Cacio e pepe: Roman pasta of nothing but pecorino, black pepper, and starchy pasta water emulsified into a silky cling. Three ingredients, nothing to hide behind, and perfect when it works.
Boil the pasta in well-salted water, but use less water than usual so it turns extra starchy. Cook to just shy of al dente, saving at least a mug of the pasta water before you drain.
While the pasta cooks, toast the cracked pepper in a dry wide skillet over medium heat for about a minute, until it smells fragrant. Add the butter and a ladle of pasta water and let it bubble into a loose emulsion.
In a bowl, stir the grated pecorino with a few splashes of warm (not boiling) pasta water into a smooth, pourable paste. Keep the cheese off direct high heat; pecorino clumps into rubbery strings the instant it hits boiling liquid, so build the sauce warm, never hot.
Drain the pasta a touch early and add it to the peppery skillet off the heat, tossing hard with a splash of pasta water so it finishes cooking and coats.
Pour in the pecorino paste and toss vigorously, adding pasta water a splash at a time, until the sauce turns glossy and clings to every strand. Plate at once with more pecorino and pepper. Eat it immediately.