Calabrian pasta and potatoes
Baked pasta and potatoes is a typical dish of the Cosenza gastronomic tradition. The peculiarity of this pasta is that it is made raw: you start by making a base of tomato puree, add the raw pasta, cover it with a thin layer of potatoes and caciocavallo cheese and continue in this way until you finish the ingredients, leaving the pasta as the last layer.
The starches of the pasta and potatoes are not dispersed but are kept inside the baking tin, giving a full-bodied and substantial dish. You can choose your favourite pasta format: ziti, rigatoni, penne. You can flavour everything with crushed garlic and dry or fresh chilli pepper.
Calabrian pasta and potatoes: ingredients for 4 people
- 650 g of broken ziti pasta
- 1 bottle of tomato puree
- 600 g of potatoes from Sila PGI
- 150 g of caciocavallo from Sila PDO
- 3 tablespoons of EVO oil
- 1 glass of water
- 50 g breadcrumb
- Oregano
- Salt
- Black pepper
Calabrian pasta and potatoes: the traditional recipe
Peel the potatoes and cut them into thin slices. In a bowl pour the tomato puree and season it with a tablespoon of oil, salt, pepper and dried oregano.
Grease the bottom of a large baking pan with a tablespoon of oil and cover with a few ladles of tomato puree. Add the raw pasta and cover it with a thin layer of potatoes. Cover the potatoes with part of the diced caciocavallo cheese, salt and oregano. Continue in this way until the end of the ingredients, leaving the pasta as the last layer.
Wet with water. Cook with the lid on the cooker for 15 minutes. Cover the surface with the remaining caciocavallo cheese, breadcrumb and a tablespoon of oil. Transfer the pan to the static oven at 200°C for another 20 minutes. Or bake the pan directly in the oven for about 30 minutes. Let it cool for 5/10 minutes before serving. Enjoy your meal!
