CookEat Recipe
Pigeon Tortellini
Delicate egg pasta filled with finely chopped pigeon, prosciutto and Parmesan, served in the bird’s clear broth.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 1 young, plucked and gutted food-grade pigeon, about 500 g; 80 g finely grated Parmesan; 70 g prosciutto with both lean and fat; Nutmeg to taste; Salt for the cooking water; About 2.5 litres water, enough to cover the pigeon; 300 g flour, plus a little for dusting; 3 eggs for the dough, adjusted as needed.
Step 2
Use a food-grade dressed pigeon with its giblets removed. Bring enough lightly salted water to cover it to a boil, add the bird and lower to a gentle simmer. Cook until the thickest meat reaches 82°C, checking after about 30 minutes and continuing as needed. Do not leave it deliberately undercooked.
Step 3
Lift out the pigeon, cool just enough to handle safely, and remove all bones. Strain and reserve the cooking broth. Chop the meat and prosciutto extremely finely with a knife, then work in the Parmesan and nutmeg until evenly combined. No egg is added to this filling.
Step 4
Make a smooth dough with the flour and three eggs, adjusting the flour slightly to the egg size. Knead, cover and rest about 20 minutes, then roll very thinly.
Step 5
Cut small circles about 3.5 cm across. Fill each with a tiny dab of the pigeon mixture, fold into a semicircle and seal, then join the two corners into a small ring. Keep unused dough covered. A very thin three-egg sheet can yield roughly 260 small tortellini; actual yield varies.
Step 6
Bring the strained broth back to a gentle boil and cook the tortellini in batches until the pasta is tender and the filling is thoroughly reheated to 74°C. Add hot water if needed for sufficient broth and adjust salt. Serve hot.
Step 7
Alternatively, cook the tortellini in salted water, drain and toss with butter and Parmesan. Another serving option is a prepared meat jus with separately cooked chopped poultry giblets: simmer the cleaned giblets in the jus until they reach 74°C, then toss with the drained pasta. These are alternatives to the broth service, not additions to it.
Step 8
Cook the filled pasta on the day of making or freeze promptly in a single layer, then pack. Cool any cooked leftovers promptly, refrigerate within 2 hours and use within 2–3 days or freeze.
Cooked it? Rate it.
Cooked 0 times