Iron Skillet Spaghetti

Skillet Spaghetti 3

It is a hilarious time on the dining table when the little children are eating spaghetti. Funny & messy too, but once in a while I let my kids have that messy time while they eat, for they do enjoy the spaghetti while they are having fun. Those long unmanageable strings hanging down from the fork & then from their mouth and the intentionally “ZOOOOP”, when they all disappear inside at one shot behind that gleeful smile. For some reason when it is spaghetti, they always want to feed themselves. The twinkling mischievious looks, the sauce studded mouth & a full tummy.. well it is worth it.

Now to the Skillet pasta… or “Skilletini” as they call it in Johnny Carinos. If you have ever visited this restaurant, you would know what I am talking about. When you order the Skilletini, it comes hissing, sizzling & steaming in an iron skillet- sounds more like a Fajita than an order of Pasta. And it is delicious, with the vegetables ( you can order your choice of meat or shrimp) , & pasta sizzling hot in the spicy Marinara Sauce. No I am not doing a review here… we all just love the look, feel & taste of this dish. Here – sending this to JUST FOR U hosted by Alka of Sindhi Rasoi… this is for my Family.

Having an iron skillet at home, which i have been using for the past 12 years, I recreate the Skilletini quite often at home. Everyone loves it, & it is quick – a 30 minute meal. I usually add some protein to it… but did not while I made it today.. It is a pretty free style recipe, add whatever you want kind of thing. So please cook your own kind.

Ingredients:

Uncooked Spaghetti for about 4 people
4 cloves of Garlic peeled & minced
1 medium Onions Chopped into Thick Chunks
4 Stalks of Celery- leaves & all chopped into small pieces
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Red Chilli Flakes (Adjust amount to your taste)
Cracked Black Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Sugar
1 Bell Pepper/Capsicum Cut into Strips (Use any kind you want)
1.5 Cups Broccoli florets
1 Medium sized Tomatoes Chopped
2 Cups Tomato Puree
Fresh or Dried Parsely & Oregano (or any other herbs you want)
Salt
Fresh Grind of Black Pepper
& A Cast Iron Skillet (GO ahead & use any other thick bottomed pan if you do not have the Iron Skillet)

Note: Add any of your favorite Veggies. Makes sense to add beans or Tofu (or any meat if you want ) to make it a complete Family meal.

Preparation

Cook Spaghetti al dente according to instruction. Drain but SAVE the water!

Heat the oil in the skillet. Add the Red Pepper Flakes & the cracked Black Pepper.

(If you are using any kind of meat/poultry add them now, & cook until they are done)

When the peppers sizzle add the minced garlic. Stir them for a minute, making sure they do not get dark. Add the Celery, Onions & the Peppers. Stir Fry till the Onions are translucent.

Now add the chopped tomatoes, Tomato puree & the sugar & salt. Add 1/2 cup of the drained water. Combine well with the existing things in the skillet. Cover & simmer at low heat for about 10 minutes. Uncover & add the Broccoli & any other veggies if you are using them. Cover & simmer for another 5-7 minutes.

Uncover add the boiled Spaghetti to the sauce & increase the heat to high. Add the herbs. Combine the sauce with the pasta & cook while tossing them till the sauce almost dries up in the pan & you start to hear the hiss & the sizzle. Garnish with freshly ground black pepper & fresh herbs if you want.

Serve Immediately !

As usual we had a great Table Time:-) The Flavors merge in better with the spaghetti being actually cooked with the sauce rather than adding it on the pasta separateley. Some of you might like it with a sprinkle of cheese on the top. Again make it your way….This is being sent to FIC Orange Started by Sunshinemom of Tongue Ticklers & hosted this time by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen & to Vaishalii’s Vegan-Italian Event.

Tags: 30 minute meals, broccoli, cast iron skillet, celery, family dinner, Garlic, herbs, homemade sauce, italian, johnny carinos, marinara sauce, olive oil, onion, Pasta & Pizza, pepper, Sauce, skillet pasta, skillet spaghetti, skilletini, spaghetti, spaghetti in a skillet, vegan, vegetables, Vegetarian recipe

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 7th, 2009 at 1:03 pm and is filed under Main Dishes, Pasta & Pizza. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

31 Responses to “Iron Skillet Spaghetti”

Cham Says:
February 7th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Is there any kid who doesn’t like pasta? I use my skillet for frying, probably my next pasta dish should be in skillet! Great dinner!

I really haven’t heard of a kid not liking pasta…
PG Says:
February 7th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
Never tried my spaghetti in the skillet. I have tried to reccreate the fried Chinese noodles by frying them on high heat in a steel pan recently, but it was nowhere near the taste of the original. I guess, the cast iron skillet is the key.
Love your pictures, especially the one of the steaming spaghetti!

Thanks PG! Yeah the iron skillet can retain that heat without burning the food!
Natasha - 5 Star Foodie Says:
February 7th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
Great idea. Makes the spaghetti very flavorful, I bet.

