If you want to experience what it feels like cook like an Italian grandmother (don’t we all?) this is the recipe for you. This is the perfect Sunday meal to cook as well as to enjoy. The hand rolled noodles otherwise known as pici are traditionally Tuscan, however the ragu here is all Naples. I find them to be perfectly harmonious. I want to be straightforward about this recipe - the ragu is easy, but the pici are a project. If you are hesitant, pick up some spaghetti or rigatoni and you’ll still love this dish.
A Few Pointers On Work Flow
Start the sauce first and get it simmering. You should then have plenty of time to make your pasta dough, let it rest, and roll it out - all before the sauce is ready.
This Is Really 2 Recipes in 1
You are going to have delicious leftover pork shoulder and other bits. Throw it in a hash for breakfast the next morning. Make polenta or rice and spoon it over. Or….make pasta again but this time with an even meatier sauce!
A Few Notes:
The Pici recipe here is from Marc Vetri’s Mastering Pasta and the ragu is from the A16 cookbook. They are both awesome.
-Jimmy
Rustic and chewy hand rolled pasta with a delicious, Naples inspired ragu.
| Prep Time | 45 minutes |
| Cook Time | 3 hours |
| Passive Time | 3 hours |
| Servings |
people
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Ingredients
For the Noodles (Pici)
- 2.5 cups (310 grams) bread flour (plus more for dusting)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) water
- semolina (for dusting)
For the Neapolitan Ragu
- 1 lb boneless pork shoulder, cut into large chunks
- 1 pork trotter left whole or substitute 8 ounces pork belly cut into large chunks
- kosher salt
- 1 red onion, halved
- 2 28 oz cans San Marzano tomatoes with juices
- 8 ounces prosciutto end pieces with skin intact, cut into large chunks
To finish the pasta
- fresh basil
- Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- pasta water
Ingredients
For the Noodles (Pici)
For the Neapolitan Ragu
To finish the pasta
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Instructions
For the Noodles (Pici)
- Sift the flour into a bowl. Mix in the oil and water with a fork or spoon until the dough comes together. It will look saggy at first; continue adding water by the tablespoon until the dough can be gathered into a ball. You may need to add up to 4 tablespoons more water depending on the humidity in the room. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until it feels soft and smooth, about 3 minutes. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes - 1 hour. Turn out the dough onto your work surface and roll it out to about 1/8 inch thick. Rub the surface of the dough with olive oil. Have a small sheet pan generously dusted with semolina nearby. Cut the dough into strips about 3/4 inch wide and about 3 inches long. Roll each strip into ropes about 1/4 inch in diameter. If the noodles become difficult to roll you might need to dip your hands in a bit of water. Place the noodles on the semolina dusted sheet pan. When you are finished wrap the pan in plastic and place the in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook the pasta and complete the dish.
For the Neopolitan Ragu
- For best results, season the pork shoulder and the trotter (or belly) with salt and pepper and refrigerate overnight. In a Dutch oven or other large, heavy-bottomed pot, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion halves cut sides down and brown gently stirring occasionally. Cook the onion halves until they are a deep golden brown and then remove them from the pan. Save the onions for another use. Place the canned tomatoes and their juices in a large bowl and squeeze them into small chunks with your hands. Add the tomatoes, pork shoulder, trotter or belly, and prosciutto to the pot bring to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent the tomatoes from buying. Adjust the heat to a low simmer. Cook uncovered for 3-4 hours. Remove the meat from the sauce. Discard the prosciutto and save the other meats for another use.
To finish the dish
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and season generously with salt. It should taste like a really well seasoned soup. The noodles should take 4-5 minutes to cook, but definitely taste one to make sure it is to your liking before you strain all of them. Meanwhile have the sauce simmering in a sauce pan. If it looks like too much sauce for the amount of noodles remove some with a ladle. If the sauce appears too thick add some pasta water to thin it out. Add the noodles to the sauce and stir. Cook the noodles in the sauce for 1-2 minutes stirring often until the sauce begins to adhere to the noodle and they become one thing. Tear in some basil leaves. Stir in a few drizzles of extra virgin olive oil. Transfer to plates and finish with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
As a lover of making homemade pasta and one who has experienced making pici, your correct in saying it’s a project. Your post gave me a wonderful food flashback to a Christmas Eve many moons ago. That evening I decided that all the family would pitch in to make pici to go with a venison ragu I had made. It was such a hoot. We drink wine and roll pasta or tried. We had flour and pasta dough everywhere and very little edible pici. Thankfully I had dried pasta backup.
Thanks for posting this, I’m now inspired to have a pici making party soon.
How do the little Italian ladies make it look so easy?
Jimmy says
Haha! You’re experience pretty much sums up the pici making process! Good luck with the next try!