Cook pasta in salted water. Drain the pasta, rinse under cold water to avoid clumping and set aside.

While pasta is cooking, heat the garlic in a deep large pan with butter over low-medium heat for 5 – 10 minutes, until garlic softens and is fragrant.

Add olive oil and onion into the pan and continue to cook, stirring occasionally to prevent burnt, until onion softens. You may add a dash of brown sugar to make the onions sweeter.

If you are adding optional toppings, you may either saute it separately and add it directly together with the sauce or, you may saute it in the same pan when the onion is almost done.

Mix up the sauce in a separate small bowl and add into the pan to heat up the sauce a little.

With the heat on low, add pasta and black pepper to the pan and toss the pasta with the rest to ensure everything is well mixed. For those who like it spicy, you may add chopped chilli padi at this point. Add in a little of the saved pasta water to help everything mix smoothly.

Serve hot with or without parmesan cheese.