TABELIAAUTHENTIC RECIPE
Culurgiones all'OgliastrinaOgliastra-Style Culurgiones
Stuffed pasta from Ogliastra in eastern Sardinia. A filling of potato, Pecorino, mint and saffron is sealed with intricate wheat-ear pleating, called pinzatura. This shaping skill is a source of pride for Ogliastra’s women, a traditional craft that takes years to master.
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Ingredients (4 servings)
- Fine remilled semolinaFor the pasta dough300 g
- Floury potatoesFor the filling; boil and pass through a sieve while hot500 g
- Fresh Sardinian PecorinoFor the filling; grated150 g
- Fresh mintEssential to the filling; use fresh only10 leaves
- SaffronMix into the filling0.5 g
- Simple tomato sauceFor serving400 ml
- Aged Sardinian PecorinoGrate over to finish40 g
Method
Make the filling
- 1 Boil 500 g potatoes and pass through a sieve while hot.
- 2 Mix with 150 g grated Pecorino, 10 finely chopped mint leaves and 0.25 g saffron to make the filling.
- 3 Cool to room temperature.
Ready when
The filling should be evenly mixed and cooled to room temperature.
Caution
Pass the potatoes through the sieve while hot; they become firm once cold.
Make and rest the pasta dough
- 1 Make a smooth dough with 300 g semolina, approximately 150 ml water and 1 tsp salt.
- 2 Wrap in plastic and rest for 30 minutes.
Ready when
The dough should be smooth and have rested for 30 minutes.
Shape with pinzatura
- 1 Roll the dough thinly into circles 8 cm in diameter.
- 2 Place 1 tsp filling on each.
- 3 Fold one side of the dough into small pleats, pinching with your fingers to seal: pinzatura.
Ready when
All the culurgiones should be shaped like ears of wheat.
Caution
If not firmly sealed, they open during cooking.
Boil and warm the sauce
- 1 Cook the culurgiones in salted water for 5–7 minutes, allowing 2 minutes after they float.
- 2 MeanwhileWarm 400 ml simple tomato sauce.
Ready when
They are cooked 2 minutes after floating to the surface.
Caution
Overcooking tears the dough; remove them 2 minutes after they float.
Serve over tomato sauce
- 1 Spread tomato sauce on the plates.
- 2 Arrange the culurgiones on top.
- 3 Grate over 40 g aged Pecorino.
Ready when
The culurgiones should be plated on the sauce and topped with grated cheese.
About this dish
Ogliastra in eastern Sardinia is an isolated area of rugged mountains and deep valleys. Culurgiones, born here, are among Sardinia’s oldest stuffed pastas, sealed in a way unlike any other. The technique called spiga, an ear of wheat, folds alternate edges of dough with thumb and forefinger. This movement has been passed from local woman to woman through oral teaching alone.
The filling contains potato, Pecorino Sardo, Sardinian sheep’s cheese, mint and saffron. Mint paired with saffron is also found in other Sardinian dishes, reflecting the island’s distinct spice culture.
After boiling, a simple finish of tomato sauce and local Pecorino keeps the sauce restrained alongside the complex filling. This contrast completes culurgiones.
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