Pici is a Tuscan type of spaghetti-style pasta sometimes constructed from flour and water. Arguably some of the charming shapes within the pasta kingdom, it’s formed by hand and is quirky, irregular and purposefully imperfect. Three of my favourite qualities in each individuals and cooking. Should you’re intimidated by the considered making contemporary pasta, it’s an incredible form to start out with.
The way it works. To make pici you mix flour(s), heat water and salt, combine it in robust a dough, and knead it right into a clean ball of pasta dough over the course of some minutes. Let the dough relaxation for 45 minutes or so, lob off a hunk of it after which part that into little strips of dough to be rolled into lengthy strands utilizing your fingers. There are course of photographs under to display the shaping course of. However, if you can also make a thin snake form with Play-Doh, you can also make pici.
Pici: Let’s speak Flour Sorts
You’ll find pici made with semolina flour, 00 flour, all-purpose flour or a mix of all of those. Through the years I’ve made it with all the above, experimenting with completely different ratios, sometimes coming again to the recipe I’ll share right now. It combines equal *weights* of semolina flour and both “00” (or all-purpose flour). This dough is a pleasure to work with. Rolling it out is a breeze. You find yourself with pleasant strands of hearty, tender, slurp-able, sunny-shaded yellow pasta noodles. 
Pici made with 00 flour ends in a a lot softer, looser, tender pasta dough (pictured under). The noodles image under have been made utilizing 350g “00” and 175g heat, salted water. They’re pale in shade, missing the yellow of the semolina flour. They could be a bit fussier to roll out. Should you go this route, maintain additional flour on the able to counter any stickiness. Alternately, use spritzes from a twig bottle of water if it’s essential to add moisture to your dough a bit at a time.
Usually talking, my recommendation? When you get a really feel for the dough mess around with the ratio of flours. Extra semolina goes to provide you extra heartiness and construction. Extra 00 or unbleached all-purpose flour will ship a softer, extra refined dough. I like a great quantity of semolina in my pici dough, particularly if the climate is cooler and I’m pairing it with a hearty sauce. The ratio I take advantage of most frequently, and the one mirrored within the recipe under is equal *weights* of the next: semolina flour, 00 or all-purpose flour, and salted water. And I simply need to emphasize that we’re speaking equal weight, not quantity.
Pici is historically made with out egg, however many individuals make it with egg dough too. For reference, 93 yr previous Giuseppina Spiganti’s pici is featured in Pasta Grannies. She makes use of 00 flour and one egg in her pici dough. Missy Robbins references an egg dough for the pici in Pasta, additionally made with 00 flour. Paul Bertolli makes pici eggless in Cooking By Hand. And Jodi Williams and Rita Sodi use a mix of 00 and semolina flour with no egg in By way of Carota. The pici I encountered in Siena was most frequently constructed from flour and water solely. I most frequently go the no-egg route for pici. However, there are positively instances when I’ve some straight-forward pasta dough readily available, made with egg, and determine to form some pici. Guess what? It’s all fantastic.
How To Make Pici: Step by Step in Pictures
The wonderful thing about pici is you do not want any particular gear to make it. It is a unbelievable household exercise – everybody likes to hand-roll this pasta. Precision is not what it is about – the appeal of pici is that they’re completely imperfect. The one factor I might be aware of is that this. Err on the facet of thinner versus thick pici. They’ll swell a bit when cooking, and when they’re too thick the feel is off and timing will be tough when cooking. Additionally, broadly try and make them the same-ish thickness. Do not obsess over it, however you need them to prepare dinner in the identical period of time.
Above: pici dough rolled out about 1/4-inch thick and reduce into strips.
Use fingers to roll pici. Begin within the heart and work outward.
In case your dough is being cranky, i.e. not desirous to stretch, set that noodle apart for a couple of minutes to relaxation whilst you transfer on to a different. Come again to it.
How lengthy? I are inclined to make my pici on the longer facet. My intention is to have the ability to prepare them throughout my largest baking sheets (mud effectively with flour to forestall sticking), however as a rule they hold over.
Should you’re not going to prepare dinner the pici straight away, coax any overhanging noodles again onto the pan, cowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for as much as sooner or later. You possibly can mud pici effectively with flour, and prepare into nests, however arranging pici like it is a safer guess when you’re involved about your pasta nest clumping collectively whenever you go to prepare dinner. 
Pici: Sauce Pairings
I really like pici with this mushroom ragu. Particularly within the winter and fall. You see it served historically with meaty ragu-style sauces and mushrooms. I don’t do the meat facet of issues, however lean in arduous on the mushrooms. In summer time, I’ll lighten issues up a bit with no matter seems nice and in-season on the farmers’ market. Listed here are a number of latest pici sauce pairings we’ve loved. I’ll add extra over time. Some, under no circumstances conventional, however tremendous tasty nonetheless!
- Pici with Oven-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Breadcrumbs (pictured above): Toss halved cherry tomatoes in some olive oil and roast in a 375F oven till blistered. Rip some good sourdough into tiny shreds, toss with some garlic and olive oil, and bake till crisp as effectively (whilst you’re doing the tomatoes) – crush these with one thing heavy, and make them your breadcrumbs. Gently saute 4-5 cloves of chopped garlic in 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium low warmth in your largest skillet. Simply to melt, to not brown. Take away from warmth and stir in some crushed pink pepper flakes, good black pepper, and zest of 1 lemon. Cook dinner the pici till tender and add to skillet together with a ladle filled with pasta water and a few freshly grated pecorino or Parmesan cheese. Stir till effectively coated after which prove onto a platter. Prime with roasted tomatoes, breadcrumbs, and no matter herbs you will have – on this case I snipped some chives from the backyard.
- Pici with Chopped Mushrooms and So A lot Garlic: Sauté sliced mushrooms in a skillet over excessive warmth in some olive oil + butter and salt. As soon as deeply browned stir in 5 cloves of chopped garlic and take away from warmth after 20 seconds or so. Take away simply the peel from a (Meyer) lemon and slice into skinny slivers, add this to the new pan with tons of freshly floor black pepper, and a handful of freshly grated Pecorino cheese. Add pici to skillet together with a ladle of pasta water, stir effectively till pici is coated and serve topped with chives.
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