Orecchiette

Orecchiette
	Orecchiette showing their typical shape and central depression
Type	Pasta
Region or state	Apulia
Main ingredients	Durum wheat,water
	Media: Orecchiette;

Orecchiette(Italian:[orekˈkjɛtte];sg.:orecchietta; fromItalianorecchia,lit. 'ear',and-etta) are apastatypical of theApuliaregion ofItaly.Their name comes from their shape, which resembles a small ear.

Description

An orecchietta has the shape of a small dome, with its center thinner than its edge, and with a rough surface. Like other kinds of pasta, orecchiette are made withdurum wheatand water. Eggs are rarely used. In traditional Southern Italian home cooking, the dough is rolled, then cut into cubes. Each cube is pressed with a knife, dragging it on the board and making it curl (making acavatello). The shape is then inverted over the thumb.

Names and variations

In thevernacular of Tarantothey are calledrecchietedde,orchiancaredde.

InCisterninoorecchiette are made withdurum wheat;they are larger and take on a different shape, with deep internal ribs, very similar to an ear. They are definedrecchie d' privte(lit. 'priest's ears'). The typical dish of holidays is orecchiette with rabbitragù.

Cavatelli,strascinati(strascinatein thevernacular of Bari) andcencioniare made like orecchiette, without the final step of forming a concave shape. Strascinati and cencioni are typically larger than orecchiette.

In China, a similar type of pasta is calledTai mèo(māo ěr duǒ,lit. 'cat's ears').

Dishes

Orecchiette are typically served with a meat such as pork, capers and a crisp white wine.^[1]

The traditional dish from Apulia isorecchiette alle cime di rapa,a dish of orecchiette andrapini,^[2]also called turnip tops.Broccoliorcauliflowerare also widely used as an alternative. Particularly around Capitanata andSalento,orecchiette are traditionally also dressed with tomato sauce (al sugo), sometimes with miniaturemeatballsor a sprinkling ofricottaorricotta forte.

The Italian cookbookIl cucchiaio d'argento^[3](The Silver Spoon)^[4]suggests that orecchiette are ideal for vegetable sauces.

References

^Florence Knight."Florence Knight's recipe for orecchiette, pork, capers and white wine".The Times.
^Zanini De Vita 2009.
^D’Onofrio, Clelia (2005).Il cucchiaio d'argento.Cucchiaio d'argento Domus.
^The Silver Spoon.Phaidon Press. 2005.ISBN 9780714845319.

Sources

Zanini De Vita, Oretta (2009)."Orecchiette".Encyclopedia of Pasta.University of California Press. pp. 188–190.ISBN 978-0-520-94471-8.Retrieved18 September2013.
Sada, Luigi (1994).La cucina pugliese.Newton-Compton.

External links

Orecchiette with Broccoli, Anchovies and Cherry Tomatoesfrom recipesfromitaly

[1] Florence Knight."Florence Knight's recipe for orecchiette, pork, capers and white wine".The Times.

[FOOTNOTEZanini_De_Vita2009-2] Zanini De Vita 2009.

[3] D’Onofrio, Clelia (2005).Il cucchiaio d'argento.Cucchiaio d'argento Domus.

[4] The Silver Spoon.Phaidon Press. 2005.ISBN 9780714845319.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]