A creamy, almost dry Neapolitan Pasta and Potatoes, made with mixed pasta, potatoes, lard, a little tomato paste and Parmigiano rind. Cooking the pasta and potatoes together in the same pot creates a thick, creamy consistency that brings everything together.
Peel the potatoes and cut them into cubes about 1.5–2 cm in size. Finely chop the onion and cut the lard into very small pieces. Scrape the outside of the Parmesan rind thoroughly and cut it into 3–4 pieces.
Place the lard in a large saucepan and cook over low heat for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once it begins to turn translucent and release its fat, add the onion and cook for another 2–3 minutes, until softened but not browned.
Add the potatoes and cook them in the rendered fat for 2–3 minutes, stirring gently. Add the tomato paste and stir until evenly distributed.
Pour in 800 g of water, add the Parmesan rind, and bring to a gentle boil.
Reduce the heat, cover with the lid slightly ajar, and cook for about 25–30 minutes. The potatoes should be tender but not completely falling apart.
Meanwhile, keep some hot water nearby to finish cooking the pasta.
Once the potatoes are tender, add the mixed pasta directly to the saucepan. Stir and cook over medium-low heat for the time indicated on the package.
Add hot water a little at a time and only as needed, stirring often. As the pasta cooks, some of the potato cubes will naturally break down and the starch released by the pasta will thicken the cooking liquid.
The pasta should finish al dente, creamy, and almost dry, rather than soupy.
Turn off the heat, add some freshly ground black pepper, and stir. Leave the Pasta e Patate to rest in the saucepan for 2–3 minutes, then serve hot.
Servings 4
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
The amount of water can vary slightly depending on the type of potato, the pasta you use, and the width of your saucepan. Once the pasta has been added, pour in extra water a little at a time. It is much easier to add more than to fix Pasta e Patate that has become too soupy.
Stir frequently after adding the pasta, particularly during the last few minutes. Some of the potatoes will naturally break down while the starch released by the pasta remains in the saucepan, creating the characteristic creamy consistency.
Always taste before adding salt. The lard and especially the Parmesan rind can already provide plenty of seasoning, and the amount needed will vary considerably depending on the rind.
The Parmesan rind should be thoroughly scraped and cleaned before use. It will soften during cooking and add flavor to the dish; if it becomes tender enough, you can serve it together with the Pasta e Patate.
If you want to make the version with provola, add it in small cubes after turning off the heat and stir until melted and stringy. Leave the Pasta e Patate slightly looser before adding it, as the cheese will thicken it further.
Looking for the inventor of Pasta e Patate alla Napoletana does not get us very far. There is no registered recipe and no date we can confidently point to. 1773 and the name Vincenzo Corrado are often mentioned, but the sources do not agree enough for us to say that this is where the story began.
It is much easier to imagine how the dish found its way into people's homes. Potatoes were inexpensive, pasta was filling, and leftovers were not something to waste. Lard, onion, sometimes a little tomato: not much else was needed.
The pasta itself tells part of the story. What we now buy ready-made as mixed pasta could once simply be the remains of several different pasta shapes gathered together. In Naples this mixture was known as munnezzaglia: large pieces, small pieces, broken shapes, whatever was left. Everything went into the same pot.
Then there was the cheese rind. That still had something to give before being thrown away. Cooked together with everything else, it became one of those small details that can still be found in many versions of Pasta e Patate today.
Anyone expecting soup may be surprised. Neapolitan Pasta e Patate can be so thick that it barely moves on the plate. It is “azzeccata” — literally, stuck or clinging — and that is exactly how many Neapolitans like it.
That happens because the pasta and potatoes do not take separate paths only to meet at the end. They cook together and gradually bind into one dish. The consistency is so distinctive that one look at the plate is enough to see how far it is from a brothy pasta and potato soup.
Provola, on the other hand, can divide families. Today the version with melted, stringy cheese is hugely popular both in Naples and elsewhere, to the point that for many people Pasta e Patate automatically means pasta, potatoes, and provola.
But it was not always that way, and it certainly is not the only Neapolitan Pasta e Patate. We have kept ours simpler, without provola. Not because the version with provola is any less Neapolitan, but because we wanted to start with the dish before someone decided to make it even richer.