Recipes
Pici alla Norcina
Serves 4
A signature dish in our restaurants and a firm favourite from our Head Chef Masha Rener, Pici alla Norcina is a rich and creamy pasta dish from Umbria, made with Porcini mushroom and roasted sausage, topped with Parmigiano Reggiano, and served with Pici; long, chewy pasta from Tuscany.
Ingredients
For the pasta dough
- 250gr Plain Flour
- 110ml Hot Water
- Pinch of Salt
For the sauce
- 500gr Pork sausages
- 30gr Dried Porcini mushrooms
- 400ml Single Cream
- 10gr Plain Flour
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- Parmigiano Reggiano
Method
For the pasta dough mix flour and salt. Make a hole in the middle and add the hot water. Working outwards, slowly add more and more flour to the water and start kneading the dough for 5 mins to get a smooth texture. Cover with a bowl so the dough stays fresh and doesn't dry up. Put aside.
Starting with the sauce, soak the dried Porcini mushrooms in warm water for 20mins. While the mushrooms soak, remove the skin of the sausage and crumble it into a non-stick saucepan. No need to add oil as the fat in the sausage is enough. Slowly roast until crispy and golden. This should take around 10 mins. While the sausage is cooking, remove the excess water from the Porcini mushrooms and chop into small pieces. Add the Porcini to the sausage. Press the garlic cloves and add the pan. Add 10gr of flour and mix well. Add the single cream and bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 mins. Season with salt and black pepper as desired.
While the sauce is cooking, start making the Pici. Cut off 5cm long pieces of the dough. Then roll these pieces into long, individual Pici. While doing so cover the remaining dough with a wet cloth to prevent the dough from drying out. Continue until you use up all the dough.
Boil the Pici in boiling salted water until they rise up, which should usually take 2 mins. Mix Pici in with sauce. Finish off with some freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano on top.
