Cavatelli with chickpeas and pork ribs. A hearty and delicious one-course pasta dish.

On long winter evenings we would use the harvest from the garden, carefully preserved in anticipation of the land’s resting period during the cold season.

When the legumes were enriched with pork ribs, just the thought of it meant a big celebration.
The ritual began the night before, soaking the chickpeas.

It was the final act of a legume I have always loved: I still remembered when, from small green pods, I enjoyed popping them between my fingers to taste a few.

The plants were hairy and prickly to the touch; they were then harvested at full maturity, when at the end of the growing season under the hot July sun they turned yellow and dry. To shell them we used to beat them with a stick;

this task was reserved for me together with my sister Michela. And naturally, between work and play, the time needed doubled; especially when we had to sift to clean the last vegetal residues, helped by the wind.

Because part of them always ended up on the ground, so you had to start over. But as soon as mom arrived the task took on a serious tone.
After the overnight soaking, the chickpeas were ready to cook.

And while the pot on the stove finished cooking them, we prepared the handmade pasta. Sometimes eggs were used, other times just water;

with this sauce the rustic cavatelli were the ideal shape: firm during cooking and ready to catch every flavor with their little hollows.
Finally, while the pasta dried a bit, the pork ribs were browned together with a good soffritto.

The beginning was always the same: sometimes we deglazed with red wine and finally added the chickpeas, to finish building the right tenderness.
Everything was left to simmer in a corner of the low hearth, made especially to help the women of the house prepare and watch the fire.

Then in the evening, after a cold and intense day, this piping hot first course, rich in aromas, was brought to the table. Between simple words describing the days, punctuated by long silences, we caught our breath eating that rich stew, full of work and life.

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Budget-friendly
Preparation time: 1 Hour
Cooking time: 2 Hours
Portions: 6
Cooking methods: Stovetop
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: Autumn, Winter and Spring, All seasons

Ingredients for Cavatelli with Chickpeas and Pork Ribs.

Noble traditional ingredients from pork ribs to garden legumes with fresh pasta.

1 3/4 cups re-milled durum wheat semolina
as needed water (lukewarm. For kneading the semolina)
3 cups cooked chickpeas
8 pork ribs (trimmed and separated)
as needed sofrito mix (onion, carrot, celery)
1/4 cup red wine
2 pinches roasting herbs (thyme, rosemary)
as needed olive oil
as needed salt

Tools for Cavatelli with Chickpeas and Pork Ribs.

All the tools I use can be found in my buying recommendations

Bacinelle
Friggitrici ad aria

Steps for Cavatelli with Chickpeas and Pork Ribs.

Brown the sofrito mix together with the pork ribs and add the aromatic herbs; then deglaze with the red wine.
Let the wine reduce and add the previously boiled chickpeas with a bundle of aromatic herbs. Cook for about two hours.
Meanwhile, knead the semolina with lukewarm water until you obtain a smooth dough ball. Let it rest for about thirty minutes in a closed container so the pasta does not dry out. Shape small logs about 3/8 inch in diameter and form the cavatelli.
Cook the cavatelli in salted boiling water, leaving them slightly al dente. Transfer them to the pot with the chickpeas and ribs; simmer two minutes to let the flavors combine, then serve completing the plate with a rib.
Optionally add a grind of black pepper and serve!