Spaghetti Matrichana

Tomatoes simmered with onion, garlic, and bacon, and spiced up with plenty of black pepper – a flavorful, easy-to-make pasta sauce perfect for a weeknight. 

On Friday mornings, I take Spanish lessons with my sweet friend Lynda. Ligia, our fantastic, patient, Spanish teacher, is also a great cook and our conversations often turn to cooking. This recipe is one of many of her favorites and she wanted to make it for us. So last week after Spanish class we had a little cooking class and she taught us how to make this simple, but delicious pasta sauce.

Espagueti a la matrichana/Spaghetti all’Amatriciana is often made with pancetta, but Ligia prefers to make it with peppered bacon. She also likes her bacon very crisp and cooks it in the microwave to get it extra crispy. If tomatoes are in season, she likes to use fresh tomatoes.

Thanks Ligia for sharing this recipe. I can see why it’s one of your favorites. My family loved it too.

Spaghetti Matrichana

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 28 oz cans diced tomatoes
• Salt and pepper to taste (you want a strong pepper flavor)
• 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon, optional
• 8 oz slice bacon*, fried crisp and crumbled
• 1 lb spaghetti, cooked according to package directions

Directions:

In a medium frying pan, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until softened and browned. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper, and chicken bouillion. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes crush the tomatoes with a potato masher. Add crumbled bacon and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve over spaghetti.

*Ligia prefers to use peppered bacon in this recipe.

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Linguine in Lemon Cream Sauce, Barbara Bakes
Light Creamy Pesto Ravioli, Barbara Bakes
Late Night Pasta, Tracey’s Culinary Adventures
Tex-Mex Chicken & White Cheddar Spaghetti, Lauren’s Latest
Whole Wheat Spaghetti with a Slow Simmered Meat Sauce, For the Love of Cooking