A handmade Salento pasta of long durum ribbons twisted into loose spirals, traditionally the Sunday pasta of the Lecce countryside. The corkscrew shape, all curls and air, is built to grab sauce, and the classic dressing is a plain tomato-and-basil sugo crowned with crumbled ricotta forte, the pungent, fermented Apulian cheese. Made from nothing but semolina, water and salt, it is rustic, chewy and unmistakably of the south.
A traditional pasta of Salento, where 'ncannulata means twisted or rolled. By local lore it was first shaped by old Apulian pasta makers as an offering for the feast of Saint Joseph, the spirals said to mimic the curled wood shavings of a carpenter's workshop, a nod to Joseph the carpenter; this origin is folk tradition rather than documented record. It was a homemade Sunday dish, worked from durum semola on Saturday evening and left to dry overnight so the curls would set and hold sauce. Its defining partner, ricotta forte (ricotta scante), is an Apulian dairy specialty fermented to a sharp, spreadable pungency.
Substantial and toothsome. The durum dough has real bite, and the twists trap pockets of tomato sauce that burst as you chew. The ricotta forte is the jolt: sharp, tangy, almost cheesy-funky, cutting the sweetness of the sugo with a barnyard edge that defines the dish for Salentini. Rough-surfaced and hand-shaped, no two pieces are quite alike.
It is about gluten and friction. A stiff dough of durum semola and water is kneaded until elastic, rolled into a thin sheet and cut into strips, then each strip is rolled under the palm against the board so it twists into a spiral; the rough, hand-rolled surface and the curls give the sauce far more to cling to than a smooth machine noodle. Drying the shaped pasta overnight firms the twists so they survive boiling without unwinding. Ricotta forte is stirred in raw at the end, off the heat, since gentle warmth releases its aroma while cooking would turn it bitter.
Variations
The orthodox sauce is tomato and basil with ricotta forte; cooks who find that cheese too strong use aged ricotta marzotica or salted ricotta instead. Heartier versions enrich the sugo with a little pork or a meaty ragù, and there are vegetable renderings with turnip tops, or with fried eggplant and toasted breadcrumb. A barley-flour dough is made in some Salento households.
On the Palate
Where Sagne 'Ncannulate sits in the Italian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
6 steps · 2 hours
- 135 min
Knead durum semolina with warm water and a pinch of salt into a stiff, smooth, elastic dough; rest, covered, for about 30 minutes.
- 215 min
Roll the dough thin and cut into strips roughly two centimetres wide and a hand-span long.
- 360 min
Roll each strip under your palm against the work surface so it twists into a loose spiral; lay the shapes out to dry, ideally several hours or overnight.
Watch outRoll each strip under your palm so it twists into a spiral — the rough hand-rolled surface and the curls give the sauce far more to grip than a smooth noodle; dry them until firm so they don't unwind in the pot.
- 425 min
Make the sauce: simmer tomato passata with garlic, olive oil and basil until thickened and rounded.
- 510 min
Boil the sagne in plenty of salted water until al dente, then drain and toss with the tomato sauce.
- 62 min
Off the heat, fold in or dot with crumbled ricotta forte to taste and serve at once.
Watch outFold in the ricotta forte raw, off the heat — a little warmth releases its aroma, but cooking it turns it bitter.
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