Naples, Campania
The Neapolitan recycling miracle: leftover maccheroni al ragù (or any pasta asciutta) bound with beaten eggs and grated Parmigiano, pressed into a pan, fried until a firm golden crust forms on both sides, and allowed to cool until sliced like a cake. The frittata di pasta is the canonical picnic and street food of Naples — eaten at room temperature, sold in slabs from market stalls. The crust is the key: it must be thick and deeply golden, the interior a solid, moist mass of pasta and egg.
Crisp-crusted, golden, eggy pasta cake — the Neapolitan genius for making yesterday's ragù pasta into today's perfect picnic, eaten at room temperature from a piece of paper
{"Leftover pasta at room temperature (cold pasta from the refrigerator is too stiff to combine with eggs)","Ratio: 2 eggs per 200g pasta — enough to bind but not make it fluffy","Parmigiano or Pecorino Romano stirred into the egg-pasta mixture for flavour and binding","Heavy-bottomed pan, olive oil or lard, medium heat — the crust takes 8–10 min per side","Flip using a plate: invert the frittata onto a plate, then slide back into the pan crust-side up"}
{"Cubed provola or fior di latte stirred into the pasta mixture before cooking creates molten cheese pockets","A variation adds cooked peas and diced salame — the festive version for picnics","Frittata di pasta wrapped in paper makes excellent transport food — Neapolitan office lunches for centuries"}
{"Too many eggs — creates a soft omelette rather than a firm, sliceable cake","High heat — the exterior burns before the interior sets","Eating hot — the frittata must rest until lukewarm before it can be sliced cleanly"}
La Cucina Napoletana — Jeanne Caròla Francesconi