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Naporitan (Japanese ketchup spaghetti)

Published: 06.30.2022 » Last updated: 01.09.2023

A yoshoku, or Western-style dish, ketchup spaghetti, or Napolitan, was invented in 1945 by Shigetada Irie, head chef of Hotel New Grand in Yokohama, to please Gen. Douglas MacArthur who occupied the hotel as his headquarters and, later, as residence for American military officers.

Naporitan (Japanese ketchup spaghetti)

The original Napolitan had canned tomato puree for its sauce and bacon for the meat. As it evolved over the years and adapted for Japanese home cooking, ketchup and sliced sausages, both cheaper than tomato puree and bacon, became standard ingredients.

As you can imagine, there are so many versions of this simple dish. This recipe was inspired by a tutorial in an episode of Izakaya Bottakuri, a show on Netflix about two sisters who run a diner that they inherited from their parents.

Steps in making sauce for Naporitan (Japanese ketchup spaghetti)

The Naporitan sauce is a mixture of tomato ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, sugar and milk which are stirred together until fully blended.

Sauteeing garlic, bell peppers and onion in butter

To cook Naporitan, melt butter in a pan and saute onion, garlic and bell pepper just until starting to soften. Because butter burns fast, remember to set the heat to MEDIUM during this stage.

Adding sliced sausages to sauteed onion, garlic and bell pepper

Add the sliced sausages to the sauteed vegetables and cook, tossing often, until heated through.

Pouring Naporita sauce into pan with sausages

Pour in the sauce, stir and allow to boil. Taste and adjust the seasonings, if needed. You might want a different flavor balance and this is the time to customize the taste of the sauce.

Tossing pasta in sauce to make Naporitan (Japanese ketchup spaghetti)

Dump in the cooked pasta and toss until every strand of noodle is coated with sauce and the sausages and vegetables are evenly distributed.

Full recipe below

Naporitan (Japanese ketchup spaghetti)

Connie Veneracion
Simple and strangely comforting, this pasta dish with sweet sour sauce can be cooked in 15 minutes. The key is to cook the sauce in one pan while the noodles are boiling in another.
Naporitan (Japanese ketchup spaghetti)
Print
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 18 mins
Course Main Course, Snack
Cuisine Japanese
Servings 4 people

Ingredients
  

  • 180 grams spaghetti
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 medium yellow onion - peeled and thinly sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic - peeled and chopped
  • 1 large bell pepper - julienned
  • 300 grams sausages - (frankfurters were used here) thinly sliced

Sauce

  • ½ cup ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper

Instructions
 

  • Dump the spaghetti in plenty of boiling water.
  • While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a pan.
  • Saute the sliced onion, chopped garlic and julienned bell pepper until a bit softened.
  • Add the sliced sausages and cook until heated through.
  • Mix together all the ingredients for the sauce and pour into the pan with the sausages.
  • Stir and cook until boiling.
  • Drain the spaghetti and dump into the sauce. Toss well.
  • Serve your Naporitan sprinkled with grated Parmesan.
Print
Keyword Pasta, Spaghetti

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Connie Veneracion, Chiang Mai, 2020

Hi, I’m Connie!

Welcome to Umami Days, a blog that advocates innovative home cooking for pleasurable everyday dining. No trendy diets, no food fads and definitely no ludicrous recipe names like crustless quiche, noodleless pho or chocolate lasagna.

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