# World Sauces — Italian Sauces

> Brad's reference for Italian sauces — pesto genovese, ragù alla bolognese, carbonara, amatriciana, puttanesca, cacio e pepe, bagna cauda, and more.

### Sugo al pomodoro
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 100:1:1 tomato:carrot:onion
- **Instructions:** Simmer tomatoes until soft, sauté onion & carrot in olive oil, add puréed tomato, simmer ~30 min.
- **Typical Uses:** Base sauce for pasta or pizza.

### Amatriciana
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:2:1 tomato:guanciale:pecorino
- **Instructions:** Fry guanciale with chili, deglaze with wine, add tomatoes, simmer until thick.
- **Typical Uses:** Bucatini all'Amatriciana.

### Arrabbiata
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:1:1 tomato:garlic:olive oil
- **Instructions:** Simmer tomatoes with garlic & red chili in olive oil until thick.
- **Typical Uses:** Penne all'Arrabbiata.

### Pesto Genovese
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 4:1:1:1:0.5 basil:pine nuts:Parmesan:olive oil:garlic
- **Instructions:** Crush garlic & pine nuts, blend with basil, Parmesan & olive oil into paste.
- **Typical Uses:** Toss with trenette, gnocchi, or spread on bread.

### Pesto alla Trapanese
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:2:4:1:2:1 basil:almonds:tomato:garlic:olive oil:pecorino
- **Instructions:** Blend garlic & almonds, then basil, tomatoes, pecorino, olive oil into pesto.
- **Typical Uses:** Served with busiati or spaghetti.

### Salsa di noci
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 4:0.5:1:1 walnuts:pine nuts:Parmesan:olive oil (+ bread & milk)
- **Instructions:** Soak bread in milk; blend nuts, garlic, bread, cheese with olive oil until smooth.
- **Typical Uses:** Sauce for pansoti pasta, crostini, vegetables.

### Gremolata
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 2:1:1 parsley:garlic:lemon zest
- **Instructions:** Finely chop parsley & garlic; mix with lemon zest (raw).
- **Typical Uses:** Garnish for osso buco, fish, vegetables.

### Italian salsa verde
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:1:1:2:0.5 parsley:capers:anchovy:olive oil:garlic
- **Instructions:** Blend parsley, capers, anchovies, garlic; stir in olive oil.
- **Typical Uses:** Condiment for bollito, eggs, sandwiches.

### Spaghetti aglio e olio
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 4:1 olive oil:garlic (+ chili, parsley)
- **Instructions:** Slow-cook garlic in olive oil; toss with chili, parsley & hot pasta.
- **Typical Uses:** Quick sauce for spaghetti.

### Puttanesca
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:2:1:1:1 tomato:olives:capers:anchovy:garlic
- **Instructions:** Sauté garlic & anchovies, add capers & olives, tomatoes; simmer.
- **Typical Uses:** Sauce for spaghetti or penne.

### Ragù alla Bolognese
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:1:1:1:2:2 meat:carrot:celery:onion:tomato paste:milk
- **Instructions:** Cook meat & soffritto, add wine & tomato, slow-simmer; finish with milk.
- **Typical Uses:** Tagliatelle al ragù, lasagne.

### Carbonara
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 1:1:1 guanciale:egg:pecorino (+ pepper)
- **Instructions:** Crisp guanciale; toss pasta off heat with eggs, cheese, pepper.
- **Typical Uses:** Spaghetti alla carbonara.

### Cacio e pepe
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 4:1 pecorino romano:black pepper
- **Instructions:** Mix pecorino & pepper with pasta water to coat hot pasta.
- **Typical Uses:** Tonnarelli cacio e pepe.

### Bagna cauda
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 4:2:1:2 olive oil:anchovies:garlic:butter
- **Instructions:** Heat olive oil with anchovies & garlic; finish with butter.
- **Typical Uses:** Warm dip for raw vegetables, bread.

### Pesto di pistacchio
- **Ingredient Ratios:** 8:8:4:1:4 basil:pistachio:Parmesan:garlic:olive oil
- **Instructions:** Blend pistachios, basil, garlic, cheese; stream in olive oil.
- **Typical Uses:** Sauce for spaghetti, bruschette.

## Details

- **Category:** Cooking
- **Tags:** cooking, italian, sauces, pasta, pesto, bolognese, carbonara, puttanesca, amatriciana, cacio-e-pepe, bagna-cauda

**Also read:** [All writing](https://bradanderson.org/writing?format=md) · [About Brad](https://bradanderson.org/about?format=md)

---

**Navigate:** [Home](https://bradanderson.org/?format=md) · [About](https://bradanderson.org/about?format=md) · [Work](https://bradanderson.org/work?format=md) · [Projects](https://bradanderson.org/projects?format=md) · [Breeds](https://bradanderson.org/breeds?format=md) · [Writing](https://bradanderson.org/writing?format=md) · [LLM guide](https://bradanderson.org/llms.txt)

_Ask BradBot directly: POST https://bradanderson.org/api/agent/ask with {"question": "..."} (details in https://bradanderson.org/llms.txt)._