Thanks Natasha!
Indhu Says:
February 7th, 2009 at 6:58 pm
the sphagetti looks awesome
must have tasted yummy… will try this recipe for sure

Thanks Indhu!
Sharmila Says:
February 7th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Lemme name it tawa spaghetti Reading about your kiddos is always fun.

Tawa Spaghetti sounds good:-)
Ann Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 4:16 am
wow what a yummy spaghetti…and the new look is amazing too.

Thanks Ann!
Peter Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 4:23 am
Soma, this looks wonderful…great idea for my new skillet.

Thanks Peter! Do give it try:-)
aquadaze Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 8:31 am
nice one soma. looks absolutely delicious

Thanks Aquadaze!
Aparna Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 9:09 am
Looks absolutely delicious. We had pasta tonight.
Thanks for painting this post “orange” for FIC.

Thanks Aparna!
Rashmi Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 9:20 am
Awesome!
Thanks to you I learnt of the BloggerAid event, and felt inspired to start blogging again

Rashmi I am glad that u are back to blogging:-) also that u could contribute…
Sunshinemom Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 10:29 am
Looks delicious, and yes – I love the zoop sound too:) They have grown out of it, but sometimes I still find us doing it:)

Thanks harini!! Not that i do not get tempted myself once in a while:-)
Alka Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 10:56 am
Been here three times(this is 4th) but darn the slow net connection,i was unable to have a DEKHO at delicious pasta,Now that it is visible, i absolutely loved the broccoli over it…Thanks for a delicious entry

Thanks Alka!!
Nazarina A Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 11:38 am
This is pure comfort in action dear. I am with the kids on this one ha! ha! Thanks mom! You have that extra sauce going on here that I love!

Thanks Nazarina:-)
Asha Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 2:38 pm
Beautiful looking Pasta, my kids love it too. Looks great, enjoy! )

Thanks Asha!
indosungod Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
The kids absolutely love pasta. It looks great, I would (I am not a pasta lover) even love a bowl and I can go ZOOOP

LOL.. Thanks!
Meera Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
Beautiful!! Loved all the pictures. If you like, you can send it to Vegan – Italy event at Vaishali’s holy cow!
http://earthvegan.blogspot.com/2009/01/its-vegan-world-food-event.html

Thanks Meera.. & thnx for letting me know.. I did send it to her.
mohana Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
hmn..nice new look of the website !!
and wondeful recipie as usual !! Good Going ecurry !!

Thanks a lot Mohana! & thanks for taking time to visit
Vaishali Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 8:38 pm
Soma, this looks delicious. To answer your question, sure, go ahead and send it in to It’s A Vegan World. I’d love to add it.

Thanks Vaishalli!! & I did:-)
mahimaa Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
ohh i am dreaming of spaghetti now those pics…. man! gorgeous..

Mahimaa Thank you!
jayasree Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 5:21 am
Mouthwatering pics… Loved the brocolli in it.

Thanks Jayashree. I loev my broccolis too:-)
veggiebelly Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Spaghetti is so much fun! Have you seen kung fu panda? The scene where he loudly slurps the noodles is hillarious! I love the close up of the steaming, drained spaghetti

Thanks !! i am yet to see that movie..:-( i am yet to see a LOT of movies….
sandeepa Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
When it is “zoop” I always remember the Maggi noodles ad

I CANNOT recollect that ad!!
Corey Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Skillets and Spaghetti?!

Who would have thought! This dish looks awesome, I’ll be adding some chicken for some protein.

You have a great site, keep on cooking!

Thanks Corey!! We do add think strips of breast to this sometimes…
Uma Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
If you give me that bowl of spaghetti, I promise to make that “Zooooop” sound while eating, ha ha ha! So mouth-watering Soma! Stunning pics.

LOL! Thanks Uma.
Usha Says:
February 10th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
This sounds delightful, and I would have never thought to make spaghetti in a skillet!

Thanks Usha! We saw it first time in Johnny Carinos
Jude Says:
February 10th, 2009 at 9:16 pm
My first thought was the spaghetti would stick all over but the skillet must be so well seasoned with all those years of use.

that skillet is one of my best friends in the kitchen, easy to use & clean.. just a few drops of oil after every wash.. & its going to be with me for ever:-)
Navita Hakim Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
Hey Congrats Soma…on HHDD win! Well deserved.
mandira Says:
February 21st, 2009 at 5:01 pm
wow, love the pic soma, the spaghetti looks fab.
Pragyan Says:
February 27th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
Soma – This is awesome. Should try pasta in the skillet next time.
Dom Says:
May 9th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Just cooked this today – was looking for a Spaghetti recipe that was not a bolognese. We really enjoyed it and it is now in our recipe book!

I am so glad you liked it. Thank you very much for taking your time & letting me know. I really appreciate!
Watch Glee Says:
December 25th, 2009 at 4:41 am
http://nomnomnomblog.com/cookbook/