Italian
Silvia’s Masterclass
From
Silvia’s Masterclass
season
1
Spaghetti All’ Assassina
With
Silvia Colloca
Ingredients
400 g Barilla spaghetti
2 red hot chilli peppers thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 heaped tbsp tomato paste
750mL tomato passata
Salt and Pepper for seasoning
75 ml Extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling on top, if liked
Method
Put 1 lt of water and the tomato paste into a medium pot and bring to the boil. Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat, then set aside.
Heat up the extra virgin olive oil in a cast iron or stainless steel large pan, then add the garlic and the chillies cook for 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add the tomato passata, season with salt and pepper and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring to reduce the sauce slightly. Add the spaghetti in one layer into the pan, coast with the sauce and cook, undisturbed for about 3 minutes to help caramelize the pasta. Use a spatula to roll your pasta over to start cooking the other side.
Start adding the tomato water into the pan, 1-2 ladlefuls at a time but try to not move the pasta around too much. Keep adding the tomato water to the pan like you would add stock to risotto. Only stir very gently and occasionally. It will look like the pasta is sticking, and that’s what you want. Keep doing this for 8-9 minutes or until the pasta is al dente and most of the tomato water has been absorbed. Taste for seasoning and adjust to taste.
Serve into bowls with an extradrizzle of extra virgin olive oil, if liked. Eat straight away!
Silvia Colloca
Silvia Colloca is an Italian-born food writer, opera singer, TV producer and host. She has authored seven cookbooks, including Silvia’s Cucina, Made in Italy, La Dolce Vita, Love, Laugh, Bake!, Simple Italian (2024), and The Italian Homecook (2025), all published by Penguin.
Silvia’s most recent television work is Silvia’s Italian Masterclass (Channel 10), with its latest season airing in October 2025. The series is currently funding for Season 4. She has also appeared as a special guest on SBS’s Mastermind in 2025. Her earlier TV credits include the SBS Food series Cook Like an Italian, which has screened internationally across three seasons, as well as Made in Italy with Silvia Colloca (SBS), filmed on location in the Le Marche and Abruzzo regions and earning her a 2015 TV WEEK Logie Award nomination for Best New Talent. She also co-wrote, co-produced and hosted the ABC prime-time series Silvia’s Italian Table in 2016.
Outside of food and television, Silvia has enjoyed a career as a celebrated opera singer and actress. In 2022, she released her debut solo classical album with Universal Music, which topped the Classical Charts for over 20 weeks. That same year, she performed with Andrea Bocelli at his Sydney concert, a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Inspiration Starts Here
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