Our tips and tricks to make orecchiette at home like a true "pugliese"!
Today's recipe smells of Puglia and tradition. It smells of pesto, cime di rapa, tomato and basil...
Maria Lucrezia has probably been making orecchiette since she could walk: she learned from her mother and grandmother, and today she reveals to us her family secrets.
Today's recipe will be like walking through old Bari and looking at those centuries-old women who give these little semolina "gnocchi" the shape of little wrinkled ears.
Today's recipe is so simple you will not believe it: a few ingredients to enjoy one of the best Italian dishes, which, however, requires patient hands-on and a lot of love!
INGREDIENTS PREPARATION: 1 h of preparation / SERVING SIZE: 4 people
600 g of re-milled durum wheat semolina
270 g water
DIRECTIONS
Start by mixing the ingredients in a bowl: make a hole in the centre of the flour and pour in the room temperature water.
Mix first the liquid with the semolina squeezing them tightly in your hands, then turn out onto a work surface and knead vigorously for about 5/10 minutes until the dough becomes smooth, strong and elastic.
It may be a little hard, don't worry. Form a ball and leave it to rest for 20-30 minutes at room temperature, wrapped in a damp cloth or alternatively covered with cling film.
Roll up a piece of dough like a snake about 1 cm thick and divide it into many small pieces about 1 cm in size. Work on natural unlacquered wood without dusting flour.
Using a knife with a rounded tip, press it into the ball, starting at the top edge and "dragging" the knife forcefully over the whole small piece until it becomes "convex".
Now turn your piece upside down on your thumb and you have your orecchietta!
Place all the orecchiette next to each other (not on top of each other) on a dishcloth. Let them air dry for few minutes before cooking.
COOKING
Cook in salted boiling water for about 3-5 minutes. Depending on their thickness, they may take longer to cook, but tasting them is the secret to perfect al dente cooking :)
TIPS
- How to store your orecchiette: you can dust your orecchiette with more semolina and mix it with your hands, letting them dry for circa another hour. Then you can store it in the fridge for 2 to 3 days. The best way to maintain their freshness is to freeze them. Place them on a tray next to each other and put them in the freezer for 15 minutes until they become hard. Now you can collect them in a container or a bag and freeze them longer. Remember not to thaw the pasta and to throw it straight from the freezer into boiling water. otherwise their will stick!
- How to eat them: there are many many ways to eat orecchiette. With "Pesto" sauce, with meat ragù, with vegetables like broccoli or "cime di rapa", with "Norma sauce"... We like them with simple tomato sauce, cooked with a mixture of oil and garlic, seasoned with salt and pepper. A nice fresh burrata cheese on top makes a really nice addition!
- Trick #1: it is important that the dough is very firm, because if it comes out too sticky it is difficult to have a nice texture. -Trick #2: if you can't roll up the dough, it could be that the dough is drying out quickly, try moistening the palm of your hands with water. -Trick #3: when turning the orecchiette, try to touch the wrinkled part as little as possible, so it doesn't flatten out.
- Trick #4: flours are always different because the grains are different. The amount of water required for your dough may vary from the amount indicated in the recipe. It is only by touch that you will be able to tell whether to add or remove a little water.
Buon appetito!