Pasta aglio e olio

Trim the base off each garlic clove, crush lightly so the skin slips off, and slice lengthwise into chips.

Pull the parsley leaves off the stems, gather them into a ball and chop, then turn the knife 90 degrees and chop again so no strands remain.

Bring a wide pot of heavily salted water to the boil.

Put the sliced garlic into cold olive oil in a cold pan, then turn the flame to medium low so it barely bubbles.

Drop the pasta into the boiling water in a spiral and keep it moving for the first minute so it does not stick.

Pull the garlic off the heat whenever the thin pieces start to colour; it should stay blonde, never brown, or it turns bitter.

Cook the pasta short of the package time, tasting from about seven minutes; the package says nine to eleven.

Return the oil to the heat and zest a little lemon into it to infuse.

Add the crushed red pepper flake to the oil and let it toast, ideally 45 seconds to a minute before the pasta goes in.

Add the drained pasta and about a quarter cup of pasta cooking water, stir, then toss.

Add the juice of a whole lemon.

Season with salt and a little pepper, and keep tossing until the oil and water emulsify into a creamy sauce with no oil pooling.

Turn the heat off, add a little more pasta cooking water and the chopped parsley, and toss.

Twirl the pasta onto a carving fork against a ladle, transfer to a bowl, and scrape the garlic clinging to the pan walls over the top.

Finish with a little more salt, a little pepper and more parsley. Salt lightly on the stove: food tastes saltier as it cools.

Variation, the advanced version: slice more garlic, and chop tarragon, chives and dill in with the parsley so the three new herbs together roughly equal the parsley.

Variation: slice three Calabrian chilies into rings in place of the crushed red pepper flake, wearing gloves.

Variation: beat one egg with about an ounce of finely grated Parmesan, plus salt and pepper, and set it aside.

Variation: cook the sliced garlic in cold oil again, cook the pasta, and add the Calabrian chilies about a minute before the pasta comes out.

Variation: finish with pasta water and a tablespoon of butter, then kill the heat.

Variation: off the heat, once the pan stops sizzling, add the herbs and then the egg and Parmesan mixture, stirring immediately and vigorously so the egg does not scramble.

Variation: thin with pasta cooking water, add the lemon juice, salt to taste and toss.

If the finished pasta goes oily or thick as it sits, a little more pasta water brings it back.