Tucci Family Timpano Recipe from Big Night with Stanley Tucci

If you have ever seen the movie Big Night, you know the timpano scene. It is the centerpiece of the entire film. That massive drum of pasta, meat, cheese, and eggs gets carried to the table, sliced open, and the room goes silent. It is one of the most famous food scenes in movie history.

What most people do not know is that the recipe is real, and it comes from our family.

Stanley Tucci is my first cousin. We share the same grandparents, Stanley and Theresa Tucci. Stanley co-wrote the screenplay for Big Night with another cousin, Joseph Tropiano, and the food in that film is rooted in the same kitchen traditions we all grew up with. This is not a Hollywood recipe. This is what our family actually cooks.

My 14th birthday at our grandparents' house, 1967. That is me in the orange shirt with my arm around my cousin Stanley Tucci. The same kitchen where we all learned to cook. From the Rachiele family collection.

I have had so many requests to share our family recipes that I thought it was finally time. I hope you enjoy this meal as much as we do. I will be adding more recipes regularly, so keep coming back. (If you have not seen it yet, try our Tucci Family Italian Meatball Recipe as well.)

The Cast of Big Night: Before They Were Famous

Big Night was released in 1996 and holds a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It is considered one of the greatest food movies ever made. But what makes it even more remarkable is the cast. Many of them were early in their careers when this film was made:

Stanley Tucci as Secondo (also co-directed and co-wrote the screenplay), Tony Shalhoub as Primo (later famous for his Emmy-winning role in Monk), Minnie Driver as Phyllis, Isabella Rossellini as Gabriella, Ian Holm as Pascal, Allison Janney as Ann (later famous for The West Wing and her Oscar-winning role in I, Tonya), Liev Schreiber in an early role (later known for Ray Donovan), Campbell Scott as co-director, and Marc Anthony as Cristiano, in a small role before his music career exploded.

There is a great behind-the-scenes story about Marc Anthony and that film. After shooting wrapped, Stanley took Marc Anthony out to dinner. Marc offered to pay, but Stanley insisted. He had absolutely no idea who Marc Anthony was or how successful he would become. Stanley only found out after the movie.

By the way, the timpano in the photo below is what a timpano is supposed to look like. In the movie, the woman who made the timpano for the set made the shell too thin, which is why you can see the ziti through the dough. A properly made timpano has a thicker, golden-brown crust that holds everything together.

Timpano, the real thing. A properly made shell should be thick enough that you cannot see through it.

This timpano was made at my home for Christmas by my mother, my father, and other members of the family. We never had a Christmas without timpano. The making and enjoying of a timpano was a family event that we all looked forward to. The process engulfed the entire day and evening. It was not just a meal. It was the centerpiece of every Christmas table, and making it together was as much a part of the tradition as eating it. This is what timpano is supposed to look like. In the movie Big Night, the woman who made the timpano for the set made the shell too thin, which is why you can see the ziti through the dough. A properly made timpano has a thick, golden-brown crust that holds everything together.

The Big Night Timpano Scene

If you have not seen it, or if you want to watch it again, here is the famous timpano scene from the film:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4lZcEY4nII

The famous timpano scene from Big Night. My cousin Stanley Tucci and Tony Shalhoub admiring the finished timpano. This is the dish that made timpano famous around the world.

Get ready; this is a complicated meal to make, but it is certainly worth it.

Rachiele/Tucci Family Recipe: Timpano alla Big Night

Drum of Ziti and Great Stuff (Makes 16 Servings)

Get ready. This is a complicated meal to make, but it is absolutely worth it. Timpano is not a weeknight dinner. It is an event. It is the kind of meal you make when the whole family is coming over, when you want to do something that people will talk about for years.

And if you are going to take on a project like this, your kitchen setup matters. More on that below.

For the Dough:

• 4 cups all-purpose flour

• 4 large eggs

• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1/2 cup water

Prepare the Pan:

• Butter

• Olive oil

For the Filling:

• 2 cups Genoa salami, cut into 1/4" x 1/2" pieces

• 2 cups sharp provolone cheese, cut into 1/4" x 1/2" pieces

• 12 hard-boiled eggs, shelled, quartered lengthwise, each quarter cut in half to create chunks

• 2 cups little meatballs (about the size of a large marble)

• 8 cups ragu

• 3 pounds ziti, cooked very al dente (about half the recommended time on the package), drained (18 cups cooked)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 2/3 cup finely grated pecorino Romano cheese

• 4 large eggs, beaten

Instructions:

Make the dough:

Place the flour, eggs, salt, and olive oil in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. (A large capacity food processor may also be used.) Add 3 tablespoons of the water and process. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture comes together and forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead to make sure it is well mixed. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes.

