Taglierini Picchi Pacchiu

CARRABBA’S TAGLIARINI PICCHI PACCHIU

Well to some this dish might be unknown or many may know it as Linguine Toscana. Tagliarini Picchi Pacchiu is an Italian delicacy loaded with garlic and tomatoes. If you are someone who has never tried this dish yet and if you are a garlic-lover too, this might turn out to be your favourite dish ever! Here, we have brought to you the most authentic cooking recipe of this dish which will leave you licking your fingers as this is going to taste THAT GOOD!

Before we just jump straight into the recipe, let us find out the meaning behind this funny yet unique name. What exactly is Carrabba’s Tagliarini Picchi Pacchiu?

“Carrabba’s Italian Grill” is basically an American restaurant chain which features Italian-American cuisine. Tagliarini Picchi Pacchiu happens to be one of their most delicious dishes that they serve there! The restaurant has now changed the name of the dish to Linguine Toscana.

So here we have come up with a recipe of the famous Tagliarini Picchi Pacchiu or Linguine Toscana from Carrabba’s.

Now the question arises, what really is Tagliarini?

Tagliarini is a type of ribbon pasta, long like spaghetti. It is made of egg dough and is a traditional recipe in Italy; in Piedmont, it is also known as Tajarin. If you’re looking for some substitutes of tagliarini : Fettucine, Tagliatelle or even spaghetti can be used but they lack the special texture which you get in the egg dough pasta. Tagliarini also tastes pretty good when topped with seafood or pesto sauce. It can also be made into a soup, but here we have brought to you the authentic recipe, the way it is eaten in Italy!

Last question, what is Picchi Pacchiu though?

Picchi Pacchiu is the name of the sauce made up of fresh tomatoes and garlic. This dish is most popular during summer-time as the tomatoes are fresh and juicy in that season, bursting with flavours. It is most famous around Sicily. Throughout Italy, this sauce is known by different names which include – picchi pacchio, picchiu pacchiu, pic pac, picchio pacchiu, etc.

The name picchi pacchiu is said to believe came from the sound that a wooden spoon makes while stirring tomatoes in a pot as the spoon hits the walls of the pot.

The ingredients required to make this dish are very few – garlic and tomatoes are the only main vegetables you will be required to make it, so it is important for them to be as fresh as possible so that the dish tastes super delicious. Some fresh not – chopped basil is another important addition to it, without which this dish will taste insipid. To top everything up, some olives will be the show-stopper of this dish!

INGREDIENTS REQUIRED:

• 5-6 fresh and thinly sliced garlic cloves
• 24 oz of fresh and ripe red tomatoes or 1 can whole tomato juice
• ½ cup chopped basil leaves
• 1 pound Tagliarini Pasta or any substitute as mentioned above
• Some freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp. salt and 1 tbsp. pepper
• 2 tbsp sugar or as required to tone down the tanginess of tomatoes
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Add 1 cup of water or as required in a pot on medium-high heat and let it come to a boil. Once the water starts boiling, add 1 tbsp salt and some olive oil so that the pasta doesn’t stick together. Now, add the tagliarini pasta to the boiling water.
2. Stir well to separate the pasta strands. Cook until al-dente (cook just enough to retain a firm texture) and then drain off the water.
3. Now to prepare the sauce, heat oil and garlic together in a skillet for about 5 minutes just until the oil is warm and garlic turns mushy.
4. Now remove the skillet from heat and set aside so as to let the flavours infuse together for about 30 minutes.
5. Take a bowl and pour fresh tomatoes and their juices, if required squeeze the tomatoes by your fingers or mash with a spoon until they are coarsely crushed.
6. In the tomato purée, add the garlic-oil infusion together with basil leaves and stir well.
7. Season the mixture with salt and pepper and also add sugar if the tomatoes taste too tangy and then let it stand for some hours for the flavours to mix.
8. After some hours, give it a good mix and add the sauce to pasta in the pan and mix well.
9. Cover and rest for a while and then stir again.
10. Serve hot!

CHEF’S PRO TIPS:

1. Always prepare the sauce first and let it sit for around 1-2 hours. After some time while the sauce still sits together, boil the pasta and keep ready. After draining off the excess water from the pasta, in the same pan, add the sauce on top of the pasta.
2. You can always add more garlic to the recipe and also add chilli flakes to make it spicy, or even add sausages and any veggies of your choice.