If you travel across Italy, you’ll find that each region, each city, and each town has its own distinct traditions. And while Italy is known for its pasta, Molfetta, located in the Puglia region of Italy, is known for this particular pasta, mille infranti, which translates to “a thousand broken pieces”. Its called triddo by the locals.
This semolina pasta is quick to put together and is shaped just as its name suggests, by being broken into a thousand pieces. It’s made a day ahead to allow time for it to dry, and then can be made in under a minute by crushing the sheets to make the individual pieces. Once it’s made, serve it in chicken broth, sprinkled with parmesan cheese.
Mille Infranti | Triddo
Ingredients
- 300 grams semolina flour
- 3 eggs
- 3 tablespoons freshly chopped parsely
Directions
1. Turn the flour onto a clean work surface. Press a bowl into the middle of the flour, moving it slowly in circles against the work surface to create a well. Break the eggs into the center of the well.
2. Break the yolks with a fork, and whisk gently. Add in the parsley and whisk together. Start to incorporate the flour from the walls of the well. When the dough is starting to become too thick to whisk, bring the mixture together by using a bench scraper to bring the flour from the edges into the center.
3. Knead the dough for 6-8 minutes, until the dough can be shaped into a ball and there is minimal cracking in the dough. The dough will not be smooth like regular pasta dough, on account of the rougher nature of the semolina flour. You’ll notice the texture will change after having rested the dough.
4. Cover the dough and rest for 30 minutes.
5. Portion the dough into 6 pieces. You can shape the dough by passing it through a pasta machine or by rolling it by hand. The shape of the flattened piece doesn’t matter, as you’ll be breaking it apart later.
If using a pasta machine: Flatten the dough with the palm of your hand. Pass it through the machine on a “0” setting”. Then, fold the dough in thirds and pass it on “0” again, to create a uniform shape for the machine. Pass it once on each setting until a thinness of “5”.
If rolling by hand: Flour your work surface lightly. Place a section of dough on the floured surface and roll, flipping frequently to ensure the pasta doesn’t stick to the board. Roll until as thin as possible, without breaking
6. Lay the sheets to dry for at least 6 hours or overnight on clean kitchen towels. When the pasta has dried, break off bite size pieces, or start to fold the stiffened sheets and crush into piece with your hands.
7. Cook for 10-12 minutes and serve in chicken broth. Top with parmesan cheese. Divide into plastic bags and freeze if not using immediately.
