Name: Agnolotti del plin
Prep time: 1 h 40 min
Cook time: 2 h 35 min
Total time: 6 h 15 min
Cuisine: Italian, Langhe / Piemonte
Ingredients: 120 g pork leg or shoulder, cut into small pieces; 120 g rabbit meat, boneless; 120 g veal shoulder, cut into small pieces; 120 g escarole, cooked, squeezed dry and chopped; 60 g onion, finely chopped; 40 g carrot, finely chopped; 40 g celery, finely chopped; 1 garlic clove; 1 small rosemary sprig; 1 bay leaf; 20 ml extra-virgin olive oil; 1 large egg; 60 g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated; 4 g fine sea salt; 1 g black pepper; 400 g Italian 00 flour; 4 large eggs; 1 egg yolk; 30–60 ml water, only if needed for a firm smooth dough; 3 g fine sea salt; 90 g unsalted butter; 12 sage leaves; 40 g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated for serving

Agnolotti del plin: wide hero view of small pinched Piedmontese stuffed pasta glazed with butter, sage and grated Parmigiano in a pale bowl

Prep1 h 40 min

Cook2 h 35 min

Total6 h 15 min

Yield6 servings

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The dish

About Agnolotti del plin

Regione Piemonte documents agnolotti dal plin as a historic pasta of the Alte Langhe. The filling begins with pork, rabbit and veal cooked slowly with aromatic vegetables and herbs, then minced and combined with cooked escarole, egg and grated Parmigiano.

The name comes from the tiny pinch—the plin—used to close the pasta between one mound of filling and the next. The sheet must be very thin and worked promptly before its exposed edge dries, otherwise the fold will not bond cleanly.

The regional recipe places small hazelnut-sized portions of filling roughly one centimetre apart, folds the pasta edge over them, pinches between each mound and separates the parcels with a fluted wheel. The result is notably smaller than many restaurant ravioli.

After shaping, the Piedmont source allows the plin to rest cool before a very short 3–4 minute boil. They can be served plain on a cloth, with roast juices or other restrained dressings that let the filling remain dominant.

The previously verified Travel S Helper images show butter, sage and grated cheese, so this page chooses that well-established service rather than the roast-jus option. The butter is browned only lightly so it glosses the thin pasta without hiding the meat filling.

Technique

Three things that matter

Cook filling until savoury and relatively dry. Wet braising liquid inside tiny pasta weakens the seams and muddies the filling.
Roll the sheet very thin. Plin depend on delicate pasta around a small filling, not thick ravioli dough.
Pinch immediately. Freshly rolled pasta seals cleanly before the surface dries.

Cook the dish

Ingredients

Everything needed to prepare the dish, arranged for fast scanning before cooking.

Three-meat filling

120 gpork leg or shouldercut into small pieces
120 grabbit meatboneless
120 gveal shouldercut into small pieces
120 gescarolecooked, squeezed dry and chopped
60 gonionfinely chopped
40 gcarrotfinely chopped
40 gceleryfinely chopped
1garlic clove
1small rosemary sprig
1bay leaf
20 mlextra-virgin olive oil
1large egg
60 gParmigiano Reggianofinely grated
4 gfine sea salt
1 gblack pepper

Egg pasta

400 gItalian 00 flour
4large eggs
1egg yolk
30–60 mlwateronly if needed for a firm smooth dough
3 gfine sea salt

Butter and sage

90 gunsalted butter
12sage leaves
40 gParmigiano Reggianofinely grated for serving

Step by step

Method

Cook the filling

Brown the aromatic meat mixture. Soften onion, carrot, celery, garlic, rosemary and bay in olive oil, add pork, rabbit and veal and brown lightly. Season and add a small splash of water or broth.
The meat should colour without scorching the aromatic vegetables.
Cook slowly until tender. Cover loosely and cook over low heat for about 2 hours, adding small amounts of liquid only when necessary. Cool, discard woody herbs and grind finely.
The meat should be tender and the pan nearly dry, not surrounded by broth.
Finish the filling. Mix minced meat with dry chopped escarole, egg and 60 g Parmigiano. Chill.
The filling should hold tiny mounds cleanly without leaking liquid.

Make and shape the pasta

Knead and rest the egg dough. Knead flour, salt, eggs and yolk into a smooth firm dough, adding only enough water if required. Rest covered 30 minutes.
The surface should be smooth and the dough should relax under a fingertip.
Roll very thin sheets. Work in narrow sections and roll close to the thinnest practical setting, keeping everything else covered.
A hand should cast a shadow through the sheet without the pasta tearing.
Make the plin pinch. Set hazelnut-sized filling mounds about 1 cm apart near one edge, fold the pasta over, press out air, pinch firmly between each mound and separate with a fluted wheel.
Each parcel should be small, tightly sealed and visibly pinched at its sides.
Rest the shaped pasta. Place on a semolina-dusted tray and rest in a cool place for up to 1–2 hours.
The surface may dry slightly, but the pasta should not crack.

Boil and dress

Brown sage butter lightly. Melt butter with sage until foamy and pale hazelnut in colour.
The butter should smell nutty while sage remains green-brown rather than black.
Cook the plin briefly. Boil in gently salted water for 3–4 minutes, following the Piedmont reference, and lift carefully with a slotted spoon.
The pasta should be tender and the filling hot without swollen or burst seams.
Glaze and serve. Transfer into sage butter with a splash of pasta water, turn gently and finish with grated Parmigiano.
The butter should form a thin glossy coating, leaving the small plin shape clearly visible.

Practical guidance

Traditional serving

The Piemonte source also suggests serving plin plain on a cloth or with strained roast juices. Butter and sage are chosen here to match the verified Travel S Helper images.

Filling moisture

Use only enough braising liquid to tenderise the meat. A dry concentrated filling is much easier to seal into very small pasta.

Size

Small filling mounds and close spacing are part of the identity. Oversized ravioli lose the characteristic plin proportion.

Freezing

Freeze shaped uncooked agnolotti in one layer, then bag once hard. Boil from frozen without thawing.

Troubleshooting

The plin open during boiling. The sheet dried before folding, air was trapped around the filling or the pinch was incomplete.
The filling leaks when shaping. It contains too much braising liquid or greens were not squeezed dry.
The pasta seems heavy. The sheet is too thick; roll thinner and use smaller filling mounds.
The butter overwhelms the filling. Too much butter or cheese was used; the dressing should only gloss the pasta.

Nutrition per serving

Serving size: 10–12 small agnolotti
Calories: approximately 650 kcal
Carbohydrates: 59 g
Protein: 32 g
Fat: 31 g
Fibre: 3 g
Sodium: approximately 760 mg

The estimate assumes the stated butter and cheese are divided across six servings.

Allergens and food safety

Contains wheat/gluten, eggs and milk.

Keep the cooked-meat-and-egg filling refrigerated while dough is rolled and shaped.

Cook a representative parcel fully and refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours; reheat thoroughly.

FAQ

What does “plin” mean?

It refers to the small pinch used to seal the pasta between adjacent mounds of filling.

What meats are used?

The Piemonte reference combines pork, rabbit and veal, with cooked greens and Parmigiano.

How are agnolotti del plin served?

Traditional options include plain, with roast juices, or with butter and sage; the latter is used here to match the verified photographs.

Final note

What matters most

Result: Tiny thin-skinned pasta parcels with a concentrated three-meat filling and a visible plin pinch, glazed lightly with sage butter and Parmigiano.
Key: Cook the filling dry, roll the egg pasta very thin and pinch each small parcel before the sheet has time to dry.