group of 13 since she was there 3 times prior the club meeting this week. (Yes, I guess when you crave, you CRAVE!) I first thought that the order was a bit lacking but at the end of the meal, Chris and I were soooo full we wondered where all the food came from!
On the table was:
Spicy Tuna Salad
Seafood Crepe Salad
GDR Sushi Platter (Golden Blossom, Dynamite Roll, Rising Sun)
Uni Sushi
Seafood Dumpling
Ebi Tempura
Aspara Beef Roll
The food was typical japanese food. The quality though surprised me. It was higher than expected and exceeded all my standards for japanese food. You see, after eating at Tsukiji, it is kind of hard to go back to typical japanese food or restaurants but Omakase delivered for the price we paid. Aside from the parking lot incident with an unscrupulous guard who tried to extract P20 despite showing the receipt, the night ended well. It would have been perfect had anyone mentioned Serenitea but hey, I guess we can’t all have what we want. We all just realized we wanted Serenitea when everyone started plurking after dinner.
The place was hidden right before the entrance to Eastwood with jeeps blocking the entrance, but there was ample parking for the restaurant and good thing we had a reservation because the place was packed. Yes even on election night. Ran into Patty Rodriguez who I haven’t seen in the longest time and it was good to see someone from school. The restaurant itself was clean, with ample service crew who catered to our every need; be it a refill of water or the bottomless iced tea Christa had, or our constant changing of plates the crew was up for it. I give hats off to the crew of Omakase Libis.
At the end of it all, again I say this because as with every club meeting I already half expect the food to be top notch, the company was superb. Never running out of stories, enjoying each others company, non-stop swapping of home remedies, funny anecdotes, and just hilarious experiences bring us all together. No pretentiousness present here. We all just basically enjoy being around one another. Till the next meetin Club Members. Foodie Manila aka. The Chubbychef signing off.
Food Club Members
*edit: Dear Club Members, if you remember any of the names of the food above please comment and let me know! I have no idea what Fran ordered for us eh!
This is the 3rd time I am shooting without my usual setup. This was just taken with a kit lens and a flash. No special gimikery here. I am now enjoying shooting guerrilla style for food again. It takes so much more thinking and effort to come out with glorious, mouth-watering shots. I appreciate the thought that comes with taking food shots without a setup even more.
