MAIN INGREDIENTS
The carbonara we know today is prepared by simply tossing spaghetti with guanciale (cured pork jowl), egg yolks, and Pecorino Romano cheese. Despite its simplicity, this dish remains one of Rome's favorites, equally popular throughout the country.
Even though carbonara is considered a typical Roman dish today, its origins are quite vague and often disputed. The name is said to have been derived from the carbonari, woodcutters and charcoal-makers who lived in the Appenine mountains northeast of Rome, and who supposedly cooked their pasta over a hardwood charcoal fire and tossed it with eggs and cheese.
MOST ICONIC Carbonara
View moreNamed after Amatrice, a provincial town in the Sabine Hills northeast of Rome; the iconic Amatriciana sauce is often considered a part of the "holy trinity of Roman pasta", together with carbonara and cacio e pepe. Amatriciana was invented in the 17th century by adding tomatoes to the already famous gricia sauce – diced tomatoes are sautéed in fat rendered from juicy bits of guanciale (cured pork jowl), then tossed together with grated pecorino cheese and either spaghetti or bucatini pasta.
The first recipe for Amatriciana was published in the 1790 cookbook L’Apicio Moderno by Francesco Leonardi, a renowned Roman chef and author. Over time, this classic Italian dish became so popular it was featured in several movies, from Alberto Sordi’s 1954 film An American in Rome and Luciano Salce’s 1978 Where Are You Going on Holiday? to Ryan Murphy’s Eat Pray Love, in which Julia Roberts joyfully wolfs down a portion of spaghetti all’Amatriciana while sitting on the terrace of a typical Roman osteria.
MOST ICONIC Amatriciana
View moreMAIN INGREDIENTS
As with so many classic Italian dishes, the story of pasta alla gricia is one of unclear and often disputed origin. Pasta alla gricia is sometimes called amatriciana bianca (lit. white amatriciana), which reflects the common root of these two pasta dishes, though gricia is known to be older than the tomato-based amatriciana sauce.
Moreover, gricia is said to have originated in Grisciano, a small hamlet not far from Amatrice, the birthplace of spaghetti all'amatriciana. These two mountain towns nestled in the Apennine peaks between the neighboring regions of Lazio and Abruzzo have long been known as home to semi-nomadic shepherds, who were often credited with inventing this simple sauce.
MOST ICONIC Pasta alla gricia
View moreMAIN INGREDIENTS
This ancient dish with Roman origins is regarded as one of the simplest and most satisfying Italian dishes. Cacio e pepe consists of pasta (usually spaghetti), aged Pecorino Romano cheese, salt, and lots of ground black pepper. Since the ingredients are easy to transport and do not spoil easily, it was once the favorite dish of Roman shepherds.
The spicy pepper protected the shepherds from the effects of cold weather during the night, while the pasta provided them with the carbohydrates they needed to perform their back-breaking labor. However, this simple meal is so good that the famous chef and television personality Anthony Bourdain described it by saying it "could be the greatest thing in the history of the world."
MOST ICONIC Cacio e pepe
View moreMAIN INGREDIENTS
Spaghetti aglio olio e peperoncino is a classic Italian dish originating from the Lazio area. This cucina povera staple is made with just a few simple ingredients such as spaghetti, garlic, olive oil, parsley, and peperoncino rosso or diavolillo (lit. little devil), a small red chili pepper that adds a spicy kick of heat to the dish.
The spaghetti are cooked until al dente and tossed with garlic and crushed chili sautéed in olive oil. This Roman staple is easily found in most trattorias in the city and the Lazio region, but it’s also popular in the neighboring regions of Campania and Abruzzo.
This timeless Italian classic is another staple of cucina povera - the traditional Italian peasant-style cooking that makes as much as possible with the fewest ingredients. Even though the official name of this simple, iconic dish literally translates to spaghetti, garlic, and oil, there's also an optional ingredient that adds a spicy kick and a nice touch of warmth - the tiny red chili pepper known in Italian as peperoncino rosso, or diavolillo (lit. little devil), as it is affectionately referred to in some parts of the country.
The dish is made simply by tossing spaghetti together with garlic (and crushed chili for aglio, olio, and peperoncino) sautéed in olive oil. It is sometimes suggested that this basic pasta recipe might have originated in the neighboring regions of Abruzzo and Campania, but the Italian Academy of Cuisine officially listed spaghetti aglio e olio as a typical dish of Lazio.
VARIATIONS OF Spaghetti aglio e olio
MOST ICONIC Spaghetti aglio e olio
Another classic of Roman cuisine, penne all’arrabbiata is a pasta dish prepared with a fiery hot sauce made with tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, and red chili peppers. As the Italian word arrabbiata literally means angry, this meal is often mistranslated as angry pasta – the name, in fact, refers to the pasta’s intense, spicy sauce, which packs such a punch that it can easily make you red in the face.
In the absence of penne, ziti rigati or rigatoni can also be used. Even though it is traditionally enjoyed as an entrée or primo piatto, this simple, yet flavorful pasta recipe certainly holds its own as more than a mere prelude to the main course.
Serve with
MOST ICONIC Penne all'arrabbiata
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Pasta alla zozzona is a traditional pasta dish originating from Rome. The dish is made with a combination of short pasta such as penne or rigatoni, pork sausage, tomatoes, red wine, olive oil, and grated Pecorino Romano. The sauce is made with all of the ingredients except for the pasta.
Once the pasta has been cooked, it’s mixed with the sauce, and the dish is then served with grated Pecorino cheese on top. The word zozzona in the name of the dish means that something is full of everything and it’s hard to describe, referring to the richness of the dish itself.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
The dish that's known in the United States as fettuccine Alfredo is just an extra-buttery version of pasta al burro, an Italian classic made with fettuccine, butter, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. The story of fettuccine Alfredo dates back to 1908 in Rome.
Chef Alfredo Di Lelio first created this dish for his pregnant wife out of a desire to create something simple, yet tasty and nutritious, and he subsequently began serving it at his restaurant. He added more butter and cheese to the original recipe for pasta al doppio burro, and created a hearty triple butter sauce in the process.
Serve with
MOST ICONIC Fettuccine burro e Parmigiano
Rigatoni con la pajata is a classic dish of the Roman cucina povera. La pajata is a term referring to intestines of calves who were only fed with their mothers' milk and have never eaten grass. The intestines are cleaned and skinned, but the milk they drank is left inside - when cooked, the combination of the heat and the enzymes coagulates it, thus creating a thick, creamy, ricotta-like sauce.
Nowadays there are not many places that keep this dish on their menus, but those who do have their devotees, claiming that the pajata cooked with onions, celery, carrots, tomatoes, white wine, lardo, and spices served over rigatoni is a true delicacy.
MOST ICONIC Rigatoni con la pajata
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TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 15 Lazian Pasta Dishes” list until February 13, 2025, 4,069 ratings were recorded, of which 3,371 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.