The Viral Gigi Hadid Pasta – Pinoy Home Cooking Version

Have you heard of the viral Gigi Hadid pasta?

It’s been popping up on my foodie feeds for a while and I’ve been wanting to try it. I am loving these viral pasta recipes that make cooking pasta easy. I’ve already made the viral Feta & Cherry Tomatoes pasta several times, but still haven’t written the blog post (that is next on my blog to-do list).

THE VIRAL GIGI HADID PASTA

So, Gigi’s original recipe calls for:

• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1/4 cup of onions
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 Tablespoon of vodka
• 1/2 cup of heavy cream
• salt & pepper
• 1 tsp chili flakes
• 1 Tablespoon of butter
• 1/4 cup of parmesan
• 1/2 lb. pasta (she used orecchiette)
• Parmesan & fresh basil for topping

1. Heat olive oil in a pan, add onions & garlic, and cook until soft.
2. Add 1/4 tomato paste. Cook until slightly darker and caramelized.
3. Add vodka, stir, cook until you can no longer smell the alcohol (but she didn’t have vodka on hand so she omitted this).
4. Add cream and chili flakes. Stir.
5. Season with salt & pepper. Stir.
6. Add cooked pasta + butter. Add 1/4 cup pasta water to make the sauce sauccyyyyy. Mix.
7. Mix in the parmesan.
8. Serve topped with parmesan and basil (she didn’t have basil on hand, either).

This recipe, I think, only makes enough for 2-4 servings. I need to make a bigger batch that will feed 6 people plus some extra for snacking / merienda the next day. I’m doubling her recipe.

Also, I think the amount of vodka is a little low. This recipe is basically Gigi’s easy version of a Penne alla Vodka, and many Penne alla Vodka recipes call for about 1 cup of vodka.

MY PINOY HOME COOKING VERSION

Okay, so let’s make the Gigi Hadid pasta!

First, I asked my sister to buy some vodka on her next grocery run. She came back with some Stoli.

I had all the other ingredients on hand except basil. I really need to buy some basil plants soon, but it’s too late now. Our parmesan is kept in the freezer – it lasts longer and doesn’t mold. I find that cheeses tend to mold even in the refrigerator, and freezing them really does let you keep them for longer.

I also don’t like measuring onions and stuff like this for cooking, because I don’t like to leave excess in the ref that will just rot away or end up being tossed after some time. I prefer using up a whole onion or a whole pack of tomato paste / cream. It’s just easier to cook this way and I don’t need to worry about having to use up the “extras” soon.

So this is how I made Gigi’s pasta (family-size), using locally available ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of olive oil
• 2 small onions, diced (or use 1 large onion)
• 1 whole head of garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup of vodka
• 1 whole pack of tomato paste
• 2 packs of all-purpose cream (I started with 1 pack but the sauce was looking dry, so I added another pack of cream, ending up using 2 packs. Take note, according to Gigi, the pasta must be SAUCCYYYYY!!!)
• salt & pepper
• 1 pack of chili flakes (McCormick)
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 500g pasta

1. Boil some salted water for pasta. Adequately salting the pasta boiling water is important so that your pasta won’t taste bland. While we’re waiting for the water to boil…
2. Heat pan on medium, add olive oil, add onions & garlic. Cook until onions are soft.
3. Add 1 pack of tomato paste, let it cook until the tomato paste is a bit caramelized.
4. Add vodka, let it cook until the alcohol is evaporated (you don’t smell the alcohol anymore). I intentionally added more vodka because I thought 2 Tbsp is too little.
5. Add cream, stir. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Let it bubble away on low, low heat while you cook the pasta.
6. The water should be boiling by now. Boil pasta. Don’t forget to reserve about a cup of pasta water.
7. Back to the sauce – add chili flakes (adjust to how spicy you like it). Stir in parmesan and butter. Add cooked & drained pasta. Add pasta water to make the sauce sauccyyyyy! I ended up adding close to 1 cup of pasta water. Mix well. Check seasoning, adjust salt & pepper if needed. Done!
8. Serve! Top with parmesan and fresh basil.

VERDICT on the Gigi Hadid Pasta – Easy & Delicious!!!!

This pasta is DELICIOUS!!! It’s really, really good, considering how easy it is to make and how there is NO MEAT!

I like the use of tomato paste – it’s cheaper (a pack only costs around P25) versus using 2 cans of diced tomatoes like in other Penne alla Vodka recipes.

Some tweaks I will do in the future – sis requested more vodka! Apparently, 1/2 cup of vodka isn’t enough. I will probably increase this to 1 cup of vodka next time.

1 pack of McCormick chili flakes (crushed red pepper) is about the right amount of heat – it’s just a little bit spicy but not too spicy.

Everybody loved this pasta. It’s very flavorful, and did I say easy???! The sauce is thick and clings to the pasta.

I will definitely be making this pasta again, and will include this in our regular dish rotation. In fact, by popular request from family members, I will be making this again next week! Okay, I should really buy some basil plants soon.

Pair this pasta dish with your choice of meat – usually roasted or fried chicken. We just had some pork tocino as the partner ulam, and I liked the combo, and of course, we also had rice, and I also served some par-boiled vegetables (I already boiled some green leafy vegetables in salted water on the day of vegetable delivery and keep them in the ref in containers with draining racks. This way, the veggies are cooked before they start wilting, and we always have vegetables ready to eat – they can be quickly stir-fried or eaten plain with some oyster sauce dip).

If you are looking for an easy but delicious pasta dish, try this pasta recipe!