Mid-week pasta calls for snug & deep flavors. A blanket that comes in pasta form kinda thing. This Rigatoni Tyrolese with Saffron brings you a fabric of crispy bacon, smooth cream, and fragrant saffron. It’s easy & straightforward. Comfort on a plate. We all need some love and comfort sometimes, don’t we?

Rigatoni Tyrolese with Saffron
Ingredients for 2
- 250g pasta (I used Rigatoni)
- 100g bacon, sliced or cubed
- 200 ml cream
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 100 ml dry white wine
- 10-12 saffron threads, soaked in 3 tablespoons of warm water for about 30 minutes (keep the water!)
- 7 sage leaves
- 3 sage leaves, finely sliced
- parmesan cheese, grated
- salt & pepper
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
Make your crispy sage & bacon topping. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan and gently fry 7 sage leaves from both side. Transfer the sage onto some kitchen towel to soak up the extra oil. Afterwards, crisp up about 1 tablespoon of bacon in the hot oil. Transfer the bacon bits onto some kitchen towel as well.
Bring a pot of water to the boil, salt your pasta water (it should taste like the sea) and cook your pasta until al dente. Reserve about 1/2 a cup of pasta water for the sauce.
In the meantime, cook the onion, garlic, sage ribbons, & bacon in a pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil until soft. Add white wine & allow to reduce. Pour in cream, the saffron & saffron water, & some pasta cooking water and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt & pepper.
Drain your pasta once it’s cooked and add it to the cream sauce. Mix everything together and cook for another minute. Potentially season with some salt & pepper to taste. Plate pasta & sprinkle with crispy sage & bacon bits and some parmesan. Enjoy!
