No tomatoes or beef: what goes into the ragù at one of Italy’s best trattorias? Here’s the secret ingredient at Il Capanno in Spoleto.

Photo by Lido Vannucchi

Ingredients

6 eggs
2 pigeons (400–500 g each)
400 g durum wheat semolina flour
Extra virgin olive oil
Sage
Rosemary
15 cl white wine
Parmigiano Reggiano
Salt
Pepper

Instructions

Mix the eggs and flour until you have a smooth dough, then form it into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for half an hour.

Meanwhile, clean and wash the two pigeons and place them in a saucepan with extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, sage, and rosemary. Sauté them lightly, adding the white wine and some water, cover the pot, and cook for about an hour.

Take the dough and roll it out with a rolling pin to a thickness of about 2–3 mm. Let the dough dry on a wooden pastry board, roll it up, and cut into strips about 1 cm wide.

Once the pigeons are cooked, debone them, remove the skin, and shred the meat. Strain the cooking sauce and combine it with the shredded pigeon meat. Cook the pasta, then toss it with the meat and cheese.