Spaghetti Napolitan

For many Japanese people, Spaghetti Napolitan brings a sense of nostalgia. I remember my mom loving this classic yōshoku dish, especially the Nagoya kissaten (café)–style version — served on a sizzling iron plate with tamagoyaki on the bottom and ketchup-based spaghetti piled on top.

It’s one of those dishes I find myself craving every now and then, so I just have to make it at home!

I hope you’ll enjoy it too.

Ingredients

serving: 2 plates

• 2L water

• 20g(0.70oz) salt

• 200g(7.05oz) pasta noodles(100g for one person)

• 1 teaspoon olive oil

-for the sauce

• 1 tablespoon tomato paste

• 4 tablespoons ketchup

• 1 tablespoon milk

• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

• 10g(0.35oz) unsalted butter

• 1/2 green pepper

• 2-3 mushrooms

• 45-50g(1.58oz-1.76oz) onion

• 1 tsp neutral oil

• black pepper to taste

• parmesan cheese

• hot sauce

Instructions

1. Mix in a small bowl:

   • 1 tbsp tomato paste

   • 4 tbsp ketchup

   • 1 tbsp milk

   • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

   Set the sauce for later.

2. Wipe the mushrooms clean, trim the bottoms slightly, and slice thinly.

3. Remove the seeds and white pith from the green peppers, then slice thinly.

4. Thinly slice the onion.

5. Cut the bacon into bite-size pieces.

6. Prepare 2L of water in a large pot. Bring it to a boil and add 20g salt.

   Add 200g pasta and cook for 1 minute longer than the package instructions.

   Once cooked, drain and coat the noodles evenly with 1 tsp olive oil. Set aside.

7. Preheat a pan over medium heat.

8. Add 1 tsp neutral oil, then sauté the onion and bacon for 1–2 minutes until the onion softens.

9. Add the green pepper and mushrooms, and cook for another 1–2 minutes until tender.

10. Push the ingredients to one side of the pan and pour the sauce mixture into the empty side. Let it bubble and cook, adjusting the heat if necessary. If there are browned bits on the bottom of the pan, scrape them up into the sauce. Mix everything together evenly.

11. Lower the heat to low, add the pasta, and toss until coated.

12. Stir in 10g unsalted butter and mix well. Sprinkle with black pepper, and it’s ready!