Spaghetti Neapolitan

Today’s pasta sounds weird for some of you because 

1. This recipe doesn’t have any relationship with Naples, Italy
2. The seasoning is ketchup, not tomato sauce

But, this is a very traditional and popular pasta dish in Japan and I grew up eating this yummy pasta, so this is the time to share how I cooked and increase fans for this dish! I’ve heard some people complain that it is guilty to put ketchup on pasta, but believe me, this is tasty! I used to work for an Italian restaurant and this was a top 10 menu. Let’s check how to cook:)

 

<Today’s Recipe>

Spaghetti Neapolitan

<Ingredients>

*For 1 serving

• 60g spaghetti
• 1/4 large bell pepper – chopped
• 1/4 medium carrot – chopped
• 1/8 large onion – chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 veg soup stock
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• Some parmesan cheese
• Some parsley

 

<Directions>

1. Fill water in a pan and bring it to medium high heat. When water is boiled, add pasta and cook until pasta is al dente.
2. While pasta is cooked, pour olive oil in another pan and bring it to medium high heat. Add bell pepper, carrot, onion and cook for about 5 min. Add veg soup stock, ketchup, and drained pasta and mix well.
3. Transfer the pasta on a plate and sprinkle parmesan cheese and parsley.

 

I know, I should have used red paprika instead of carrot…in this image, this pasta dish give you an image of India, not Italy! #oops

I like this  dish, but my dinner buddy doesn’t like it just because he doesn’t believe ketchup in pasta, and this is the reason why this recipe is for 1 serving. But now I regret that I should’ve cooked as usual, because half of my pasta neapolitan was stolen by him!!

A little history lesson for why the dish was named “Neapolitan”… when it was post WWⅡ era,  ketchup was easily accessible for people with tight budget, and the first person who invented Spaghetti Neapolitan thought tomato based(ketchup) sauce for spaghetti was just the perfect image for Naples, Italy. Now the Neapolitan makes people nostalgic, so they are popular especially from people in older generation.

 

<Other Pasta Recipes to Try>

The classic! Tomato Basil Pasta

Creamy cheese is so obsessive! Spinach and Double Cheese Pasta

Simple classic pasta! Classic Spaghetti Aglio Olio

Enjoy home cooking and your own creation of homemade food:)