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Tortellini in brodo in a white rimmed bowl, small hand-folded pasta floating in clear golden capon broth, chunks of Parmigiano on the board behind.

Tortellini in Brodo

Small meat-filled tortellini with pork loin, mortadella, prosciutto and Parmigiano, folded by hand and served in clear capon broth.

  • Emilia-Romagna

Pork loin, mortadella, prosciutto, Parmigiano, egg and nutmeg make a rich, savory filling. Use four-fifths of the eggs for the dough and the rest for the filling. Begin with prepared capon broth, keep the tortellini small and cook them directly in the gently simmering broth until the pasta at the fold is tender.

Make ahead Make the broth a day ahead (chilling it lets you lift off the fat) and freeze the folded tortellini on a floured tray, then cook them straight from frozen.

Total
3 hr
Prep
2 hr
Cook
30 min
Serves
6

One step at a time, with what each step needs.

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Tortellini in Brodo

Total 3 hr · Prep 2 hr · Cook 30 min · Serves 6

Method

  1. Brown the pork loin in the butter until cooked through with golden edges; cool.

  2. Grind the loin with the mortadella and prosciutto to a fine paste. Work in the Parmigiano, one egg (taken from the pasta allowance), and nutmeg. Rest the filling, covered, while the dough relaxes.

  3. Knead flour and the remaining eggs into a firm, silky dough, 10 minutes. Rest 30 minutes wrapped.

  4. Roll the dough nearly transparent (last setting). Cut 3.5 cm squares, working in small batches under a cloth.Roll the dough nearly transparent (last setting). Cut 1½ in squares, working in small batches under a cloth.

  5. Dot each square with a chickpea of filling. Fold corner to corner into a triangle, press the edges, then wrap the two base corners around your fingertip and pinch them together, flipping the collar. Practice forgives.

    Fingertips joining the corners of a small filled pasta triangle around a finger.
    Curve the filled triangle around a fingertip and pinch its corners together.
  6. Bring the prepared broth to a gentle simmer. Taste it before adding salt, allowing for the savory filling and Parmigiano served at the table.

  7. Cook the tortellini directly in the broth until they bob and the pasta at the pinch is tender, 3 to 4 minutes.

  8. Ladle into warm bowls, broth generous, Parmigiano passed at the table. Silence will follow.

Equipment

  • Rolling PinOur pick
    • Our pick

      J.K. Adams Maple French Rolling Pin

      For rolling the dough by hand and controlling its thickness.

      Shop
  • Meat GrinderA food processor is a fair stand-in for the fine paste.
  • StockpotThe tortellini cook right in the broth, so give them room.
  • Pasta Machine · OptionalThe last setting gives the near-transparent sheet; Bologna's sfogline do it by hand.Our pick
    • Our pick

      Marcato Atlas 150 Pasta Machine

      For rolling even sheets of fresh pasta; a hand-rolled sfoglia remains an option.

      Shop
  • Pasta Wheel Cutter · Optional

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Estimated per serving

Calories
542 kcal
Protein
34.1 g
Carbohydrates
49.6 g
Fat
23.9 g

Per serving · 1/6 of the recipe Ingredient-based estimate; brands and preparation change the result. Stock uses a representative prepared broth; its concentration and salt vary, so sodium is not reported. Mortadella uses a named producer’s pork-mortadella composition; brands vary.

Nutrition sources: CREA Centro di ricerca Alimenti e Nutrizione · USDA Agricultural Research Service · GranTerre · Consorzio Parmigiano Reggiano

Nonna's tips

  1. Small is the whole point

    A true tortellino disappears in a spoon with its broth. If yours start large, call them tortelloni, serve them proudly, and fold smaller tomorrow.

  2. Broth equals pasta

    A bouillon-cube brodo under hand-folded tortellini is a tuxedo with sneakers. Simmer real bones; skim like it matters, because it does.

  3. The filling ratio was deposited at Bologna’s Chamber of Commerce on 7 December 1974, which tells you everything about how seriously to take substitutions.

What to serve with Tortellini in Brodo

A dinner from Emilia-Romagna, built around this dish. Change any course and the shopping list follows.

  1. Antipasto

    Crescentine modenesi (tigelle)

    Small yeast-raised breads from the Modena Apennines, cooked between the hot plates of a tigelle iron.

    4 hr 15 min · make ahead

  2. First course

    Tortellini in Brodo

    This recipe

    3 hr · make ahead

  3. Main course

    Cotoletta alla bolognese

    Butter-fried veal cutlets topped with prosciutto and Parmigiano Reggiano, finished gently under a lid with broth.

    40 min

  4. What to pour

    A Colli Bolognesi Pignoletto frizzante: its freshness and gentle fizz lift the broth and the pork-rich filling without weighing on either.

    Colli Bolognesi Classico Pignoletto
Emilia-Romagna

Emilia-Romagna

Tortellini in broth are a festive Bolognese dish. The filling recipe was deposited at Bologna’s Chamber of Commerce on December 7, 1974, by the Dotta Confraternita del Tortellino and the Accademia Italiana della Cucina; the small folded pasta remains a familiar centerpiece of Christmas tables.

The Emilia-Romagna guide

Shopping list

People at the table
6
On the table

To buy

  • Shop

Check the pantry

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For the Christmas pasta course, organise the broth and the hand-folded tortellini as separate preparations. This filling combines pork loin, mortadella, prosciutto and Parmigiano. The small pasta parcels cook directly in clear capon broth at a gentle simmer. Check the folded edge for tenderness before serving the bowls, then leave space for the courses that follow.

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