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Pici is a Tuscan type of spaghetti-style pasta sometimes made out of flour and water. Arguably one of the vital 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. If you happen to’re intimidated by the considered making recent pasta, it’s a fantastic form to begin with.
The way it works. To make pici you mix flour(s), heat water and salt, combine it in powerful 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 arms. There are course of pictures beneath to reveal 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 Varieties
You will discover pici made with semolina flour, 00 flour, all-purpose flour or a mix of all of those. Over time I’ve made it with the entire above, experimenting with completely different ratios, sometimes coming again to the recipe I’ll share immediately. 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 leads to a a lot softer, looser, tender pasta dough (pictured beneath). The noodles image beneath had 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. If you happen to go this route, hold further flour on the able to counter any stickiness. Alternately, use spritzes from a sprig bottle of water if it’s essential add moisture to your dough a bit at a time.
Typically 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 exploit most frequently, and the one mirrored within the recipe beneath is equal *weights* of the next: semolina flour, 00 or all-purpose flour, and salted water. And I simply wish 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 made out of 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 great.
How To Make Pici: Step by Step in Photographs
The wonderful thing about pici is you do not want any particular tools to make it. It is a unbelievable household exercise – everybody likes to hand-roll this pasta. Precision is not what it is about – the allure of pici is that they’re completely imperfect. The one factor I’d be aware of is that this. Err on the facet of thinner versus thick pici. They are going to swell a bit when cooking, and when they’re too thick the feel is off and timing may be difficult when cooking. Additionally, broadly try and make them the same-ish thickness. Do not obsess over it, however you need them to cook dinner in the identical period of time.
Above: pici dough rolled out about 1/4-inch thick and reduce into strips.
Use arms to roll pici. Begin within the middle and work outward.
In case your dough is being cranky, i.e. not eager to stretch, set that noodle apart for a couple of minutes to relaxation when 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 organize them throughout my largest baking sheets (mud effectively with flour to stop sticking), however as a rule they grasp over.
If you happen to’re not going to cook dinner the pici instantly, coax any overhanging noodles again onto the pan, cowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for as much as in the future. You’ll be able to mud pici effectively with flour, and organize into nests, however arranging pici like it is a safer wager should you’re involved about your pasta nest clumping collectively once you go to cook dinner. 
Pici: Sauce Pairings
I 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 exhausting on the mushrooms. In summer season, I’ll lighten issues up a bit with no matter appears nice and in-season on the farmers’ market. Listed below are a couple of latest pici sauce pairings we’ve loved. I’ll add extra over time. Some, in no way 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 (when 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 purple 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. High with roasted tomatoes, breadcrumbs, and no matter herbs you have got – 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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