Killer Spaghetti

I haven’t made a post about food in a couple of days, so how about learning a little about a local classic, spaghetti all’assassina (“killer spaghetti”). This is a dish we never heard of and we even asked El’s cousin, who is from Rome if she ever heard of it, and she hadn’t either.
Locals have told us we have to try it and many restaurants have it on the menu. I have now ordered it twice and I really liked it both times. I bet I will order it again.
The first time I got it was at a bar on my street called Farmacia Dei Sani and I loved it from the first bite. It is a totally new way to cook spaghetti and unlike any I have ever had. After eating it, I was intrigued enough to Youtube this recipe to see how they do it (it is frequently characterized as "the best Italian dish you've never heard of"). Some people know how to make classic risotto where you sauté raw, starchy rice and add broth by the ladleful to the frying rice, stirring continuously until the rice is cooked. This is similar to that method.
Use a cast iron pan that is wide enough to hold raw spaghetti in the bottom. Heat a saucepan with boiling water mixed with a can of tomato paste. Next, to the iron pan add olive oil, 3 cloves of smashed garlic, and a handful of crushed hot pepper. Then add a quart of canned tomato sauce. When it starts to boil, add the raw, uncooked spaghetti. Let it fry in the tomato sauce. Eventually, the sauce will thicken and start to get a little charred. You keep tossing the pasta until it starts to stick to the pan and pick up some of the char. Then you will add the boiling tomato paste water one ladle at a time until the liquid is absorbed by the pasta. Repeating until the pasta is cooked to your liking. When it is finished, the pasta should be well infused with tomato sauce (not just coated) and some of the pasta should be crispy with some flecks of char- not enough to taste burnt, but enough to give the flavor just a little something extra.
The second time I ordered this dish was at a restaurant called Al Sorso Preferito. I don’t know if I can say this dish was invented here, but the first known preparation of it was here, so I guess they are supposed to make the definitive recipe, however, for some reason I liked the Farmacia Dei Sani version a little better. I don’t know if it was the level of spiciness or the flavor of the sauce, but even though both were very good, I had to give the edge to my local spot.
For as much as I liked it, I am willing to try other preparations for additional comparison- of course.

crispy. crunchy. killer.