Tagliatelle al Cinghiale

Tagliatelle al Cinghiale is a classic pasta dish from the Tuscany and Umbria regions of central Italy, particularly associated with the city of Florence and the Maremma countryside. The dish features fresh egg tagliatelle served with a slow-cooked ragù made from wild boar (*cinghiale*). The use of wild boar reflects the region's hunting traditions, where the lean, gamey meat was historically braised to tenderness.

Key ingredients include wild boar shoulder or leg, soffritto (onion, carrot, celery), red wine (often Chianti), tomato passata, rosemary, sage, juniper berries, and garlic. The meat is typically marinated overnight in wine and aromatics before being browned and simmered for several hours until it falls apart. A great version is distinguished by a deeply concentrated, silky ragù that coats each ribbon of pasta without being greasy, and where the gamey flavor of the boar is balanced by the sweetness of the wine and the bitterness of the herbs.

Regional variations exist: in Umbria, the sauce may be thicker and include black truffle shavings, while in coastal Maremma, cooks sometimes add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of chili flake. At Florence’s *Trattoria Sostanza*, chef Benedetto Ristori emphasizes that the pasta must be handmade and rolled to a rough, porous texture to catch the sauce. On ReTubeIt, creator *Marco’s Tuscan Kitchen* (Venice, CA) demonstrated a version using pancetta for extra depth, noting that “the juniper is non-negotiable—it’s what makes it taste like the forest.”