Crazy Delicious Pasta: Mushroom, Onion, and SPAM Bonanza

1. Break each piece of bucatini into 4 pieces.

2. Toast luncheon meat with 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add crushed peppercorns and cook until meat is crispy, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

3. Heat remaining oil in another pan over medium-low heat. Cook onion, covered, until soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Add sugar; cook, stirring every 2 to 3 minutes, until onion is very soft and browned, 10 to 15 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil. Cook bucatini at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 5 minutes. Drain.

5. Add mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper to the pan with the onions. Stir and cover. Cook until mushrooms shrink and lose some moisture, about 5 minutes. Add butter; cook until flavors meld, about 3 minutes more. Add the crispy meat and Parmesan cheese. Stir.

6. Drain pasta and stir into the mushroom mixture. Add mozzarella cheese. Increase heat to high and cover pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta develops a light crust, 3 to 5 minutes more.

Cook’s Note:

You can use another kind of long pasta. The amounts of olive oil and seasoning (salt, pepper, dried Italian seasoning, pepper flakes, garlic powder, and crushed peppercorns) are just approximation. Use as much or as little as you want (or need).