Pasta mollicata (pasta with breadcrumbs) is a traditional Basilicata dish that is prepared all over the South of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Compared to other

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, ar ...

recipes, it is considered a "poor dish” because it is not prepared with many ingredients.

Preparation

Pasta mollicata is usually made by frying a chopped onion (previously dipped in red wine) in a cooking pan with

extra-virgin olive oil Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...

and a bit of lard. A chopped tomato is then added to the mixture and cooked on high heat for several minutes. Afterwards, some stale bread reduced to crumbs is added and the pan is left on high heat for about 15 minutes. After draining the salty pasta and stir frying it with a bit of

cacioricotta Cacioricotta is a typical southern-Italian cheese produced in the regions of Basilicata, Apulia, and Calabria. Production Method Cacioricotta is produced with a "hybrid" method of preparation, following both the steps used in the production o ...

cheese, the dish is seasoned with more fresh cacioricotta, oil and some hot pepper.

Seasonal variations

Pasta mollicata, like other “poor dishes”, has many seasonal variations. Particular preparations include replacing onions with fresh leeks. There are also some preparations in which chopped nuts and/or fresh mushrooms are added to the basic seasoning.

References

{{reflist Pasta dishes Cuisine of Basilicata