This is my Pangrattato recipe - crispy, crunchy breadcrumbs flavoured with rosemary and garlic. Perfect to sprinkle over your finished pasta dish.
The recipe that I'm sharing with you today is a simple little touch that will absolutely transform your next pasta dinner. Promise.
Pangrattato.
OK. You are probably wondering what pangrattato is...well... it's the thing that your pasta meals have been missing all their lives! Crispy, crunchy breadcrumbs (flavoured with rosemary and garlic in my recipe) that you sprinkle over your finished pasta dish to add extra flavour and texture. Trust me on this, this is GOOD.
Table of Contents
Ingredients you will need for this recipe
- day-old (stale) sourdough bread
- fresh rosemary
- fresh garlic
- butter
- olive oil
*Please see the recipe card below for exact quantities and detailed instructions
How to make this recipe
- Place sourdough and rosemary leaves into a food processor.
- Process into crumbs.
- Heat olive oil and butter in a frypan until sizzling, then add crumb mixture to pan. Mix to coat crumbs in butter and oil, then fry over medium high heat until crumbs are browned and crisp.
- Add crushed garlic to breadcrumb mixture and continue to fry for 1-2 minutes then remove from heat.
What is pangrattato
The word pangrattato means "breadcrumbs" in Italian. Sometimes referred to as "poor man's parmesan", pangrattato is a mixture of fried breadcrumbs that are sprinkled over a finished pasta dish in place of grated parmesan.
My top tips for making this recipe
- The pangrattato will get a little more crisp on standing.
- You could substitute fresh thyme leaves for the rosemary, depending on your taste or what dish you are serving the pangrattato with.
- You don't need to limit yourself to sprinkling these tasty crumbs over pasta or spaghetti, they would also be great over a rich, thick casserole or on top of mashed potatoes or risotto.
Other recipes you may enjoy
Ciabatta Garlic Bread - my homemade garlic bread is packed with butter, garlic and fresh herbs plus parmesan cheese.
📖 Recipe
Pangrattato
Ingredients
- 4 slices day-old sourdough bread approx 150g
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter I used salted
- 1 garlic clove crushed
Instructions
- Place sourdough (4 slices/approx 150g) and rosemary leaves (1 tbsp) into a food processor and process into crumbs.
- Heat olive oil (1 tbsp) and butter (1 tbsp) together in a frypan until sizzling, then add crumb mixture to pan.
- Mix to coat crumbs in oil and butter, and fry over medium high heat, stirring until crumbs are browned and crisp.
- Add crushed garlic (1 clove) to breadcrumb mixture and mix well to combine thoroughly. Continue to fry for 1-2 minutes then remove from heat.
- Serve sprinkled over pasta.
Notes
- The pangrattato will get a little more crisp on standing.
- You could substitute fresh thyme leaves for the rosemary, depending on your taste or what dish you are serving the pangrattato with.
- You don't need to limit yourself to sprinkling these crumbs over pasta, they would also be great over a rich, thick casserole or on top of mashed potatoes or risotto.
Hi Lee-Ann, This looks a fabulous recipe for pangrattato. Thank you.
My question is how long will it keep dry ? Or frozen ?
Many thanks
If you allow them to cool completely they should keep in an airtight container for 1 - 2 weeks, or frozen for 3 months. Hope this helps Malcolm!
I had this on the squid dish at Ten Acre Bistro and it was wonderful but it was flat and thin like a cracker and I wonder how you would make it like that? Rolled between sheets of parchment and baked?
Hi Louise! I'm not sure how you would go about that as pangrattato is traditionally bread crumbs. It sounds like the restaurant had their own yummy twist!
Easy to make, and really crispy crunchy. Great on top of our pasta dinner. Kids loved it. Thanks.
Pleasure Johan!