If you’re watching Tom Kerridge Cooks Italy tonight (ITV, 7.30pm), prepare to rethink your dinner plans. This week’s standout recipe is a creamy cheese and pancetta rigatoni, and it sounds seriously delicious.

Tom uses Taleggio to create the silkiest sauce, then finishes the dish with crunchy sage breadcrumbs, toasted hazelnuts and plenty of Parmesan. Yum! Better still, it’s on the table in under 30 minutes.

Equally tempted? We’ve rounded up all the M&S ingredients you’ll need to make it at home.

tom kerride cooks italy creamy pancetta rigatoni
M&S
tom kerridge cooks italy pork steaks with a creamy chestnut and mushroom sauce
M&S

Tom Kerridge Cooks Italy Episode 5: Trento & Emilia-Romagna

This week, Tom heads into Italy’s spectacular mountain regions to meet the family behind M&S Rigatoni (£2.30, 500g). At this point, we’re watching as much for the travel inspo as we are the food. There, he discovers that pure Alpine spring water and generations of pasta-making expertise are behind its quality. Who knew?

Naturally, Tom puts it to very good use in his indulgent pasta dish that’s gone straight on our must-make list.

tom kerridge cooks italy pork steaks with a creamy chestnut and mushroom sauce
M&S

Next stop on his culinary journey is Emilia-Romagna during the chestnut harvest. It’s demanding work, but Tom uses the chestnuts to delicious effect in his hearty pork steaks with a creamy chestnut and mushroom sauce.

Using M&S Whole Chestnuts (£3.25) rather than shell-on ones seriously reduces the faff, as there’s no cracking or cooking them from scratch. We’ll take the shortcut.

Ready to get busy in the kitchen? Read on for the full list of ingredients and recipe for Tom’s rigatoni.

tom kerridge cooks italy ms creamy pancetta rigatoni
M&S

Tom’s Creamy Cheese and Pancetta Rigatoni

Serves 2
Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

30g M&S Remarksable Value unsalted butter
16 sage leaves
25g M&S white breadcrumbs
3 tbsp M&S chopped hazelnuts
100g M&S Italian unsmoked diced pancetta
2 British echalion shallots, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
100ml white wine
100ml M&S chicken stock
1 tsp Dijon mustard
250ml double cream
80g Taleggio, cut into cubes
1 sprig rosemary, leaves finely chopped
225g M&S Italian rigatoni
20g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated

Method

  1. Heat half the butter with a splash of oil in a small frying pan over a medium heat. When foaming, add 10 sage leaves and cook until crisp. Remove from the pan and set aside. Finely chop the remaining 6 sage leaves. Add the breadcrumbs to the pan and sauté until golden and crisp. Stir in the hazelnuts and cook for 30sec, then remove from the heat.
  2. Place a medium sauté pan over high heat and add the pancetta. Cook for 5min, stirring, until golden and crisp. Remove from the pan and set aside on kitchen paper.
  3. Return the pan to the heat over medium, and add the remaining butter, shallots and garlic, then cook for 2-3min. Add the wine, turn the heat back up, and simmer until reduced by half. Add the chicken stock and reduce by half. Add the Dijon mustard and cream and simmer for 3-4min, until thickened. Add the Taleggio, remaining chopped sage leaves and rosemary.
  4. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pan of salted boiling water for 7-8min, until al dente.
  5. Drain the pasta with a slotted spoon into the creamy sauce along with two thirds of the Parmesan, the pancetta and a ladle of pasta cooking water. Spoon into bowls and top with the breadcrumbs, remaining Parmesan and crispy sage leaves.

Check back next week for the final recipes from Tom Kerridge Cooks Italy to try at home.

Headshot of Stacey Smith
Stacey Smith
Senior Food & Drink Editor

Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila.   Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine.    Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business.    You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk