Pasta Ai Tartufi Neri Image Used Under Creative Commons License From thetasteofumbria.com
Citizens, I am extremely fond of the Italian region of Umbria, which is both rustic and gorgeous, with cuisine to match! Umbria is the leading source of Italian black truffles, and this recipe makes the most of its unmatched taste!
Strangozzi is an Italian wheat pasta, among the more notable of those produced in the region of Umbria where reputedly monks were the first to make it.
Strangozzi is a pasta that is a thicker, less smooth version of spaghetti whose rougher surface allows sauces to cling better than they can to spaghetti.
Strangozzi are quite a bit thicker than the average straight pasta you see. Not as thick as the Tuscan pici, but pretty close. If you want to make this dish and can’t find them, use linguini or even spaghetti and plan on using a bit more per person.
The dough is made with semolina and water. The long, rectangular cross-section noodles are made by hand and generally served with the local black truffles, a meat ragù or a tomato-based sauce.
The name of the pasta is drawn from its resemblance to shoelaces, as “stringhe” is Italian for strings.
My one tweak to this classic and very easy recipe is the use of a tiny pinch of red pepper – feel free to omit it for the classic recipe.
Battle on – The Generalissimo
Ingredients
- 500 gr of Strangozzi (highly preferred) or use Linguini or Spaghetti
- 100 gr of extra-virgin olive oil, preferably Umbrian
- 100 gr of cleaned and washed black truffles
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1 anchovy fillet, preferably Ortiz brand
- 1 pinch of dried red chili pepper (optional)
- salt and pepper
- Freshly-grated pecorino romano cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Slice the truffles – ½ razor thin slices and ½ chopped. Pour the olive oil on top of them for 2 hours. This infuses the oil with the true flavor of the truffles!
- For the sauce: warm just the truffle-infused oil in a wide pan (reserve truffle pieces), then garlic and the chopped anchovy, mixing until the anchovy is completely melted.
- When the garlic is light golden, draw back the pan from the heat and take the garlic out; wait until the oil is colder and then add back truffles and pinch of red pepper.
- In a large pot, boil 4 liters (4 US quarts) of salted, boiling water. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes; stir after first 2 or 3 minutes (but not before.)
- Strain off the Strangozzi (cooked “al dente” not too much so it has a bite to it) and drain the Strangozzi. Mix with sauce immediately, add grated cheese if using plus salt and pepper and serve.
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