Chunky, deep-flavored tomato sauce with guanciale

This is a follow-on to the recent Ellen/Chiaroscuro conversations about the magnificent pig. (See the "Food & Drink" category for previous porky posts.)

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My order from Murray's arrived, and I couldn't wait to use the guanciale. Oh my, what depth of flavor that bit of pig jowl adds. Mille grazie, Mario Batali -- as with so much else, I learned about guanciale from slavishly watching Molto Mario.

Sharing the recipe is a bit difficult -- but I'll give it a try -- because I used what I had on hand, and as usual, worked more by eye and taste than by measurement.

Makes enough sauce for 8 generous portions of spaghetti. Well, that's a pretty good guess, based on the amount I've used so far. (It freezes well.)

Ingredients:

• Diced carrot, onion and celery. I buy the Trader Joe's 15 oz. combo, their Mirepoix. This works out to about 2/3 cup of each element [See Note 1, below]
• 4 garlic cloves, put through a garlic press or chopped very fine. This amount will add flavor, but not produce a specific garlicky taste. If you really want to taste the garlic, use more
• 1/4 lb. guanciale. It comes from Murray's thin-sliced, in 1/2 lb. packages. It's packed in two layers, so use one layer. If you can find guanciale in a chunk (I've used this in the past, but can't remember my source), you can cut it into batons, about 1" x 1/4" [See Note 2, below]
• 2 x 28 oz. cans of peeled, whole plum tomatoes, San Marzano provenance preferred. I can usually find the Cento brand in my supermarket and it's fine, though if you see the can shown below, grab it! It's the realest deal there is.

• Herbs, fresh if you have 'em, dried if you haven't: oregano, thyme, rosemary. Fresh: 1 tablespoon each, finely chopped; dried, 1 teaspoon each. Add more to taste later if you feel the need  
• Salt (Morton's Kosher salt preferred) and fresh-ground pepper 


• Dried red pepper flakes, a pinch or two 

And of course a good chunk of imported Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano for grating over all.

[1] This is the classic French mirepoix, the base for so many soups and sauces. Substituting sweet pepper for the carrot, Italian cooks call it a soffrito. Carrot, however, cuts the acidity of the tomatoes.

[2] Yes, you can use pancetta instead. It has the virtue of being readily available in most good supermarkets. The guanciale, however, adds a splendid depth of flavor all its own. Also, you may not get enough fat rendered out of the pancetta before it starts to crisp. If you don't have enough, add some olive oil to the pan.

Equipment:

This is a one-pot sauce, but the pot you'll need is a large (12"-14") deep heavy skillet (or a Dutch oven) with cover. You'll also find that tongs come in handy.

Method for the sauce:

• Over low/moderate heat, render the guanciale fat. If you're using the sliced quanciale, make sure you separate the slices in the pan, as you'd do with bacon. Keep an eye on it; you want to make sure the fatty part is just turning opaque -- you don't want to go all the way to crisp. The guanciale should give up enough fat to sauté the veggies. (You can always add a little olive oil later, if the pan seems too dry.) 
• Remove the guanciale from the pan and set aside. Add the chopped veggies and garlic to the fat remaining in the pan, add a good pinch or three of salt. Stirring occasionally, allow the mixture to soften --the onions will become translucent -- but not brown.
• Pour the tomatoes into a bowl with their juice, then plunge your hand into the bowl and crush each tomato in your fist. This is fun -- you'll feel like a kid messing with finger paints. 
• Add the tomatoes and their juice to the pan. Stir, and adjust the heat to bring the mixture to a simmer (bubbles just breaking the surface).  
• Stir in the herbs. 
• Adjust the heat so that the sauce maintains a slow simmer. 
• Cover the pot. Simmer for an hour or so, until the ingredients have melded and the sauce has thickened -- one recipe I have calls the result "the consistency of oatmeal." 
• Stir from time to time during the hour, and taste to see if you need to add salt or more herbs.
• About a half-hour into the simmer, break up the reserved guanciale and add to the sauce. At the same time add a pinch or two of the red pepper flakes.

When the sauce is done, you can use it immediately; or cool it to room temperature and refrigerate in a covered bowl -- it's even better if it sits in the fridge overnight; or you can divide it into portions and freeze. Or some combination thereof.

Preparing pasta:

I use the kind of big stockpot with pasta insert shown here (click the image to see it enlarged). It's a great all-purpose pot for soups and stocks as well as for steaming vegetables and cooking pasta.

• Cook the pasta in salted boiling water -- enough to allow plenty of room for the pasta to move freely in the water -- to the al dente stage. (The Italian brand of spaghetti I usually buy, for example, says "Cooks in 8 minutes. Taste at 7 minutes." A definite warning not to overcook.) 
• While the pasta is cooking, heat a quantity of the sauce in a pot large enough to hold the amount of cooked  pasta you're making. (Why not use the pot in which you cooked the sauce!) Recheck the seasonings. 
• Drain the cooked pasta, reserving some of the cooking water; pour the pasta into the hot sauce and, with the tongs, toss thoroughly to coat the pasta. (If the sauce is too thick, add a couple of spoonfuls of the pasta cooking water.)
• Use the tongs to take the sauced pasta from pot to bowls. If there is any sauce left in the bottom of the pot, spoon it over the pasta. (The ideal quantities, which you'll have to discover from your own experience, leave little sauce once you've tossed the pasta.)

Grate a good quantity of cheese over the top and serve. Mangia bene!