TABELIAAUTHENTIC RECIPE
Fusilli alla CalabreseCalabrian Fusilli with ’Nduja
A bold pasta starring Calabria’s spicy fermented pork ’nduja. Heated in a pan, its rendered fat becomes the sauce itself. Ricotta added at the end softens the heat: this is the Calabrian style.
AUTHENTICITY SCORE
Authenticity Score
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Ingredients (4 servings)
- Fusilli320 g
- ’Nduja, Calabrian fermented sausageAvailable at imported-food shops such as Kaldi, in tubes or sausage casings80 g
- Cherry tomatoesHalved400 g
- Fresh ricotta100 g
- GarlicThinly sliced2 cloves
- Extra virgin olive oil40 ml
- Fresh basil1 bunch
- Pecorino30 g
- SaltFor the sauce; use sparingly because ’nduja is saltya little
Method
Cut the ingredients
- 1 Halve the cherry tomatoes.
- 2 Thinly slice the garlic.
Ready when
This is complete when everything is cut.
Cook the ’nduja
- 1 Heat 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and the garlic in a frying pan over low heat.
- 2 Add the ’nduja and cook for 2–3 minutes, pressing with a wooden spoon.
Ready when
This is complete when the red fat renders into an oily liquid.
Cook the tomatoes
- 1 MeanwhileStart bringing a large pot of water to the boil, with 10 g salt per 1 L water.
- 2 Add the cherry tomatoes and cook over medium heat for 7–8 minutes.
- 3 Crush the tomatoes as you cook to evaporate moisture and concentrate the sauce.
Ready when
This is complete when the moisture has evaporated and the sauce is concentrated.
Season
- 1 Tear and add the basil.
- 2 Season with 1/4 tsp salt, keeping it modest because the ’nduja is salty.
Ready when
This is complete when the seasoning is balanced.
Cook the pasta
- 1 Add fusilli to the prepared boiling salted water and cook al dente, 1 minute less than the package time.
- 2 Reserve 100 ml cooking water.
Ready when
Lift out when al dente.
Coat the pasta
- 1 Lift out the fusilli al dente and transfer to the frying pan.
- 2 Toss for 1–2 minutes with 2–3 tbsp cooking water.
Ready when
This is complete when everything is combined.
Top with ricotta and basil
- 1 Plate and add generous spoonfuls of ricotta in separate spots. Do not mix: the white and orange contrast is beautiful.
- 2 Grate Pecorino over and garnish with basil.
Ready when
The dish is ready once ricotta, Pecorino and basil are added.
About this dish
Calabria forms the toe of the Italian peninsula, a land where mountains reach toward the sea. Villages scattered across Aspromonte’s slopes have long cultivated a culture of using every part of the pig. ’Nduja emerged from that culture, a distinctively Calabrian food with a powerful chili aroma.
Fusilli alla calabrese brings this preserved food into everyday pasta. Made at home for lunch or informal dinner, its rich, spicy sauce clings firmly to the spirals. Finishing ricotta softens the heat and introduces gentle milkiness into southern Italy’s forceful flavors.
Today ’nduja is a celebrated Calabrian specialty used in trattorias and home cooking throughout Italy. Yet the dish’s core remains the mountain tradition of preservation and Calabria’s bold use of chili. Although a quick pasta, it leaves the region’s identity unmistakable on the plate.
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