The orecchiette with turnip tops is one of the most representative traditional dishes of Puglia. A tasty main course that conquers the palate. The pasta is very light, made with re-milled durum wheat semolina and cooks in just a few minutes. If you don’t feel like preparing the orecchiette, you can buy them ready-made at a fresh pasta shop or at the supermarket. Those who are used to eating homemade pasta will immediately notice the difference, but the result is always worthy. Let’s see together the preparation of this magnificent dish.
You might be interested in:
How to clean and cook turnip tops.
Homemade Cavatelli. (try them with turnip tops…they’re top-notch!!!)
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1.1 lbs re-milled durum wheat semolina
- 1.25 cups water
- 0.85 cups olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- to taste chili pepper
- 2.2 lbs turnip tops
Preparation
Orecchiette and Turnip Tops. The Flavors of Puglia at Your Home.
The orecchiette are a typical pasta shape of Puglia and Basilicata, whose shape resembles small ears. Re-milled semolina is the ideal flour for making orecchiette. It is a dough made only of semolina and water. Click HERE to see the explanation with all the photos of the preparation using 500 grams of re-milled durum wheat semolina and 300 ml of room temperature water.
Now focus on cleaning and preparing the turnip tops. It’s a vegetable now widespread throughout Italy but mostly consumed in the South, especially in Puglia and Campania. In Puglia, they appear with thick stalks and leaves and fleshy branches, while in Campania they are more tender and thin and are called friarielli. They contain a lot of water, minerals, and vitamins. They are nutritious and low in calories.
Pay attention to the choice of turnip tops. The leaves should not show yellow parts but have a bright green color, leaves with good consistency, and firm stems. HERE I show you how simple it is to clean turnip tops.
At this point, put the tops in plenty of salted water, and when it reaches boiling, throw in the pasta. Meanwhile, in a separate small pot, heat the oil with garlic and chili pepper. When the pasta rises to the surface, it is ready. Drain and then season with garlic, oil, and chili pepper.
Having many guests? I recommend preparing the tops first by simply boiling them. You can transfer them to a large container where you can spread them well and season with the fried oil with garlic and chili pepper. Leave it covered until your guests arrive. When the water boils, throw in the pasta and when it’s ready, drain. Pour a drizzle of oil into a large pan, and if you want to make the dish even tastier, add the turnip top pesto. (it takes just a few minutes to prepare, see HERE) Combine some of the seasoned tops and some pasta. Mix everything and serve!
You can enrich the dish with anchovies and breadcrumbs.
In a large pan, pour three circles of oil and place on the stove. Add breadcrumbs and toast them. Meanwhile, when you prepare the sauté, you can add the anchovies and let them melt.
Finish the preparation described above by sprinkling the prepared breadcrumbs.
I also recommend the version of Cavatelli with turnip tops, sausage, and croutons. A delight!!!
What are you waiting for? Bring the flavors of Puglia to your home with orecchiette and turnip tops!
If you liked this recipe and want to be always updated, follow me also on my Facebook page by clicking acasadigery and leave your like! I’m waiting for you…Gery
Go back to the home to read all the other recipes. You can also find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest
You might be interested in:
