The fregola in all its variety

Not everyone knows that fregola – or fregula or freula – was the first kind of pasta that was created, and then they were born the other types, such as the pennette, the spaghetti, the fusilli, etc.


However, people know the origin: indeed, it is thanks to the Arabs that this kind of pasta came in the Island. This population allowed to taste and prove the particular flavor of their very famous course, the cuscus, and Sardinian people gave another version of this dish, creating fregola.

Fregola is prepared with large bran, egg, saffron and water. The first step concerns the spill of the bran into a scivedda, later adding some spoon of egg, saffron and water. Everything is worked until it is not dried.


Then you carry on adding saffron, egg and water. Normally, the necessary time for the preparation corresponds to about half an hour. The result must be a set of perfect small balls.

Fregola is present above all in the countries that represent the Medio Campidano. It is a course that is suitable for different realizations.

The most cooked version is that made with clams. Some villages stand out for the preparation of Fregola with snails.


In other areas, it is flavored with mussels. But, there are various recipes: you can cook this dish with sausage, eels, artichokes, surmullets, shrimps, lentils. Talking about legumes, there is also the kind of vegetable soup with fregola or that of soup with fregola. According to the size, it is better to cook the thin type with the stock of chicken, that big with sausage, that medium with clams.


Assemini is a village that until some years ago organized some events that involved fregola, for instance the Festival of Fregola.
The last event dates back to 3rd and 4th September 2011 and it was organized by the Council of Women, in collaboration with the District of Assemini, the Province of Cagliari, the Department of the production activities and the Pro Loco (Municipal Tourist Board) of Assemini.


For about four hours, various initiatives were realized, among which the preparation of fregola, through the expert hands of the ladies who represent the members of the Council of Women of Assemini. In addition to the cooking of the dish, there was the taste offered to the guests of that event: various species of fregola and various recipes.