Orecchiette con cime di rapa is the foundational dish of Puglia—ear-shaped pasta tossed with broccoli rabe (cime di rapa), garlic, anchovies, and peperoncino in olive oil, a preparation of such simplicity and perfection that it has become the universal symbol of Pugliese cooking. The orecchiette themselves are one of Italy's most distinctive pasta shapes: small, concave discs formed by pressing a knife-dragged piece of dough against a wooden board, creating a shape that resembles a small ear (orecchia) with a rough exterior that catches sauce and a smooth concave interior that cups it. The pasta is made from semolina and water—no eggs—producing a firm, chewy texture perfectly suited to the vigorous sauce. The cime di rapa (turnip tops/broccoli rabe) provide aggressive bitterness that is the dish's defining flavour: the greens are blanched briefly in the pasta cooking water, then sautéed in generous olive oil with sliced garlic, crumbled peperoncino, and anchovy fillets that dissolve into the oil providing invisible umami depth. The orecchiette are cooked in the same water used for the greens (concentrating the vegetable flavour), then tossed in the pan with the dressed cime di rapa. The final dish should glisten with olive oil, the greens should be tender but still vibrant green, and the bitterness should be rounded by the oil, garlic, and anchovy—present and assertive but not punishing. In the old city of Bari, the narrow alleys of Bari Vecchia are famous for the sight of nonnas sitting outside their homes, hand-shaping orecchiette on wooden boards—a living tradition that tourists photograph but that remains, for the women of Bari, simply daily work.
Hand-shaped orecchiette from semolina and water. Blanch cime di rapa in the pasta water. Sauté greens in olive oil with garlic, anchovy, peperoncino. Cook pasta in the same green-flavoured water. Toss everything together. Generous olive oil.
Drag the dough against the board with a butter knife for authentic texture. The rough surface catches sauce better than smooth machine-made versions. Cook the greens and pasta in the same water—it concentrates the vegetable flavour. A few reserved anchovy fillets, draped over the finished dish, add visual and flavour punch.
Using factory orecchiette (lack the rough texture of hand-shaped). Over-blanching the greens (should be vibrant, not army-green). Forgetting the anchovies (essential invisible depth). Insufficient olive oil. Using broccoli instead of cime di rapa (different flavour entirely).
Katie Parla, Food of the Italian South; Oretta Zanini De Vita, Encyclopedia of Pasta