Trying to find dry tajarin

[Alberts]

Would anyone know an importer or store in the U.S. from which one could buy dry tajarin (specialty egg pasta from Piemonte)? I have searched the net and come up dry. Surely it must be available from someone here.

Thanks for the help.

[Franci]

Would anyone know an importer or store in the U.S. from which one could buy dry tajarin (specialty egg pasta from Piemonte)? I have searched the net and come up dry. Surely it must be available from someone here.

Thanks for the help.

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Try to call Buonitalia, even if they don't have on the web the might have in the store

http://www.buonitalia.com/

I found these guys have tajarin from Piemonte, which brand they don't say

http://www.antico-mercante.com/index.html

[Bill Klapp]

Withdrawal symptoms, Mike? There is a place here in Chapel Hill called A Southern Season that has it, but no doubt not called tajarin. They have a website and they ship, but since they feature a limited number of things on their website, better that I should send you a couple of packages next time that I am up there. Do you have a copy of Matt Kramer's cookbook A Passion for Piedmont? If not< I will send you one of those, too. Then you can buy an Impero pasta machine and make your own!

[hathor]

Check with the nice people at Gustiamo.com. If they don't have, they probably know who does.

[Alberts]

Thanks for the responses.

Bill, the whole reason I need it stems from a failed attempt at re-creating it with my pasta machine here at home. Our local eggs are good here, but not like the ones in Piemonte. It ends up looking somewhat anemic. Also, Matt Kramer says they can get 40 yolks into a kilo of flour at Boccondivino. 40 yolks?! I don't possess that kind of magic. Best to let the pros do it.

As for withdrawal...let the tajarin be my methadone.

[Alberts]

The real thing:

[Bill Klapp]

Mike, as much as it pains me to say this, some varieties of those "Super Omega-3 Plus" types of eggs that come packaged in half-dozens in clear plastic cartons actually have orange yolks and get the job done. They are overpriced and no better than any other egg from a taste point of view, but they can deliver the color. And Mike-40 yolks a kilo is fewer than 20 a pound! Here is the trick-1 to 3 WHOLE eggs per pound, and the rest yolks. The whole eggs give you the necessary traction. Doing that, I can get 20 yolks into a pound, thus besting the Boccondivino record. On the other hand, I will never make tajarin the quality of that at Antine in Barbaresco, or even Lalibera in Alba...

[Abra]

I've never had tajarin, but I'm fascinated by the idea of so many yolks, since I can get farm eggs with bright orange yolks (and I'm guessing you can get them in Portland too, at the farmer's market). So it's something like

1 lb flour (00?)

3 whole eggs

20 yolks

proceed as usual?

[Pontormo]

I couldn't find the post in a quick search, but either karljung (? something like that) or Swiss Chef documented a pasta-making venture that included quite a few egg yolks and produced a golden dough. I thought it was in the Cooking & Cuisine of Piemonte thread from January 2006. However you might need to PM either/each if no one else pipes up with a more specific reference.

[Alberts]

I'm glad this thread has morphed into a general tajarin-making discussion.

The fresh tajarin, ordered at many, if not most of the decent trattorie in the Langhe is so rich, it stands on its own. It really can be (and often is) eating with virtually no sauce, or just a touch of butter and sage. However, I was suprised at how good the dried version was, particularly given that this pasta has such high egg content, I wouldn't think it would dry that well. The dry stuff is excellent.

With regard to making it fresh, I have been using only yolks as the liquid, which was my first mistake. Although the color is good, you really need a few whole eggs as Bill mentioned. Also, the "00" flour (which is easier to find then it used to be) is probably essential. I'm not sure.

Here is a picture of about 25 pounds of tajarin waiting to go into the pot handful by handful at the Festa di San Donato in Barbaresco, made by Antica Torre. I can't even do the math on how many eggs that must have been.

[hathor]

I just looked up a tajarin recipe that I've used in the past. No whole eggs.

300 g Tipo 00 flour

12 egg yokes

I didn't have any problems getting this pasta to hold together, it behaved normally.

[Kevin72]

I couldn't find the post in a quick search, but either karljung (? something like that) or Swiss Chef documented a pasta-making venture that included quite a few egg yolks and produced a golden dough.  I thought it was in the Cooking & Cuisine of Piemonte thread from January 2006.  However you might need to PM either/each if no one else pipes up with a more specific reference.

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It was on Swiss Chef's own blog. But we did have a minor tajarin discussion with similar findings that Alberts talks about: rather pale and uninspiring looking.

[hathor]

The pale color doesn't affect the flavor. I've been told that those lovely bright orange yokes are due to the chickens being fed some sort of food dye. I doubt that is the case for all the chickens, but even so, I wouldn't get too hung up on the color.

[SWISS_CHEF]

The standard recipe is 40 egg yolks to one kilo of flour and a touch of salt. Some local eggs here in Italy are unusually orange and the flour in the US is different so don't expect the same results.

There are many good types of Tajarin here in Piedmont but Alfieri is very good, widely available and it is stocked in all the finest gourmet stores in Alba.

I would be happy to ship some to any of you as long as you cover the expenses.

The sugo is just as important as the pasta so focus on both equally. Tomatoes are usually not used. Most sugos here are very light and are made of finely chopped roasted veal and it's broth or better yet, no meat at all.

Edited November 27, 2006 by SWISS_CHEF (log)

[SWISS_CHEF]

The tajarin from Boccondivino:

[marlena spieler]

There are many good types of Tajarin here in Piedmont but Alfieri is very good, widely available and it is stocked in all the finest gourmet stores in Alba.

I would be happy to ship some to any of you as long as you cover the expenses.

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aren't you nice!

(wish i had checked this thread on a recent visit to alba and environs, as i would have loved to have met up. looking at those beautiful tajarin reminds me of the beautiful ones i forked up in the langhe, and how delicious they were, and how kind and friendly the people i met were......)

x m

[Sampaguita]

Whereas we sympathise with your failed attempts to make tajarin at home, please persevere, if you find a dried egg pasta it just not the real tajarin anymore!

We have great success with our Imperia machine and so many of our guests learn the secret from Rina as they also fail at home. Rina says no whole eggs please, only yolks, you don't really need as many as 40, but I suppose it helps that we have our own hens, organic free-range and fresh eggs make a world of difference, plus using fresh ground flour (again from our own organic grown wheat) makes a world of difference, plus there are a few other tricks which an intuitive cook will find out.

Sorry but we haven't yet figured out how to add an image file.

[pedalaforte]

I love the Kramer book, too, but the guy is way off on his measurements, especially about pasta. (That's my assessment anyway!)

What I've found that works: 1 cup of flour to four egg yolks and one whole egg (or two more egg yolks). My wife is a professor of nutrition, and she just cringes every time I keep working in those straight egg yolks. So to keep a happy marriage, I put in one whole egg. The compromises!

We, too, have our own girls giving us eggs daily, and there's no substitute for fresh, fresh, fresh. And, Bill, Antine did have the best tajarin we tried last visit, but we sure did dump come change in that place!

Cheers

[StevenC]

Has anyone tried using goose eggs?