Calamarata con Calamari e Pomodorini Vesuviani

Ingredients

• 400 g calamarata pasta, large ring-shaped pasta
• 500 g fresh calamari, cleaned, tubes cut into rings matching the pasta's diameter, tentacles separated and left whole
• 300 g Pomodoro del Piennolo del Vesuvio DOP cherry tomatoes, or the best available sweet-acid cherry variety
• 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
• 60 ml dry white wine, for deglazing
• 1 pinch dried chilli, optional; traditional in the coastal Campania version
• 1 tsp fine sea salt, plus more for pasta water

Method

1. 1
   Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a full boil. Drop in the calamarata and cook until 2 minutes short of the packet's al dente time. Reserve 250 ml of pasta water before draining. The pasta should be noticeably underdone at this stage — it will finish in the pan.
2. 2
   While the pasta cooks, clean the calamari immediately before use. Cut the tubes into rings that match the diameter of the calamarata. Leave the tentacles whole. The rings and tentacles must be dry — pat them with a clean cloth; surface moisture will cause steaming rather than searing.
3. 3
   Heat the olive oil in a wide sauté pan over the highest available flame. Add the garlic and, if using, the pinch of chilli. The oil is ready when the garlic colours at its edges — pale gold, not brown.
4. 4
   This is where the dish lives or dies. Add the calamari rings and tentacles in a single layer. Sauté at maximum heat for 90 seconds only, turning once. The rings should colour at their edges and release a brief hiss of steam. Remove from heat the moment the 90 seconds are complete — they will finish cooking in the sauce. Calamari held on heat beyond this point turns to rubber and cannot be corrected.
5. 5
   Return the pan to high heat. Deglaze immediately with the white wine, scraping the base of the pan. Let the wine reduce for 30 seconds until the sharp alcohol smell gives way to a rounder, integrated acidity.
6. 6
   Add the Piennolo cherry tomatoes. Cook at high heat for 3–4 minutes, pressing the tomatoes lightly so they burst and release their juice into the oil. The sauce should be vivid red-orange, glossy, and slightly loose — not jammy.
7. 7
   Add the drained pasta directly to the pan with a ladleful (approximately 80 ml) of the reserved pasta water. Toss continuously over high heat for 90 seconds. The pasta absorbs the tomato-squid liquid; the starch from the water binds the sauce into a light, slightly brothy consistency that pools inside each ring. Add further pasta water, a splash at a time, if the pan looks dry — the finished dish must not be dry.
8. 8
   Taste for salt. Plate immediately, distributing the calamari rings and tentacles so that squid rings and pasta rings intermingle visibly. Spoon any remaining broth in the pan over the top. Serve without delay — the dish cannot be made in advance.