Sauté the onion in 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil for 2 minutes. Add the salami and sauté it for 1 minute. Add the diced tomatoes and passata, salt and ¼ cup of water.

Cook, uncovered, on a low to medium flame for 15-20 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.

Cook the penne following the steps on How to cook pasta “al dente” in the Techniques page of this site, but drain it 1 minute before it is cooked as it will finish cooking together with the sauce.

Put the drained pasta in the frying pan with the salami and tomato sauce, add the chopped provolone and mix well while cooking it on a slow flame for 1 or 2 minutes, so that the provolone starts to melt and stretch.

Serve with thinly grated Pecorino Romano on the top.