Taralli are one of Italy’s most popular snacks, and it’s easy to understand why: they’re crunchy, perfectly bite-sized, and highly addictive!

Hailing from Italy’s Puglia region, taralli are ring-shaped breadsticks, usually ranging from 2-5 inches in size. They come in a variety of different flavors, including onion, garlic, gennel, black pepper, or chili pepper. They can also be glazed with sugar for a sweet effect.

Making taralli is quite simple: you prepare a dough of flour, olive oil, salt, and wine, adding in whatever flavorings you prefer. After that, the dough is shaped into little rings, made by wrapping a rope of dough around your finger(s) and pressing the two ends together to close the loop. Then you boil them for a few minutes, followed by baking until they’re golden brown and crunchy.

Our recipe below is for black pepper taralli, but you could easily use another spice for a different flavor.

Black Pepper Taralli

Makes about 50 taralli

Ingredients

2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (5 grams) Kosher salt
1 tablespoon (7 grams) black pepper, coarsely ground
1/2 cup (60 grams) extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup, plus 1 tablespoon (90 grams) lukewarm water
A splash of red or white wine

Method

Combine together the flour, salt, and black pepper in a medium-sized mixing bowl.

Slowly drizzle in water, olive oil, and wine. Mix together until the dough starts to form a loose ball.

Dump everything out onto a clean work surface and knead together for about 5 to 7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and evenly colored.

Cover in plastic wrap and let rest for another 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375°F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Unwrap the dough and take an olive-sized piece. Roll the small piece of dough into a rope about ½ cm thick. Loop the rope around your index finger and connect the two ends, gently pressing them together so that they stick to each other. Place shaped taralli on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Continue shaping taralli until all the dough has been used.

Drop the 1/3 of the taralli into the boiling water and cook until they rise to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and gently place on a baking sheet lined with a tea towel. Leave space between each tarallo to prevent them from sticking to one another. Repeat with the remaining taralli, working in small batches.

Place boiled taralli on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or greased with a little bit of olive oil, leaving about 1/2 inch in between each one.

Bake at 375°F in the middle rack for about 30-40 minutes or until golden brown and crunchy.