Recipe: How to make Chef Marco Guccio’s fileja alla calabrese

This recipe is relatively straightforward, featuring the Guccio family’s simplified version of the classic calabrese sauce. The key to making it right lies in precision and practice. If you can’t find Italian tomato sauce off the shelf, tomato puree will suffice. Guccio prefers those using San Marzano tomatoes.

INGREDIENTS

(Makes enough for 10 to 12 persons)

1kg flour

600ml room temperature water

8 leaves of fresh basil

3 cloves of garlic

500g fresh tomatoes

200g tomato sauce

Extra virgin olive oil

Fine salt

100g grated Parmesan cheese

METHOD

Make the dough:

1. Mix the flour and water to form a dough. (Adjust amount of water if the dough is too stiff).

2. Knead until smooth, then cover the dough with a tea towel and set it aside for 30 minutes.

3. Knead dough again for a few minutes. Pinch off a marble-sized amount of dough and make a short rope about 5cm to 7cm long and about 3cm in diameter.

4. Roll each piece around a skewer or knitting needle to form the fileja (screw shape). Slide the pasta from the skewer and allow it to rest for 30 minutes.

Make the sauce:

1. Heat extra virgin olive oil in a pan and cook sliced garlic until lightly brown (soffritto).

2. Add the fresh tomatoes, a pinch of sal, a little pepper, and tear the basil leaves in.

3. Add the tomato sauce and allow to cook for a few minutes. If needed, adjust taste with more salt and pepper.

To serve:

1. Bring a pot of water to the boil, adding a pinch of salt for taste.

2. Add the pasta and cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Once ready strain and add to the sauce along with a handful of Parmesan cheese. Stir until pasta has absorbed the mixture.

3. Saute in the pan, and finish with a touch of extra virgin olive oil, chopped fresh basil and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.