Fregola: Sardinia's Best-Kept Secret?

A few months ago Giada used fregola in a salad and I was totally intrigued. And embarrassed to admit I'd never heard of it. A quick search turned up the following: fregola has an ancient history in Sardinia; it's actually a pasta made by rubbing tiny grains of semolina together with a bit of water, toasting them, rubbing them together again, toasting them again, and so on until you end up with tiny pasta balls. It looks like Israeli couscous, but is more pebbly, less smooth and has all kinds of gorgeous toasty hues. And it has a nutty, wheaty, roasted taste that couscous lacks. Sounds interesting, right?

Finding it was another story. Not easy. (Although someone told me Whole Foods had it- mine didn't.) You may have to shop at International grocery stores or Italian delis to get it. I finally gave up and ordered mine from Urban Herbs. Or check Amazon- they can find anything!  Dried pasta keeps well, so you might want to stock up on it if you're a fan. Almost all brands are imported from and made in Italy.

Why bother? I bet your Italian friends could give you some great answers to that question. But here's what I discovered: you can add it to soups, make a salad with it or use it in a hot side dish. How about using it in tabbouleh instead of bulgur wheat? You could just cook it in some broth and serve it warm with a touch of olive oil and topped with some grated pecorino. In fact, use it any way you might use a small pasta- fregola has so much more flavor and character.

I decided to try both a salad and a side dish and I can tell you right now the side dish was far and away my favorite… it was fantastic. You can use up that zucchini you have left in your garden too. And it was just as good the next night- if you are lucky enough to have any left over. Chocolate &  Zucchini posted this recipe in 2004- pure luck I found it... thank you, Clotilde, thank you! That's how good it is. This is comfort food personified. No kidding. On a rainy, stormy or snowy day I would love to cozy up with a big bowl of this. I've made it several times already; everyone loved it- and nobody knew what it was!

Cooking fregola is simple enough. I used 4 cups of chicken broth (you can use plain salted water too) and when it came to a boil, I added about 1 1/2 cups of fregola. I let it simmer for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it was done, but still somewhat chewy. (It puffs up; add more broth if necessary) Drain the fregola and, if you are using it in a salad, dump it on a large baking sheet.

Spread to a single layer and let it cool for 10 minutes. It clumps pretty badly as it cools so break it up with a fork. Then you just mix with your favorite salad ingredients.

For the zucchini recipe, I just kept it covered to keep it warm. I promise you, this is a fabulous recipe- addictive even. The recipe is quick, short and to the point. It's finding fregola that takes time!

And here's the big winner!

Fregola Sarda with  Zucchini and Pine Nuts
(Adapted from Chocolate and Zucchini, October 5th, 2004 post)

Ingredients:
3 small and slender zucchini
2 cups cooked fregola sarda
2 handfuls of pinenuts, dry toasted
2 ounces parmesan cheese
olive oil
salt
herbes de provence

Method:
Wash and slice three zucchini very thin. Sauté in a bit of olive oil, with herbes de provence to taste and just enough salt to bring out the zucchini flavor. Add the fregola and pinenuts. Grate liberal amounts of parmesan on top and mix in. Serve warm. Serves 2 with leftovers for lunch.