Spaghetti Napolitan (Japanese Ketchup Pasta)

Spaghetti Napolitan, Japan’s favorite yōshoku pasta dish, throws caution to the wind and uses ketchup, worcestershire, and tabasco for its sauce.

These simple pantry ingredients create a sauce that has surprising depth and a ton of umami.  The sauce is combined with hot dogs and vegetables like mushrooms, bell peppers, and onions. It’s then tossed with Italian-style spaghetti and served with parmesan cheese and tabasco sauce.

This dish is one of Japan’s original riffs on Italian food and has evolved over time to become a uniquely Japanese recipe celebrated across the country.  

Ketchup in spaghetti?!

I’ll admit something. 

I love ketchup.  Like, a lot. 

Ketchup gets a bad rap.  It’s considered unrefined and uncultured. As just a low quality condiment to dip your fries in.   Most chefs wouldn’t even consider using ketchup as an ingredient in a recipe.

Well I disagree.  Over the years I’ve had many, many different kinds of food.  Truffles?  Caviar?  Iberian ham?  Yeah, those are pretty good.  But honestly, so is ketchup.  And that’s why I always come back to it.

Japan also loves ketchup.  Ketchup doesn’t have the same stigma in Japan that it does here in the US.  It’s a legitimate ingredient there that’s used in a number of recipes, like this Spaghetti Napolitan.  Other classics like omurice, tonkatsu sauce, ebi chili, and more also use ketchup.

To make this sauce, you’ll cook down ketchup with worcestershire, onions, and other vegetables, revealing an addicting sauce that has deep flavors of umami.  Don’t knock this sauce before you try it.  You’ll be surprised.

What is Spaghetti Napolitan?

Spaghetti Napolitan is a popular yōshoku (Western-inspired Japanese food) pasta dish.  It has a ketchup-based sauce that’s typically mixed with other ingredients such as button mushrooms, bell peppers, onions, and some kind of cured meat (this recipe uses hot dogs).  The whole thing is topped off with shaved parmesan and tabasco sauce.

The dish was first created by the head chef at the Hotel New Grand in Yokohama during the 1950s. He took his inspiration from the tomato sauce pasta that the American military was serving for troops stationed there.  At the time, tomato sauce was an expensive ingredient, so the chef experimented with using ketchup for a sauce instead.  He named the dish “Napolitan” in a nod to the Italian city of Naples.  

Spaghetti Napolitan has since become a Japanese classic and is today the most popular yōshoku pasta in Japan.  Other yōshoku pastas, like mentaiko pasta and meat-sauce pasta, are also popular.

Ingredients

Spaghetti.  Italian-style dried spaghetti is traditional for this recipe.

Ketchup.  Ketchup is the defining ingredient of this recipe.  Any substitutions like tomato sauce or paste would probably make a great pasta, but it wouldn’t be Napolitan.  I’m sticking with the classic for this recipe and using Heinz.

Worcestershire sauce.  A full 2 teaspoons of worcestershire sauce adds a punch of umami, saltiness, and tanginess to the sauce.

Hot dogs.  The type of meat used in Spaghetti Napolitan is flexible.  This recipe uses sliced hot dogs.  But bacon, Japanese-style sausage, or Italian-style sausage are also great choices.

Green bell pepper.  Sliced green bell peppers give some vegetal freshness to the dish.

Button mushrooms.  Sliced button mushrooms add earthiness and even more umami to an already umami-packed sauce.

Onions.  Like many Western sauces, onions provide the backbone to the dish.

Garlic.  This is an Italian-inspired dish after all, and so garlic is a must.

Milk.  Just a bit of milk adds a subtle creaminess to the sauce.

Olive oil and butter.  Sauté the vegetables and brown the hot dogs in a combination of olive oil and butter.

Parsley.  A bit of the fresh herb is a typical garnish to the final dish.

Grated parmesan cheese.  Like many Italian-style pastas, you’ll add parmesan cheese on top.

Tabasco sauce.  Unlike many Italian-style pastas, tabasco is used to give a bit of spice and acidity.

What kind of spaghetti do I need?

Any kind of dried Italian spaghetti works well in this pasta.  Fettuccine would also be fine.  I’m using the Japanese brand “Mama” in this spaghetti, but you can use any Italian-style brand you find in your grocery store.

How to make Spaghetti Napolitan

Prepare the ingredients.  The cooking process moves quickly once you start, so it’s best to have all of your ingredients prepared and set aside beforehand.  Slice the onions, bell peppers, button mushrooms, and hot dogs.  Mince the garlic.

Boil the spaghetti.  Boil a large pot of thoroughly salted water.  Once boiling, add the spaghetti.  Cook the pasta 1-2 minutes less than the package states, to get to an al dente texture.  Once finished, strain the pasta, reserving a cup of the pasta-cooking water.

Sauté the ingredients.  Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Next add the sliced hot dogs and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring often.  And now add the bell pepper and mushrooms and cook for 4 more minutes, still stirring occasionally.  Add the minced garlic, stir, and cook for 30 seconds.  Now add the ketchup and worcestershire and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens.  Now add ⅔ cup of the pasta-cooking water and the milk and stir.

Toss the spaghetti with the sauce.  With the saucepan still on medium heat, add the cooked pasta to the saucepan, and toss the pasta with the sauce to combine.  Cook it for 1 minute, tossing constantly.

Serve.  Place the pasta on a serving dish and garnish with shaved parmesan cheese, chopped parsley, and tabasco sauce.

What to serve with Spaghetti Napolitan

Serve Spaghetti Napolitan with other yōshoku dishes for an authentic Western-inspired Japanese meal.

Western-style soup.  Napolitan and corn potage, the creamy corn soup that’s so popular in Japan that you’ll find it in vending machines, is a classic combination in Japan.

Green salad.  Make a simple green salad with a sesame salad dressing.

Bread and butter.  Use some Italian bread to dunk in the corn potage.