Tagliatelle, long fresh egg pasta, is a specialty of northern Italy, especially the Emilia-Romagna region. Traditionally made by hand, not with a pasta machine, it is believed to taste better made with a wooden rolling pin on a wood surface. Ostensibly wood imparts graininess to the pasta’s surface, allowing sauces to cling. To make tagliatelle, the dough is rolled into a large circle, folded over itself several times and then cut, giving rise to its name, from the Italian verb tagliare, “to cut.”
Traditionally, the classic condiment for tagliatelle is a rich, slow-cooked, tomato based meat sauce made with ground veal called ragù alla Bolognese.
Tagliatelle Bolognese: History
Lucrezia Borgia, the notorious illegitimate daughter of Pope Alexander VI, is often cited as the inspiration for tagliatelle. In her day she was described as having, “a radiant smile, two blond braids, a pearl-rimmed handkerchief, one poison potion...” According to legend, a chef wanted to honor her lovely golden hair by creating a special pasta for her upcoming wedding to Duke d’Este in Ferrara in the early 1500s. Although a charming notion, the legend is actually quite recent, originating in the 1930s by the Italian humorist, Augusto Majani.
The actual origin of tagliatelle is difficult to pinpoint as its history is interwoven with that of other centuries-old long pasta shapes. One of the earliest written references is in Bartolomeo Scappi’s 1570 cookbook Opera dell’Arte del Cucinare (“The Art of Cooking”). A non-cookery reference from 1630 points to the popularity of tagliatelle, according to Dr. Giancarlo Gonizzi, Director of the renowned culinary library at Academia Barilla in Parma. Dr. Gonizzi notes, “Girolamo Aleandri in The Defense of Adone (Venice 1630), describing a scene from court life, wrote: Playing some gentlemen at the Marquis Pepoli's house, it was said by one of them in jest, that he was drunk on tagliatelle...”
“Conti corti e tagliatelle lunghe”, (may you have “short bills and long tagliatelle”) was a popular saying in Bologna, cited in Italy’s famed 19th century cookbook by Pellegrino Artusi, La Scienza in Cucina e l’Arte di Mangiare Bene (“Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well’). Artusi explains, “because big bills frighten poor husbands, and short tagliatelle ... indicating an inexperienced pasta maker ... seem like [mere] kitchen leftovers.” (Leftover bits of pasta dough were often cut into tiny pieces to serve in soup.) Laila Tentoni, President of Casa Artusi, a culinary center dedicated to the author and located in the town of Forlimpopoli in Emilia-Romagna, expounds on the regional importance of tagliatelle: “In Romagna, years ago, they told small children, ‘if you don’t eat tagliatelle you won’t grow big’, and to young girls they’d warn, ‘if you don’t learn to make pasta dough with a rolling pin and how to make tagliatelle you won’t get married.’ In short, for a Romagnolo, tagliatelle is both a burden and a delight; an essential part of the collective imagination.”
In 1972, The Order of the Tortellino and The Academy of Italian Cuisine underscored the importance of tagliatelle al ragú Bolognese by registering the official recipe in Bologna’s Chamber of Commerce and including tagliatelle’s ideal dimensions. The document specifies that the proper width of cooked tagliatelle should be 8 mm (0.314 inch), also expressed as a specific fraction (1/12,270) of the height of the Bologna’s famed Torre degli Asinelli! Tagliatelle are so important to the Bolognese that a gold representation of the perfect dimensions is housed in the Bologna Chamber of Commerce.
This pasta shape is so beloved that it has its own special day of celebration: January 17 is International Tagliatelle Day.
Tagliatelle Bolognese: Variations
In Emilia-Romagna the recipe for making a serving of fresh tagliatelle is: 100 grams of flour (3.5 ounces) to one large egg, making it an egg-rich pasta. In Piedmont and Liguria however, the ratio is 200 grams of flour to one egg. There are also variations of tagliatelle that incorporate minced vegetables or vegetable juices into the dough; the most famous being tagliatelle verdi, green spinach pasta.