Pasta

How to Shape Fresh Long Pici Pasta

This Tuscan pasta, which resembles thick spaghetti, is dead simple to make yourself.
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Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Mindy Fox
  • Image may contain Human Person Food Egg Nature and Wood
    Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Mindy Fox
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    Pull Off Some Dough

    Start by pulling a walnut-sized piece from your ball of food-processor pasta dough. Rewrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap to keep it from drying out.

  • Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Mindy Fox
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    Roll Away

    On a wooden cutting board or surface, roll out the walnut-sized piece of dough to a long rope, about 1/2-inch thick. If your dough is sticking to the surface and you're having trouble rolling it out, sprinkle the surface with a little semolina flour. If you find you're having the opposite problem—that the dough is too dry to roll—dampen your hands with a little warm water.

  • Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Mindy Fox
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    Cut...

    Using a bench scraper or a sharp knife, cut the pasta rope into 4-inch-long segments.

  • Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Mindy Fox
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    Then Just Keep Rolling

    Roll out each segment into long ropes that are just over 1/8-inch wide.

  • Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Mindy Fox
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    Done!

    Move your pici to a sheet pan or plate, dusted with semolina flour to prevent sticking. Once you've shaped all of your dough, cook it in a large pot of boiling, salted water until al dente, 6-7 minutes. Drain, toss with sauce, and then eat! You can also freeze the uncooked pici to cook later. Just stick the sheet pan or plate in the freezer. Once they're frozen solid, transfer them to an airtight container. They'll keep well for about 2 weeks. To cook, just toss them frozen into the boiling, salted water and add an extra minute or two to the cooking time.

    Read more: How to Make Fresh Homemade Pasta

Sheela Prakash is a food and wine writer and recipe developer, as well as a registered dietitian. A longtime editor at Kitchn, she has also been on staff at Epicurious and Food52. Her writing and recipes can be found in numerous online and print publications, including Serious Eats, Tasting Table, ... Read More
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