Conchiglioni: authentic recipe?

[eefox]

Hi there,

I am looking for an authentic Italian recipe that makes use of the conchiglioni (big pasta shells).

On the internet, they are often referred to as conchiglioni ripieni (al forno) >> stuffed conchiglioni (oven-baked). The regional dish conchiglioni alla sorrentina might be the most 'original', but I am not sure. Also conchiglioni alla parmigiana can be found.

I cannot trace back any authentic recipes on the internet. It is not even sure whether the dish from Sorrento (Napels) is vegetarian or not. Some recipes contain ricotta, some not; some contain meat, some not.

Could anyone help me out with this? I would also love to know if there are any books about pastadishes and their authenticity.

 

[pepperhead212]

Welcome to the forum! Sorry I can't help you with that, but maybe someone here knows about it!

 

[dragnlaw]

Hi and Welcome to DC, eefox!

Interesting question.
But, LOL - I think you will find there are as many "authentic" recipes out there as there are cooks.

As pepper says, someone here should be able to give a bit of insight into it.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Welcome. I have looked at multiple recipes for this, and like Sunday Gravy, they all have a very few things in common. I suspect as with most recipes, there is no one official version, with each household in the region adding their owl little twist.

What I see in ever recipe:
EVOO
Parmigiana Reggiano
Mozzarella or ricotta
Tomato puree from San Marzano pear tomatoes
conchiglioni shells
fresh Basil

Option 1 - The shells can be stuffed with cheese, or cheese blend, covered in puree, and finally, the Parmigiana Reggiano.

Option 2 - a ground meat, I would think in Italy, this would be lamb, or goat rather than beef, browned in EVOO, mixed with cheese, stuffed into shells, covered with tomato, basil leaves, and Parm.

Option 3 - Option 2 but with a sofrito added to the meat

I imagine you could vary these ingredients to suit your tastes, adding other hers and spices to the sauce. Another important aspect of the dish, as with all Italian pastas, it is a celebration, and a recipe to respect the pasta (cook it properly), fresh herb, especially basil, and the fresh tomato. The cheese is there to enhance the 3 essential ingredients.

Seeeeyal Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

Use the same stuffing and sauce as you use for cannelloni.

 

[karadekoolaid]

Years ago, I picked up a copy of ..."L´arte de mangiar bene" by Pellegrino Artusi, originally written in 1894.
He´s got a recipe for conchiglie ripieni ( stuffed shells):
130 gms fish fillet
20 gms Parmesan
Bechamel (20 gms flour, 20 gms butter, 2.5 decilitres milk)
2 egg yolks

Poach the fish and allow to cool.
Make the bechamel, then add the parmesan and egg yolks when it has cooled. Mix well then add the fish, folding it in gently. Salt and pepper.
Stuff the shells and cover with extra bechamel, put under the grill until just browned.

Then when I looked closer at the recipe, I discovered the recipe was actually not conchiglione, but large clam shells
Obviously I need to brush up on my Italian...
One recipe I found for conchiglioni was stuffed with spinach, ricotta and mozzarella - with an added egg - covered with tomato sauce, then baked. was stuffed with ricotta, artichokes and rocket leaves.
About a dozen recipes for conchiglie, mind you, which could easily be adapted.

 

[eefox]

Thank you for all the suggestions!

Having done some more research, I have found out that the conchiglioni are used mostly in Campania, around Naples. The dish conchiglioni alla parmigiana is inspired by the dish parmigiana, which contains layered aubergines, tomatoes and cheese. Like all other conchiglioni ripieni, they indeed use the ingredients mentioned by Chief Longwind (along with meat/vegetables/etc.).