Corzetti stampati con u toccu
Stamped Ligurian pasta with slow-cooked beef sauce
Each corzetto carries an impression. A carved wooden stamp presses a pattern into both faces of a little pasta coin, leaving shallow relief that takes hold of the sauce. On the Riviera di Levante this is a distinct shape from the small figure-eight corzetti made by pressing dough with the fingers farther west.
Here the sauce is u toccu: a whole piece of beef cooked slowly with vegetables, dried mushrooms, wine and a modest amount of tomato. The beef lends its flavor to the liquid, then leaves the pan. The pasta takes the sauce; the tender meat has its own place at the table afterward. Calling it a ground-meat ragù would miss the essential move.
The stamping is worth doing carefully. Dry the cut rounds just enough that the pattern stays sharp, but keep them pliable enough to cook into tender pasta. In the bowl, the dark sauce settles into the pressed lines rather than hiding the design beneath a heap of meat.
Ingredients
For the toccu
- 700 g(1½ lb)boneless beef chuck roast, in one piece (see note)
- 45 ml(3 tbsp)extra-virgin olive oil
- 1small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1carrot, finely chopped
- 1celery stalk, finely chopped
- 1small garlic clove, finely chopped
- 15 gdried porcini mushrooms
- 120 ml(½ cup)dry white wine
- 35 g(about 2 tbsp)double-concentrated tomato paste
- 500–750 ml(2–3 cups)hot unsalted beef broth, as needed
- 1small rosemary sprig
- 1bay leaf
- 3fresh sage leaves
- fine salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the corzetti
- 400 gItalian tipo 00 flour, plus more for dusting
- 2large egg yolks
- 160–190 ml(⅔–¾ cup plus 1 tbsp)water, as needed
- 3 g(½ tsp)fine salt
To serve
- Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated
Kitchen notes
- Corzetti stamp
- A two-part carved wooden corzetti stamp cuts the round and impresses both faces. It is available from specialist pasta-tool makers online. A plain cookie cutter makes rounds but not corzetti stampati; the relief is part of this dish's identity.
- Beef for toccu
- Toccu means the whole piece of meat that flavors the sauce. Buy an intact chuck roast with connective tissue for slow cooking; ground beef produces a different kind of ragù. The cooked beef is intended to be eaten as a separate course.
- Dried porcini
- Use actual dried porcini, not a generic mixed-mushroom blend. Strain the soaking water carefully; the sediment can be gritty.
Method
Start the toccu
- Soak the porcini in 250 ml (1 cup) warm water for 20 minutes. Lift them out, chop finely and strain the soaking liquid through a coffee filter or fine cloth to remove grit. Pat the beef dry and season it lightly. Heat the oil in a heavy lidded pot over medium heat; soften the onion, carrot, celery and garlic for 6–8 minutes without burning them. Push the vegetables aside and brown the whole beef piece on every face. Add the wine, scraping the pot, and let it reduce by about half.
- Stir in the chopped porcini and tomato paste. Add the strained porcini liquid and enough hot broth to come about two-thirds of the way up the beef. Add rosemary, bay and sage. Cover and keep at the gentlest simmer for 3–4 hours, turning the beef occasionally and adding broth only when needed to keep it partly submerged. It is ready when a fork enters easily and the sauce tastes deeply of beef without a raw tomato edge. Remove the beef intact for a second course. Discard the herb stems and bay; simmer the sauce uncovered if it needs to thicken to a loose, spoon-coating consistency. Season only after reducing.
Make and stamp the pasta
- Put the flour and salt in a wide bowl or on a board. Add the yolks and 160 ml water; work into a firm dough, adding more water a teaspoon at a time only until dry crumbs join. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, then wrap and rest for 30 minutes. Roll the dough in portions to about 1 mm thick, keeping unused dough covered. Cut 5 cm (2 in) rounds with a corzetti stamp. Dust the carved faces lightly with flour, press each round firmly between them to mark both sides, and lay the coins in one layer on a floured cloth. Let them stand 20–30 minutes so the impression sets, without drying them brittle. Re-roll scraps once.
Cook and dress
- Bring a broad pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the corzetti in batches until tender but still resilient, about 3–5 minutes for freshly stamped pasta; taste one at its thickest point. Lift them into a wide warm pan with enough hot toccu to coat, adding a spoonful of pasta water if needed. Turn gently so the designs remain visible. Serve immediately with a little freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Slice the reserved beef and serve it separately with any remaining sauce.