Making use of the leftover pancetta

I had some leftover pancetta from dinner the other night that I couldn't let go to waste. We all liked the Pasta alla Gricia a lot, but Dylan said he still likes Amatriciana sauce better, so I decided to work on that recipe a bit. I've made a few different versions, but this time I worked out a simpler one of my own that was just a riff on the "white Amatriciana" we had the other night. I stuck to the ingredients used in the traditional sauce (at least according to the mayor of Amatrice), which means no onion (and definitely no garlic) and a little bit of white wine to deglaze the pan. I did break with tradition some in the technique: I like the trick from Cook's Illustrated of smearing the cheese with some of the fat, which keeps the cheese from clumping up when you stir it into the hot pasta.

Spaghetti all'Amatriciana

Time: ~30 minutes

There is much controversy over whether to add onion to the dish. If you want to try it with onion, dice a small onion (or a medium shallot or two) and sauté the pieces until softened and translucent, but not browned, at the beginning of step 2.

115 grams/4 ounces guanciale or pancetta, sliced at least ⅛-inch thick
1 tablespoon (14 grams) extra-virgin olive oil
30 grams (½ cup) grated Pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for serving
¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, to taste
¼ cup dry white wine, optional
1 (28-ounce) can whole San Marzano tomatoes, hand crushed or roughly chopped; or 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with their juice (the diced tomatoes are easier, but the hand crushed or chopped whole tomatoes are better)
1 to 2 tablespoons fine sea salt
1 pound spaghetti or, preferably, bucatini

    1. Cut the guanciale into 1-by-¼-inch pieces. Place the pieces in a sauté pan or saucier with the oil and set the pan over medium heat. Sauté the guanciale, adjusting the heat as needed, until it has rendered its fat and is just turning golden and crispy around the edges. Remove 2 tablespoons of the fat to a small bowl, add the cheese, and smear them together until the cheese is coated with the fat. If there is a lot of fat remaining in the pan after removing the 2 tablespoons, you can pour some of it off if you like, but leave at least a tablespoon or two in the pan.
    2. Return the pan to medium heat. Stir in the red pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in the wine and cook until nearly evaporated (the wine that is; the fat isn't going anywhere), 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes with their juice. Cook at a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened some, about 10 minutes.
    3. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts of water to a roiling boil in a large, covered stockpot over high heat. Stir in the salt until dissolved. After adding the tomatoes to the sauce, add the pasta to the boiling water and stir a few times during the first minute or two to keep it from sticking. Drain, reserving a mugful of the pasta cooking water.
    4. Add the drained pasta to the pan and toss well to coat with the sauce. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese-fat mixture and toss well again. Add pasta water as needed to adjust the consistency. Serve promptly, passing more cheese at the table. Serves 4.