A tiny place where once lived the paladins of Sardegna is Orgosolo. Only a decade or so ago did they think it prudent, finally, to wander about the steep, tortured alleyways of their mountain village unadorned with a rifle. Orgosolo is the historic lair of Sard banditismo—banditry. Perhaps the businesses of thieving and buccaneering seem more gainful in Calabria, for now, the only rapscallions left in Orgosolo are the political artists whose bullying, bitter-sermoned murals irritate walls, housefronts, mountain faces. Too, icons are chafed, gastronomically, in Orgosolo, as they are here in this dish, which asks for bottarga as well as pecorino, upsetting the proscription, for a moment, against the mingling of fish and cheese.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 4
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
In a large terra-cotta or enameled cast-iron casserole over a medium flame, warm the olive oil and sauté the pancetta, tossing it about in the oil for several minutes before softening the garlic in the fat, taking care not to color it. Add the tomato puree, the 3/4 teaspoon sea salt, and the wine, bringing the mixture to a gentle simmer and permitting it to reduce for 15 minutes.
Step 2
Off the flame, add the red wine vinegar and 1/2 cup of the pecorino, giving the sauce a good stir and letting it to cool, uncovered.
Step 3
Meanwhile, in abundant, boiling, sea-salted water, cook the malloreddus or the other pasta to al dente, draining it and transferring it to a large bowl. Toss the just-cooked pasta with the remaining pecorino, then grate the bottarga over it, giving the whole another tossing to distribute the bottarga.
Step 4
Turn the pasta out into the terra-cotta casserole with the still-warm sauce, tossing it about and coating it well. Carry la barbicina to the table, serving it in warmed, shallow bowls. Pass around a jug of honorable red wine.
