Effortless dinners: Piri Piri Halloumi Pasta

Cornwall-based food writer Amy Sheppard’s everyday essential cookbook uses staple ingredients to give 100 new reasons to love cooking dinner. Words By Amy Sheppard

Piri Piri Halloumi Pasta

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour

1 tsp piri piri seasoning

225g (8 oz) halloumi, cut into 1–2cm (1⁄2–3⁄4in) cubes

375g (13 oz) dried rigatoni (or other pasta shape) oil, for frying

For the sauce:

1 large red (bell) pepper, deseeded and finely sliced

1 onion, finely sliced

1 tbsp tomato purée (paste)

1 tbsp piri piri seasoning

200g (7 oz) soft cheese

80g (23⁄4 oz) fresh spinach leaves, roughly chopped salad, to serve

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Mix together the flour and piri piri seasoning in a bowl. Add the halloumi cubes and use your hands to ensure they are dry and coated on all sides.

Add the halloumi to a large, dry, non-stick frying pan (skillet) and fry for 3–5 minutes over a medium heat, turning occasionally, until golden brown and crisp all over.

At the same time, add the pasta to a large saucepan of boiling salted water and cook for about 10 minutes or until just tender. Reserve 150ml (5fl oz) of the starchy pasta water before draining.

Remove the halloumi and add a little oil to the pan. Add the red pepper and onion and fry for 5 minutes over a medium heat until soft. Stir in the tomato purée and the piri piri seasoning. Fry for 1 minute, stirring continuously, then stir in the soft cheese.

Slowly add the reserved pasta cooking water to the sauce, a little at a time, stirring until combined and heated through before adding more. Stir in the spinach and halloumi and season with salt and pepper. Gently heat through. Finally, add the drained pasta and stir until all the ingredients are combined. Finish with a little more black pepper and serve with a salad.

TIPS & SWAPS

I’ve used reduced-fat halloumi and soft cheese in this before and I honestly couldn’t notice the difference.

You can swap the halloumi for diced chicken breast, if you like, but it may need a little longer to cook through depending on the size of your pieces, so make sure you double check.

You can use the spiced halloumi in a wrap with salad and mayo if you fancy a quick lunch.

I’m a bit addicted to piri piri seasoning – I find myself adding it to a lot of dinners at the moment. It’s got quite a kick to it, so be careful with your measurements! You can use any pasta you like in this, including spaghetti, but I really like it with rigatoni.