Michael Salmon’s Foodie Adventure in Tuscany-Making Pici Pasta

Posted by Zeph Belanger, Hartstone Inn Sous Chef

Throughout Tuscany, one of the most popular dishes is pici pasta, a thick hand-rolled spaghetti. One night, the villa’s Chef Marcella joined Chef Michael and the guests in the kitchen to teach her family recipe for pici with wild boar ragu.

Durum flour is mixed with egg, olive oil and water, then rolled into a thick sheet and cut into strips. The strips are the rolled out by hand into long thick noodles. After Marcella gave us a few examples, she invited all of our guests to give it a try.  The air was full of laughter and flour.

The ragu was another story, since Marcella had started it shortly after breakfast, and it had cooked all day long, which is typical for most rustic sauces. Wild boar meat, onion, garlic, herbs, fresh tomato, olive oil, and lots of time.  The pasta and the sauce were delicious and enjoyed by the entire group.