Doughs:
Sauces:
What they are
Pasta peapods that hail from the south, particularly Puglia and Basilicata. The name means “dug into,” referring to the deep dimples your fingers leave behind for sauce to pool. Identical in technique to smooth-surfaced cavatelli, capunti similarly range from small segments called capuntini to long, eight-fingered canoes. They’re sometimes infused with saffron or whole wheat flour, though a green dough really brings the peapod look to life.
How they’re traditionally served
With king trumpet mushrooms and sausage, or with tomato and meat sauces.
MAKE THE DOUGH
Make your dough of choice and let it rest, tightly covered, at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes.
SET UP YOUR WORKSPACE
Dust a sheet pan with semolina or line it with a dry dishcloth. Gather your tools.
ROLL THE DOUGH INTO A ROPE
Cut off a slice of dough, about the width of one or two fingers. Keep the rest covered.
Roll the dough into a rope, a generous ¼ inch (6mm) thick (a little thicker than a pencil): Start in the center and use your fingers or the palms of your hands to roll the dough, first back and forth, until the surface is smooth, and then outward in opposite directions, eventually making your way towards the ends. If the dough slides and it’s difficult to get a grip, wet your hands a little and try again. The rope does not need to be perfectly even.
CUT THE ROPE INTO PIECES
Cut the rope into roughly 1½-inch (4-cm) pieces, or just long enough to fit your three middle fingers across.
MAKE THE CAPUNTI
Position a piece of dough horizontally on your work surface and place your three middle fingers across its length. Firmly press down, digging your fingertips into the dough, then drag it toward you with firm pressure in a single, confident motion. The dough might flip over or it might not, but either way you should leave behind three deep dimples.
If you’d like, drag the dough across a gnocchi board, cavarola board, or other textured surface (as described in the cavatelli instructions).
Arrange the finished capunti in a single layer on the prepared sheet pan. Repeat with the remaining pieces, and then the remaining dough. You can leave the pasta uncovered at room temperature until you’re done, up to 5 hours.
COOK THE PASTA
Cook the capunti until tender but with some bite, 3 to 5 minutes, depending on their thickness and drying time.
