Typical Sardinian pasta, fregola is traditionally cooked with fish, but variations can also be expected. Let's find out!
There rut, or sa fregola, as they say in Sardinian, it's a semolina typical of the Sardinia, which has an ancient history. Its name has Latin origins and the first testimonies date it back to the tenth century AD.
It comes in the form of dry and crunchy balls, this is because it is placed in the oven to toast after its processing by hand, acquiring its typical browned color. Today you can find it everywhere and if you want to try it, you can also prepare it at home.
How to prepare the Sardinian fregola?
Imagine the great Sardinian families, with the women who find themselves in the kitchen, ready to prepare their fregola with their expert hands. It is a traditional ritual that requires a certain mastery. The ingredients to prepare the fregola are: durum wheat flour coarsely ground, lukewarm water and salt. Pour the semolina flour onto a pastry board and slowly warm slightly salted water in the middle. Then, using only the fingertips, you will have to work the semolina to make small balls, to be transferred to a clean cloth and let stand for one night. The last step is for the fregola to come toasted in oven at 200 ° for about 15 minutes.
How do you cook the fregola? The recipes
Fit to soups and dry dishes, has different declinations in recipes more or less simple, with seafood is fish or vegetables. The most famous dish is that of fregola with clams, that after being cleaned and soaked in warm slightly salted water for several hours, they are then made hatch in a saucepan over high heat, with extra virgin olive oil and garlic. Once opened, the clams release a liquid that can be put aside for later use, and should be removed from the pan. Add parsley and peeled tomatoes al oil and garlic and fry. To add a touch of sea to the sauce, pour the clams' liquid. Then boil the sauce, pour the fregola and cook. The clams are added to the last. Evaluate according to your taste the consistency: there are those who love broccoli fregola and those who are more dry. If you want it to add to the wave, add little by little water during the cooking of the semolina. Accompanying? Mandatory one Vermentino di Gallura!
But the fregola has many variations, for example it is perfect with i spiny artichokes, also typical Sardinian, dry tomatoes is mullet bottarga. Mustache! To prepare this fregola you will have to clean the artichokes to the best effect, and then brown them in extra virgin olive oil, garlic and finely chopped dried tomatoes. Once softened, they will be blended with white wine and then you will toast the fregola, as you do for a risotto, adding a little at a time the vegetable stock. There mullet bottarga? At the end, grated directly on the plate.
Those who prefer meat to fish can try the fregola with sausage, or the risotto fregola with veal and green vegetables. You can also do it vegetarian fregola, creamed with crescenza. In summer it can be served cold, like a rice salad: try it fregola with olives, almonds and prawns or with marinated vegetables and anchovies.
Free your imagination and invent your favorite fregola!
