Toasted semolina pearls simmered with clams, garlic, tomato and their own liquor until the fregola swells and the broth thickens. Sardinia's answer to a soupy pasta, eaten with a spoon.

Fregola is made by rubbing semolina and water into irregular pearls and toasting them in the oven, a technique documented in Sardinia since at least the fourteenth century and closely related to North African couscous. Arselle are the small clams of the island's lagoons and shallow bays, including the Calich behind Alghero. The pairing is the standard Sardinian coastal first course and appears in Alghero on almost every fish list, sometimes widened with prawns or mussels. The toasting is the point: it gives the pearls a nutty edge and stops them dissolving into the broth.

2 editor picks for Fregola con arselle in Alghero, ranked by editorial score. All Alghero signature dishes · Fregola con arselle across every city.

La Lepanto ★ 4.2

€€€SeafoodCentro Storico

La Lepanto on Via Carlo Alberto in Alghero builds its list around lobster, raw seafood platters and fregola with crustaceans for around €45 a head.

OrderLobster done the Lepanto way, with a raw seafood plate to open.

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Mos Tapas ★ 4.2

€€Spanish tapasCentro Storico

Mos Tapas looks over the Alghero bay from Via Carducci with tortilla, polpo alla gallega, fregula valenciana and baccalà in tempura at about €30.

OrderFregula valenciana and polpo alla gallega, eaten on the terrace at sunset.

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Learn to cook it, or eat it with a guide

Fregola con arselle makes more sense with someone from Alghero explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.

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