Culinary Experience in Ravenna

If you think Ravenna is all about mosaics, then you’d be mistaken. While there is no doubt that most visitors are here to marvel at the mosaics, you’ll be missing out if you didn’t experience the culinary side of the city.

Thanks to an invitation by the DiRavenna project, we were treated to a culinary experience in Ravenna which included a visit to the market, hands-on experience in making piadina and several types of fresh pasta, and tasting a plethora of dishes at various restaurants.

Regardless of which city or town I visit, I always enjoy stopping by the market. I love the bustling atmosphere and for me, its where you get a glimpse of local life and learn more about the culture.

As the Mercato Coperto (covered market) in the center of Ravenna is temporarily closed, supposedly for quite a while, the present market is located just on the edge of city near the stadium. Held on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It’s a vast area and from piadina stalls to fresh produce to household goods, you can just about find everything.

After the visit to the market, we were all ready to get our hands dirty making fresh pasta, tagliatelle and cappelletti (filled pasta), as well as piadina at the chic, modern Ristorante Osteria Passatelli Mariani Lifestyle.

I have made fresh pasta before but this is making it the old-fashioned way – no machines to roll out the dough to the right thickness – it’s all done by hand.

Together with another guest from Germany, Madlen, we were both shown the steps and given tips by the two loveliest (and  most patient) ladies, Maria and Violetta. Here’s a video of how it’s done, followed by recipes which you could try out at home.

If you can’t make it to Ravenna, the next best thing is making them at home. The ingredients are simple enough but there is a lot of hard work involved. That said, you will be deliciously rewarded and we certainly were.

Fresh Pasta 

Ingredients: 400 grams of flour, 4 eggs, 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil (optional)

1. Form a well with the flour and add the eggs in the center.

2. Gently incorporate the flour into the well and once it gets thick, knead the dough with your hands until you the dough is smooth.

3. Wrap the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes.

4. Roll out the dough to the thickness of 1.25mm (you’ll have to guess by touch)

5. Fold the rolled out dough like an accordion before handcutting them. For tagliatelle, the width would be about 6-9mm.

To cook tagliatelle, bring a big pot of salted water to a boil, then add the pasta, gently stirring with a wooden spoon to separate them. Once the pasta rises to the surface, it is ready to be drained. A variety of sauces, including bolognese, go well with tagliatelle. Serves 4 people

Tip: The texture of the tagliatelle should never be silky smooth but rather slightly grainy so that the pasta will hold the sauce.

Cappelletti di Romagna

In Romagna, there are two kinds of cappelletti, one with a cheese filling and the other with meat. The one we made was with cheese. In Ravenna and the suburbs, you will mainly find cappelletti with a cheese filling though the recipe of each family will vary.

Filling

Ingredient: 200 grams of fresh ricotta, 100 grams of parmesan, 2 eggs, pepper and salt to taste, and a pinch of nutmeg. Mix well.

1. Follow the instructions to making fresh pasta but you would roll the sheet thinner to a thickness of 1mm.

2. Cut squares of 4-6cm.

3. Put a small amount of cheese filling in the middle of the square.

4. Close the square onto itself (forming a triangle). Then bring the two ends together (watch the video to see how this is done).

In Romagna, the best way to enjoy cappelletti is in broth served with generous servings of grated parmesan. However, you could also serve cappelletti with meat sauce or a simple sauce of butter and sage.

Piadina

Piadina has its origins from peasant food and is a type of bread made without yeast that is meant to be eaten very warm. It was the substitute for bread when bread ran out as bread was then only made weekly or bi-weekly. The name “piada” means “pie” in the local dialect and it was only after World War II that piadina retained its shape and characteristics, making it a typical Romagna food it is today.

The ingredients are simple (serves 4): 500 grams flour, 75 grams strutto (lard or shortening), 6 grams salt, 2 grams bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), 200 grams of water.

1. Mix the ingredients together to form a round ball of dough.

2. Let it rest 30 minutes covered by a towel.

3. Make smaller balls and roll them to discs of about 15-20 cm in diameter and 3mm thick.

4. Preheat a heavy skillet until it is hot. Cook the piadina on the skillet.

5. Once bubbles start to form, prick the piadina with a fork. Turn and cook the other side the same way.

6. Piadina should be eaten piping hot – plain or filled with any ingredients of your liking, cheese, cooked vegetables, cold cuts etc.

In Ravenna, you will see there are many places that sell piadina to-go, it’s their version of “fast-food” as well as in restaurants. We had piadina at Cà de Ven (Via Corrado Ricci 24),  a beautiful 15th century building with frescoed-ceilings that was restored to its glory in 1975. Here we tasted piadina with some pork cracklings (ciccioli frolli).

Another place to try piadina with the typical cheese from Ravenna, squacquerone, is at Osteria dei Battibecchi (Via Della Tesoreria Vecchia, 16) a small but charming restaurant that’s slightly hidden. We had a wild asparagus, which were in season, served in two different ways, followed by piadina and squacquerone with caramelized fig marmalade. This combination was divine!

For a variety of typical local cuisine, Ristorante La Gardela (Via Ponte Marino, 3) also offers freshly made pasta as well as piadina. The first day I got into Ravenna, I was famished by the time lunch came around and was treated to a hearty dish of cappelletti al ragu and ended on a sweet note with crema di Ravenna and a dessert wine, Solara Albana Romagna Passito. It would be start of 3 days of feasting.

However, Ravenna, though not on the coastline, also boasts some amazing seafood restaurants. Probably one of the best restaurants in town is Ristorante L’Acciuga (Vl. Baracca 74), which serves mainly seafood. While the menu selection is limited, the creativity and quality of food here more than make up for that. The tuna tartare, an appetizer we had, was impeccable.

Another seafood restaurant that adds a touch of creativity is Ristorante Osteria del Tempo Perso (Via Gamba 12).

Now, that was one fabulous culinary experience we had in Ravenna and good reasons not to miss out on the food scene in the city.

Note: All the restaurants above were easily reached on foot from our hotel, Hotel Diana, which is centrally located, and were willing to cater to diners with dietary restrictions. 

A special thanks to the team at DiRavenna, Ravenna Tourism and Emilia-Romagna Tourism for the invitation and this delicious experience.