The haute couture of handmade pasta finds one of its most delightful expressions at Ineo di Palazzo Anantara, a new Roman star restaurant led by Heros De Agostinis. His maccheroncini reveal a precious mastery of technique, zigzagging between cultural roots and family memories: when a first course is a small work of contemporary craftsmanship.
On the cover, a version of the chef's maccheroncini - photo by Alberto Blasetti
The dish
There is an extra cultural sprint in the act of preparing a pasta dish from scratch: the chef does not embellish the work of the pasta maker, but shapes the chosen format himself before even starting to prepare the sauce. This means choosing the degree of roughness, the fineness, and the golden proportions that mark the watershed between a routine bite and a substantial one. And, while it is now rare to find restaurants whose signature dish is a completely homemade first course, the exception becomes a case of contemporary craftsmanship. This is one of the surprising moves by Heros De Agostinis, who has just been awarded a Michelin star in Rome atIneo in Palazzo Anantara. A tasting that we remember well months later and that we have retraced here, focusing on the chef's timeless Maccheroncini al ferretto (even if he wanted to ban them, it would be difficult given the hype they have generated in the restaurant since its opening!).
Behind the recipe lies a story that calls for telling: “I was born to a father from Abruzzo and a mother from Eritrea,” explains Heros. "Maccheroncini therefore recall the region of my father's origins: it is a fresh, hand-rolled pasta which, thanks to its internal hole, holds intense and textured sauces well. The composition? Water, flour, and whole eggs with a small fraction of egg yolks (about 1/5 of the total, ed.). It takes time to prepare them, as you have to wait for them to rest for two hours and then roll them one by one around the special metal tool. At home, we enjoyed both Italian and African dishes, and that's where the main idea came from: to create a ragù halfway between Genoese and Eritrean stew."
No sooner said than done: the veal fillet is enlivened by green chili pepper and berberè, a spicy blend with hot accents that is very popular in the Horn of Africa. However, the local umami flavor comes from a cheese: during preparation, the 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano is transformed into a foam that is as ethereal as it is decisive, which the chef places in the center of the plate immediately after siphoning. The final secret? "The sauce, which adds depth to the maccheroncini. It is cooked half in boiling water and half in a reduction of Madeira and truffle water." The result is a melting pot that takes your taste buds on a journey...just like the rest of Ineo's menu!
Heros De Agostins' recipe for Maccheroncini al ferretto
MACCHERONCINI AL FERRETTO COOKED IN A MADEIRA SAUCE, ERITREAN RAGOUT AND 24-MONTH PARMESAN CHEESE
Ingredients
For the maccheroncini pasta
- 800 g 00 flour
- 400 g semolina flour
- 4 egg yolks
- 15 whole eggs with yellow yolks
Knead all the ingredients together. Leave the dough to rest for a couple of hours in the refrigerator before making the maccheroncini.
Roll out a 3 mm sheet of dough and cut it into rectangles 2 cm thick and 7 cm long.
Using a metal rod, roll each piece of dough around the rod one by one. Remove the maccheroncini, taking care not to break them. Continue in this way until all the dough is used up.
For the Eritrean ragout
- 500 g veal fillet
- 200 g veal sauce
- 30 g hot green chili peppers
- 10 g berbere
- 5 g clarified butter ghee
- Salt and pepper to taste
Cut the veal fillet into very small cubes. Put some ghee in a pan, add the brunoise of hot green chili pepper and cook for 5 minutes over low heat.
Add the berbere powder and continue cooking for a few more minutes until the spice releases its aroma.
Add the diced veal and veal sauce and cook the sauce until it reaches the desired consistency.
For the 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano foam
- 150 g 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano DOP
- 200 ml fresh liquid cream
- 150 ml fresh whole milk
- Salt and pepper to taste
Place the milk and cream in a saucepan.
Bring to a boil, add the previously grated Parmigiano and slowly melt the cheese, then season with salt and pepper if necessary.
Strain through a fine mesh strainer and place the mixture in a siphon with a gas cartridge. Keep warm for serving.
For the Madeira sauce
- 750 ml 5-year-old Cossart Gordon Madeira
- 300 ml Melanosporum truffle water
- 200 ml veal stock
- Salt and pepper to taste
Place the Madeira and truffle juice in a saucepan and reduce by two-thirds.
Add the veal stock, cook for a couple more minutes, season with salt and pepper, and use the sauce to cook the maccheroncini.
Plating:
Cook the maccheroncini in salted water. Halfway through cooking, remove from the water and immerse in a pan with the Madeira sauce. Finish cooking. Season with a little Parmesan cheese and ground pepper.
Place the Parmesan foam in the center of the plate. Arrange the maccheroncini on top.
Place the veal ragout on top of the pasta and sprinkle with coriander breadcrumbs.
Contacts
Anantara Palazo Naiadi- Ineo
Piazza della Repubblica, 48-49 00185 Roma, Italia
Phone +39 06 489 381
