This pasta hails from Taranto, a seaside town in the southeastern region of Puglia, whose best known (and loved) pasta shape is orecchiette. Chiancaredde are a close cousin, in fact, these days they are referred to as orecchiette tarantine and more often than not are indistinguishable from generic orecchiette in both ingredients or preparation.
Chiancaredde - flatter than orechiette
Within the taxonomy of pasta, both are in the stracinati family, those formed by dragging small bits across a wooden work surface. In the case of the standard orecchiette, a small, roughly textured cup with a lip is formed that is supposed to be reminiscent of little ears, hence the name. While chiancaredde also are formed by applying the right amount of pressure and drawing back across a board, they are meant to come out flatter and slightly larger than orecchiette. The traditional method is to use your thumb to press a 1cm morsel of dough in the palm of your hand, but many use a knife and a board (as is done with orecchiette). For this post, I used an antique multipurpose instrument called a raschietto, as shown in the photos below.
What’s up with wholewheat in Italy?
Another distinguishing feature is that in times of dearth (read: a good deal of the time), chiancaredde were made with wholewheat flour, a rarity for Italian pasta - the ideal pasta flour being white soft wheat flour and the pale yellow fine semolina. The mouthfeel and color of whole wheat flour was considered second-rate, a shameful sign of indigence singling out those who could not afford better - quite different from what we expect and value about foods from the so-called “cucina povera.” The valorization of white foods and its association with class is rooted in antiquity and was brought to its height in the Middle Ages, when for centuries the most popular dish was biancomangiare - whitedish.
Medieval biancomangiare: a pudding made with almonds and chicken breast
Granted, the association of whole grain flour with poverty has faded with the passing of those who lived through those times of hardship. But even today, despite dietary advice touting high fiber, Italians are not partial to it because the taste and mouthfeel do not satisfy like refined flour pastas and contrast with what is considered traditional.
“Alternative” pasta, made with various unrefined grains and even legumes has in recent year gained a stable foothold on supermarket shelves, but it is a dietary rather than a culinary choice.
The reframing of wholewheat pasta from “poor” to “healthy,” has bizarrely resulted in connotations of girly - chick food - stuff for the airy fairy set, as evidenced by this Barilla advertisement. Here’s the scene: two burly Italian truck drivers are at a roadside trattoria, salt of the earth men out for a hearty stick-to-the-ribs meal. In a loud voice, one orders both of them a dish of pasta integrale, while his lunch companion looks as if he will die of embarrassment. To make things worse, they were in earshot of a table of manly men who look on sniggering. Long story short, the guy reluctantly tries the pasta and has a full-blown epiphany then and there in the trattoria - cutting through the whole-grain stigma and paving the way for real men to enjoy pasta integrale, unencumbered. Notably, as a saving grace, it is alla putanesca - which as most know by now is translated “whore’s pasta.” Balance is restored and we can breath easy.
Man expressing concern about having to eat whole grain pasta
Grano Arso
Part of cucina povera legacy in Puglia is grano arso, a flour made from the stray grains and spikes (or ears) of wheat collected from the fields after the customary burning of the stalks following the harvest. Gathering these grains was not just frugal, it was an act of economic desperation. The flour made from these grains was sometimes paired with whole wheat flour as an extender in making chiancaredde.
Today, grano arso has become a luxury novelty item, picked up by the chefs of swank trattorias as a flavor enhancer for their signature creations. For example, I had a light-as-a-feather dessert bun with cream filling made with grano arso at Santopalato in Rome - truly an innovative use of this unusual flour.
When adding it to your recipes, it is best to use no more than 10-15% otherwise it will be overpowering. The unique taste is not the caramelly, toasty goodness that results from the browning of sugars in the Maillard reaction, as one might imagine. Grano arso tastes of what it is - burnt wheat. If anything, the flavor is more akin to a strongly roasted coffee for which you have to use it judiciously. It’s pretty assertive stuff.
I make my chiancaredde as an old style revisitation with both whole grain durum wheat flour and 10% grano arso. They are often dressed with pancetta and cabbage, but for the cabbage I substituted cavolo nero - Brassica oleracea var. acephala - that last word being Greek for “headless” - a cultivar group that includes collards. Cavolo nero is admittedly mostly associated with Tuscan cuisine, but I thought it a socioeconomically justifiable alternative as well as a good supporting actor for this dish.
Chiancaredde - orecchiette tarantine -
serves 4 as a primo piatto - or 3 with a salad/side dish
INGREDIENTS:
300g wholewheat durum flour (or soft wheat)
30g grano arso - this is hard to come by even in Italy and could be substituted with 1 tbsp of smoked paprika
150g water - liquids are always an approximation depending on various conditions; the dough should be stiff yet workable
1/2 tsp salt
400g cavolo nero, stripped (see below) - or other leafy green or cabbage
150g smoked pancetta, cubed
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 dried red chili (or to taste)
1 tbsp olive oil
Cheese for dusting - parmesan or pecorino romano
freshly ground pepper
INSTRUCTIONS:
Prepare a dough with water, salt and the flours. Knead 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Let it rest 30 minutes.
While the dough rests, prepare the condiment.
Strip the leafy part of the cavolo nero from the stalks. Boil it until soft, chop finely and set aside.
Sauté the pancetta in a large skillet in the olive oil on medium high. When it starts to brown, flake the chili into the pan and add the garlic. When the garlic has softened, add the chopped greens and set aside.
Cut the dough into four pieces and roll them out into logs the width of a cigar.
Cut the logs into 1cm-sized bits then with your thumb, a knife or another tool (I have used a raschietto), apply pressure and drag them one by one across a wooden board or your countertop.
Turn the rough edge face up and continue on in this way. Be sure to keep the dough you are not working on covered so that it doesn’t dry out. No need to cover the ones that are done.
A very rustic pasta
Put a pot of salted water on to boil and warm up the condiment in the large skillet. Once the pasta is mostly cooked, skim it out of the pot into the skillet and add a ladel of boiling pasta water to finish the cooking.
Add the pasta and a ladleful of the pasta water. Toss.
Plate and top with grated cheese and freshly ground pepper.
