What is Gnocchetti Sardi Pasta?
Gnocchetti Sardi pasta is a traditional eggless ridged-shaped pasta, from the island of Sardinia. They are also known as ‘malloreddus’ or ‘marracones’, depending on which area of Sardinia.
Gnocchetti Sardi look like typical Italian gnocchi in shape, but are made without potatoes and have a satisfying, chewy bite. They are also much smaller (about a third) in size compared to classic gnocchi. Sicily have their version too, but they are larger and go by the name of cavatelli. Learning how to make Gnocchetti Sardi is simple, with just a few basic ingredients, you can create this authentic Sardinian pasta at home
Wondering the difference between gnocchi and gnocchetti? The word gnocchetti literally means small gnocchi.
A Traditional Blue Zone Dish
Gnocchetti are a very well-known recipe in the Blue Zone of Sardinia, where they go under the name of marracones. The Blue Zone of Sardinia is an area where scientists found an incredible rate of longevity among the inhabitants, which was quite notable if compared to the longevity rate of other areas of Italy and Sardinia itself.
Want to bring Sardinia’s longevity-boosting flavors into your own kitchen?
Learn more about our Sardinian cookbook filled with authentic Blue Zone recipes.
What Sauces Pair with Gnocchetti?
Traditional sauce pairings vary from region to region, one of the most known sauces in Sardinia is Fennel sausage ragu, which you will find in restaurants under the name of Campidanese sauce. Campidano is the region where the recipe originated, but many areas on the island have their own take.
In this recipe, you’ll learn to cook the traditional Campidanese sauce and a vegan/vegetarian option with mushrooms instead of sausage.
Gnocchetti / Malloreddus Pasta Video Tutorial
You will learn here how to make Gnocchetti Sardi in 5 different ways. You can make Gnocchetti in slightly different shapes and sizes, with the use of different tools. My video below shows you how, it’s very easy!
Gnocchetti works very well with sausage ragú, mushroom sauce, pesto, and goat’s cheese. They are a great recipe to make with kids as the shapes are quite fun. And the most beautiful part about fresh pasta, is that after you put in the initial effort, you’ll be rewarded with some delicious fresh pasta that cooks within minutes – perfect for busy days!
How to Make Gnocchetti Sardi (Malloreddus) alla Campidanese
- Serves 4
- Preparation time: 60 minutes
- Cooking time: 10 minutes+
- 60-90 minutes resting time
Ingredients For The Gnocchetti
- 400g fine semolina flour
- 200 ml warm water
- 2g salt
- 1g saffron (optional)
- 100g rice flour
Ingredients For Campidanese (Fennel Sausage Ragu)
- 4 garlic cloves
- 12 leaves of basil (parsley for vegetarian alternative)
- 300g fennel sausage (Oyster mushrooms for the vegetarian alternative)
- 15ml extra virgin olive oil
- 800g chopped tomato sauce (2 cans)
- Salt to taste
- Aged, grated pecorino cheese to garnish
How To Make The Gnocchetti Pasta Dough
On a flat surface, put the flour into a mound. Make a hole in the middle and into it put the saffron, water and salt. Mix it all together vigorously with your hands for about 7-8 minutes and knead until it forms a soft dough.
Put it into a container, cover with cling film and let it rest for about 1-2 hours or for best results overnight.
The different shapes you can make!
How To Shape The Gnocchetti
Divide the dough into five equal pieces. Take one piece and cover the rest with a cloth or in an airtight container. Roll your piece into a thin cylinder, of approximately 1cm thickness, then cut it into small pieces about 1cm long.
If you are short of time, aim for a bigger cylinder and bigger pieces of 2 cm. I wouldn’t go any bigger or you might end up with pasta that is too hard to eat.
Shape the pieces into gnocchetti using a gnocchi ridge, an open cheese grater or any ridged tool you have available. Place a piece of dough on the ridge, apply some pressure with your thumb and drag it down to curl. You will end up with a curled-up gnocchi with ridges on one side.
Set aside on a tray and dust them immediately with rice flour as you shape the gnocchetti, to prevent them from sticking to each other. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.
Cooking The Perfect Campidanese Sausage Ragu
Cut the sausage into small chunks of about 1 inch. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat and add the sausage to sear evenly on the outside for about 5 minutes. Add in the garlic cloves cut in halves and cook for 2 minutes until brown but not burnt. If you don’t like to eat garlic, discard it. Add the tomato sauce, basil and salt and cook at very low heat for about 15 minutes.
Alternative Mushroom Sauce For Vegans & Vegetarians
Sardinian is a huge cheese eating island; however you may have noticed that Malloreddus contain only 4 ingredients, salt, flour, oil and water and are therefore vegan. Below is a fantastic alternative sauce pairing for vegans and vegetarians.
