Ciciri e Tria (pasta dish with chickpeas): the authentic taste of Salento

11/18/2025

As the days grow shorter, the air turns crisp, the fog begins to settle, and the cold knocks at our door, there’s nothing more comforting than bringing a warm dish to the table, made with simple ingredients but full of flavor.

Ciciri e Tria is exactly that: a rustic, cozy dish perfect for chilly autumn and winter days.
Chickpea soup has been around since Roman times, but it's in Salento, in southern Italy, that this particular version was born. “Ciciri” means chickpeas, and “Tria” refers to homemade pasta, made from scratch with just semolina flour and water, no eggs, as is typical in humble, traditional cuisine.

What makes this dish truly unique is how the pasta is cooked: part of it is boiled, while the other part is fried in olive oil. This combination of textures, soft and crispy, creates an irresistibly flavorful and original contrast.

Ciciri e tria (pasta dish with chickpeas), Cesarina Luigina

Our Cesarina Luigina, from Sava, a small town in the Salento hinterland, shares this recipe with us, one that brings back fond childhood memories:

“I still remember how, as a little girl, I would climb up on a stool to help roll out the dough. And once the pasta was fried, I’d always sneak a few crispy pieces—the ones you sprinkle on top of the dish”.

And for those who love bold flavors, Luigina suggests adding a drizzle of spicy olive oil to the final plate, it beautifully enhances the character of Ciciri e Tria.

Ciciri e Tria (pasta dish with chickpeas)

With its combination of boiled and fried pasta, this dish offers an irresistible and indulgent contrast of textures

DifficultyEasy

Cooking time30m

Servings4

€

CostLow

Ingredients

200 g durum wheat flour
95 g dried chickpeas
Aromatics (celery, onion, grape, bay leaf, tomato)
Extra virgin olive oil (to taste)
Black pepper (to taste)
Water (as needed)

Method

Preparing the chickpeas:

Soak the dried chickpeas in warm water with a tablespoon of coarse salt for at least 12 hours.
Once soaked, transfer the chickpeas to a pot and add enough water to cover them by about two fingers.
Add the aromatics: celery, onion, grape, bay leaf, and a tomato.
Cook the chickpeas slowly until they become tender. Add salt to taste. Avoid stirring them too much to prevent them from breaking apart.
Once cooked, drain the chickpeas.

Making the pasta:

Form a well with the durum wheat flour and pour in some water.
Knead until you get a smooth and homogeneous dough.
Roll out the dough with a rolling pin.
Using a fluted pastry cutter, cut the dough into small lasagna-shaped strips, about 3 cm long and 2 cm wide.
Heat some oil in a small pot for frying.
Fry a portion of the pasta strips in the hot oil until golden and crispy.
In a separate pot, bring water to a boil and cook the remaining pasta strips until done.