BIGOLI IN
CASSOPIPA

BIGOLI WITH SEAFOOD & SWEET SPICES

This is a recipe flavoured with sweet spices, as was common practice when the Republic of Venice, at its peak, dominated maritime trade. You will still find this dish on the menu at the restaurant Antiche Carampane. Here is their delicious recipe.

SERVES 6 PREPARATION TIME: 1 HOUR COOKING TIME: 45 MINUTES SOAKING TIME: 3 HOURS

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) spaghetti or bigoli

3 kg (6 lb 12 oz) molluscs and shellfish (mussels, clams, cockles, razor clams …)

Coarse salt

800 g (1 lb 12 oz) squid, cleaned

Olive oil

3 garlic cloves

1 onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

170 ml (5¹/₂ fl oz/²/₃ cup) white wine

1 clove

1 pinch of ground cinnamon

1 pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

1 bay leaf

1 thyme sprig

125 ml (4 fl oz/¹/₂ cup) tomato passata (puréed tomatoes)

1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

Scrub the mussels, pulling out their hairy beards, and carefully clean the other shellfish. Soak them all for at least 3 hours in water with some coarse salt so they disgorge their sand. Cut the squid into small pieces. In a large saucepan, sauté each shellfish separately, with a little olive oil and a clove of garlic for each, until the shells open. Discard any that do not open. Strain and reserve the cooking juices, removing any traces of sand.

In a flameproof pot, preferably an earthenware one, sauté the onion, carrot and celery in a little olive oil on medium heat. Add the squid and pan-fry for 2 minutes, then add the white wine. After 2 minutes, add a little of the strained shellfish juices, the spices, bay leaf and thyme. Lower the heat and simmer, adding the strained juices as needed: the sauce should be syrupy. Add the shellfish and simmer for another 2 minutes.

Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain the pasta and dress with the cassopipa sauce, 1 tablespoon of warmed tomato passata per person, a drizzle of olive oil and parsley.

NOTE

This dish comes from Chioggia, a small fishing port at the entrance to the lagoon. Its name, bigoli in cassopipa, comes from the verb piparewhich here means ‘to simmer’. Once upon a time the leftovers from the market were simmered in an earthenware pot in a corner of a wood-fired stove. Today, this recipe has become a classic Venetian dish.