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1
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a rolling boil. Cook the pasta to al dente according to the package time. Reserve 60 ml of pasta water before draining.
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2
While the pasta cooks, inspect each dried pepper: it must be completely desiccated — rigid, rattling when shaken, with no give in the skin. Remove the stem and seeds with care; the skin is fragile and will shatter if forced. Set the prepared peppers on a dry surface; any residual moisture will cause violent oil spattering.
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3
Heat the olive oil in a wide, shallow pan to 180 °C. This is where the dish lives or dies: lower the first pepper into the oil and fry 5–7 seconds per side, no more. The pepper will blister, swell slightly, and shift from deep red to a brighter, translucent scarlet. At 10 seconds it begins to blacken and turn bitter. Remove immediately with a slotted spoon or tongs and drain on paper. Fry the remaining peppers one at a time, returning the oil to temperature between each.
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4
In the same oil, over low heat, add the whole garlic clove and sauté until pale gold and fragrant, then discard it. The oil now carries both the pepper flavour and the garlic. Remove from the heat.
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5
Drain the pasta and toss immediately in the pan with the garlic-pepper oil, adding a splash of reserved pasta water if needed to coat each strand or piece evenly. The pasta should gleam, not pool.
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6
At the moment of serving — not before — crumble the fried peperoni cruschi between the fingers over the plated pasta. The crunch dissipates within seconds of contact with moisture; crumbling must be the final act. Finish with grated ricotta forte over each portion. Serve at once.