Vegan & Vegetarian Sauce Ingredients
- 500g mushrooms
- 15ml extra virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 400g polpa (chopped tomatoes)
- Bunch of chopped parsley
- Salt to taste
Cut the mushroom into strips about 1cm wide. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat, add in the garlic cloves cut in halves and cook for 2 minutes until brown, but not burnt. Add in the mushrooms to cook with the lid on until they are soft. Add the tomato sauce, chopped parsley and salt. Cook for about 15 minutes.
How To Cook Gnocchetti Sardi?
Bring a pan of water to a boil and add a little salt. Drop in the gnocchetti and boil gently. The cooking time will depend on the size of the gnocchetti but bear in mind that fresh pasta cooks faster than dried pasta. To know when they are ready, try and taste them 1 minute after they all rise to the surface. Drain the gnocchetti.
Cook with your sauce (sausage ragu or mushroom ragu) with a splash of pasta water for about 2 minutes.
Every meal in Sardinia is not finished without a dust of pecorino cheese. If you like.
Gnocchi Sardi Cooking Tips And Recipe Variations
Using a ridged board to shape
Best Sardinian Gnocchi Shape
The key to get the shape right is to press firmly into the ridger, the aim is to get each gnocchetti as thinner as you can, so they’ll cook quicker and they will also be lighter.
Consistency is also key. Try to get each gnocchi sardi of the same approximate dimension, so the cooking time will be the same.
Best Flour For Homemade Gnocchetti
Traditionally we use fine semolina flour in Sardinia to make pasta, because it is simply the type of wheat that grows here, and it gives the characteristic yellow colour to the pasta. But if you find it easier you can change the flour to any suitable pasta flour or 00.
Different Sauces For Gnocchetti Sardi
Good alternative sauces I recommend are: Pesto, Cacio e Pepe, Aubergine Tomatoes, Marjoram and goat cheese.
Is Pasta Healthy?
This is a highly debated topic; however recent science suggests that it can be, especially when using durum wheat.
“The large-scale studies suggest that, if anything, eating grains is associated with a lower risk of health problems and obesity. If you need further convincing that it is safe for 99 per cent of us to eat wholegrains, a recent randomised trial in sixty Danish adults for eight weeks found that a diet rich in wholegrains containing gluten reduced both body weight and blood markers of stress (inflammation) in comparison to those on a diet of refined grains.7
If you experiment and change your diet, be aware that any benefits experienced are unlikely to be due to the gluten itself. Unless you have a medically confirmed diagnosis of coeliac disease or a rare wheat allergy, avoiding gluten is likely ‘on average’ to do you more harm than good.”
Tim Spector is a professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London and Honorary consultant physician at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals. He is a multi-award-winning expert in personalised medicine and the gut microbiome, and the author of four books including the best-selling The Diet Myth.
From my book “The Sardinia Blue Zone Cookbook” One of the most popular grains used in Sardinia is durum wheat. Semolina flour is made from durum wheat, a hard type of wheat. This golden flour contains a higher amount of nutrients compared to common white wheat flour.
Since it is a source of carbohydrates with a good amount of both fibre and protein, semolina flour can help slow the absorption of sugar from the stomach and increase feelings of fullness, resulting in a more balanced blood sugar level.1
- Mateljan, G. (2015). The world’s healthiest foods: The force for change to optimal with health-promoting foods and nutrient-rich cooking. Seattle, USA: GMF Publishing. p. 852-855.
FAQS
Can I Make The Gnocchetti Without A Special Board?
Yes of course! Watch our Youtube video above for inspiration on the many ways you can shape gnocchetti. One additional one is a simple use of a fork. But it is probably the most known.
How To Store Homemade Pasta?
If you just made your gnocchi but don’t want to eat them just yet, you can store them in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Can You Freeze Your Homemade Gnocchetti Sardi?
Yes you can freeze homemade gnocchetti sardi. But don’t defrost them before cooking or they will stick together! Instead, cook them directly from frozen. That’s the best way to store your pasta like our mamma does. Making gnocchetti is time consuming, so once you start, we recommend making a good amount for you to enjoy in the future.
Conclusion
Excited to try my gnocchetti recipe? It is so easy to make gnocchetti that even kids can get involved and then you are left with some fresh pasta that will be ready in just minutes for your busy days. If you’re curious to learn more about Sardinian food in general, take a look at our guide to Sardinian cuisine for some of the island’s most famous foods.
I spent time in Sardinia’s Blue Zone, interviewing locals and learning about their culinary habits. I’ve compiled an ebook of Authentic Sardinian recipes for you. Enjoy the flavors of Sardinia’s time-honored traditions in the comfort of your own home.
