main dishes sardinian

Culurgiones di Mare

Name: Culurgiones di Mare
Prep time: 2 h
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 2 h 15 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: sardinian
Ingredients: 300 g Type 00 flour; 300 g Semola rimacinata; 200 ml Water (Adjust based on flour absorption); 3 yolks Egg yolks; 1 tsp Salt; 1000 g Potatoes (Old or floury potatoes, peeled); 200 g Fresh tuna fillet (Cut into small cubes); 3 tbsp Fresh chives (Finely chopped); 1 pinch Salt; 3 cloves Garlic; 400 g Cherry tomatoes (Halved); 150 ml Dry white wine; 40 g Bottarga (Grated, generous amount); 1 pinch Salt

Sardinian-inspired seafood culurgiones with a potato and tuna filling, sealed with the wheat-ear closure, served with cherry tomato and bottarga sauce.

Pescatarian Nut-Free

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Prep 2h

Cook 15 min

Total 2h 15m

Servings 6

Difficulty Advanced

Ingredients

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Instructions

Make the dough by mixing the type 00 flour, semola, water, egg yolks, and salt until smooth and elastic. Cover and rest for at least 30 minutes.
Boil the potatoes whole, peel them while still warm, and mash them finely. Season with a pinch of salt and let them cool slightly.
Cut the tuna into small cubes. Sauté briefly in a pan with the chopped chives and a splash of white wine until the tuna is just opaque. Let the mixture cool, then combine with the mashed potatoes.
Roll the rested dough into thin sheets and cut 7 to 8 cm rounds. Place a compact cylinder of filling in the centre of each round.
Seal each culurgione with the traditional spiga closure, pinching from side to side like a braid. Work carefully to avoid trapped air.

Tip: If the dough feels sticky, dust it with semola rather than extra flour.
For the sauce, gently fry the garlic in olive oil until it starts to colour. Add the halved cherry tomatoes and cook for about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the grated bottarga.
Cook the culurgiones in gently boiling salted water. Do not overcrowd the pot. They are ready when they float to the surface, which takes only a few minutes.
Transfer the culurgiones carefully to the sauce, toss gently, and serve with an extra grating of bottarga.

Storage & Meal Prep

Freeze uncooked culurgiones on a tray, then bag them once firm. Cook from frozen, adding a minute or two to the boiling time.

Variations

With swordfish instead of tuna: Swordfish works well in place of tuna. Cut it into small cubes and sauté briefly with the chives and white wine before mixing with the potatoes.
Traditional potato and mint filling: For the classic Ogliastrini version, replace the tuna and chives with fresh mint, garlic-perfumed olive oil, and Sardinian cheese. See the traditional culurgiones recipe.

FAQ

Are culurgiones di mare a traditional Sardinian dish?

This is a modern Sardinian variation. The traditional culurgiones from Ogliastra use a potato, mint, and cheese filling. This seafood version takes the same pasta shape and technique and fills it with tuna and chives, which is a coastal adaptation you find in home kitchens around Cagliari and Alghero.

Can I use canned tuna instead of fresh?

Fresh tuna gives a better texture and milder flavor, but good-quality canned tuna in olive oil works in a pinch. Drain it well and break it into small pieces.

What is bottarga?

Bottarga is cured fish roe, usually from mullet or tuna. It has a concentrated, briny flavor and is grated or sliced over finished dishes. In Sardinia it is a staple of coastal cooking.

Do I need the wheat-ear closure?

The spiga closure is part of what makes culurgiones recognisable. It also helps seal the filling. You can crimp them like ravioli if you are short on time, but the braided closure is worth learning.

The Story Behind This Dish

Culurgiones di mare take the classic Ogliastrini pasta shape and fill it with what the Sardinian coast has to offer: potato and fresh tuna bound with chives, finished with a quick cherry tomato sauce and a generous shower of grated bottarga. It is not a traditional recipe in the strict sense. It is the kind of dish that happens when someone who grew up with culurgiones also grew up near the sea and decided the two belonged together.

The technique is the same as the traditional version. The wheat-ear closure matters here because the filling is softer than the potato-and-cheese original, and a loose seal will let the tuna and potato escape into the cooking water.

Part of: The Sardinian Kitchen