Lagane e ceci is Basilicata's ancient pasta-and-chickpea dish—wide, flat ribbons of fresh flour-and-water pasta served in a thick, garlicky chickpea stew enriched with olive oil, chilli, and often a handful of fried breadcrumbs for crunch. The dish is a direct descendant of the Roman 'laganum' (flat sheets of dough, referenced by Horace and Apicius), making it one of the oldest continuously prepared pasta dishes in Italy. The lagane are simple—durum wheat flour and water, rolled thick (2-3mm) and cut into wide, irregular ribbons about 3cm across—with a rough, porous surface that absorbs the chickpea broth. The chickpeas are soaked overnight, simmered for hours with garlic, bay leaf, rosemary, and a dried chilli until very tender, with about a third mashed back into the cooking liquid to create a thick, starchy base. The lagane are boiled separately and added to the chickpea stew, or in some versions cooked directly in the chickpea broth (which makes the dish thicker and more porridge-like). A generous drizzle of raw olive oil at serving is essential—Basilicata's olive oil is robust and peppery, and it lifts the earthy chickpeas. Some versions include a sautéed soffritto of garlic and dried chilli in olive oil poured over the dish at the last moment (a 'frizzulo'). The dish is substantial, vegan, and profoundly comforting—cucina povera at its most elemental and satisfying.
Wide, thick fresh pasta (lagane) from flour and water. Chickpeas soaked overnight and simmered until very soft. Mash a third of the chickpeas for thickness. Generous olive oil at serving. Dried chilli for heat. Simple, elemental, and vegan.
Cook the chickpeas with a strip of kombu or a pinch of baking soda for creamier results. The 'frizzulo' (sizzling garlic-chilli oil) poured over at serving adds drama and flavour. Lagane should be slightly irregular—the rough edges catch the broth. Day-old lagane e ceci, reheated, becomes even thicker and more flavourful.
Using canned chickpeas (no starchy broth). Making the lagane too thin (they should be thick and rough). Over-draining the chickpeas (the starchy liquid IS the sauce). Skipping the raw olive oil finish. Using egg pasta (not traditional for this dish).
Oretta Zanini De Vita, Encyclopedia of Pasta; Touring Club Italiano, Basilicata in Cucina