Spaghetti alla Puttanesca — Naples' 30-Minute Briny Classic

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil — it should taste like the sea. This is the only point at which you will add salt to this dish.

Slice the garlic thin. Drain the anchovy fillets. Crush the canned tomatoes by hand over a bowl, breaking them into rough chunks, and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a wide skillet or sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic, anchovies, and chili flakes. Cook, mashing the anchovies with a wooden spoon, until they completely dissolve into the oil and the garlic just starts to colour at the edges — about 2 minutes.

Add the crushed tomatoes, olives, capers, and oregano (rub the oregano between your palms before adding to bloom the fragrance). Stir everything together.

Simmer uncovered over medium heat for 10–12 minutes, until the sauce has loosened slightly and the flavours have melded. Taste it. Do not add salt unless it genuinely needs it — with anchovies, olives, and capers, it almost certainly does not.

Meanwhile, add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook for 1 minute less than the packet instruction. Before draining, scoop out 200 ml of pasta cooking water.

Drain the pasta and add it directly to the pan with the sauce. Pour in 80–100 ml of the reserved pasta water. Toss vigorously over medium heat for 1–2 minutes until the sauce coats every strand and the liquid has mostly absorbed.

Remove from heat, roughly chop the parsley and scatter it over the top, and serve immediately. No cheese.