To knead the dough by hand: Mix the flour and salt together on a clean, dry work surface or pastry board. Form the dry ingredients into a mound and make a well in the center. Break the eggs into the center of the well and lightly beat them with a fork. Stir in 3 tablespoons of water. Use the fork to gradually incorporate the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Continue mixing, adding the remaining water 1 tablespoon at a time. Knead the dough with your hands to make a well-mixed, smooth, dry dough. If the dough becomes too sticky, add more flour. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes.

Roll and prepare the pan:

Flatten the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Dust the top with flour and roll it out, dusting with flour and flipping the dough over from time to time, until it is about 1/16 inch thick and the desired diameter.

Generously grease the timpano baking pan with butter and olive oil. Fold the dough in half and then in half again to form a triangle and place it in the pan. Open the dough and arrange it in the pan, gently pressing it against the bottom and the sides, draping the extra dough over the sides. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Assemble the filling:

Have the salami, provolone, hard-boiled eggs, meatballs, and ragu at room temperature. Toss the drained pasta with the olive oil and 2 cups of the ragu.

Layer 1: Distribute 6 generous cups of the pasta on the bottom of the timpano. Top with 1 cup salami, 1 cup provolone, 6 hard-boiled eggs, 1 cup meatballs, and 1/3 cup Romano cheese. Pour 2 cups of ragu over these ingredients.

Layer 2: Top with 6 cups of the remaining pasta. Add the remaining 1 cup salami, 1 cup provolone, 6 hard-boiled eggs, 1 cup meatballs, and 1/3 cup Romano cheese. Pour 2 cups of ragu over these ingredients.

Final layer: Top with the remaining 6 cups of pasta. (The ingredients should now be about 1 inch below the rim of the pot.) Spoon the remaining 2 cups ragu over the pasta. Pour the beaten eggs over the filling.

Fold the pasta dough over the filling to seal completely. Trim away and discard any double layers of dough.

Bake:

Bake until lightly browned, about 1 hour. Then cover with aluminum foil and continue baking until the timpano is cooked through and the dough is golden brown (internal temperature of 120 degrees F), about 30 minutes more.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 30 minutes or more. The baked timpano should not adhere to the pan. If any part is still attached, carefully detach it with a knife.

Serve:

Grasp the baking pan firmly and invert the timpano onto a serving platter. Remove the pan and allow the timpano to cool for 20 minutes. Using a long, sharp knife, cut a circle about 3 inches in diameter in the center of the timpano, making sure to cut all the way through to the bottom. Then slice the timpano as you would a pie into individual portions, leaving the center circle as a support for the remaining pieces.

Why a Meal Like This Demands the Right Kitchen Setup

Real cooking on a Rachiele workstation sink. Prep, cook, and clean all happen in one place, keeping your countertops clear for the big stuff like rolling timpano dough.

If you have read through that recipe, you already understand what is involved. You are making dough, boiling 3 pounds of ziti, preparing 8 cups of ragu, hard-boiling a dozen eggs, rolling marble-sized meatballs, and cutting salami and provolone into precise pieces. All of this has to come together at the right time, at the right temperature.

That is a massive amount of prep, and it all requires counter space, a place to drain, somewhere to stage ingredients, and a cleanup plan that does not take longer than the cooking itself.

This is exactly why I invented the workstation sink in 2010. When I cook a meal like timpano, everything happens at the sink. Rinsing, draining, prepping, staging, and cleaning all happen in one place. My countertops stay clear for rolling dough and assembling the layers. And when the meal is done and the family is eating, cleanup takes minutes instead of an hour.

Every Rachiele sink is custom designed during a personal Zoom consultation with me. I ask about how you cook, how your kitchen is laid out, and what frustrates you about your current setup. Then we build something that fits the way your family actually lives and cooks.

Ready to Cook Like This in Your Own Kitchen?

If you have ever wished for more space and less chaos during a big cooking day, I would love to show you what is possible.

Call me directly: 407-880-6903 (I answer 7 days a week)

Schedule a Free Zoom Consultation—I will walk you through the design process and help you figure out the perfect sink for your kitchen.

Or start exploring here:

• See Our Custom Workstation Sinks

• Foundation Series Starting at $2,470

• Browse the Gallery

More Tucci Family Recipes

If you enjoyed this, check out our Tucci Family Italian Meatball Recipe, the same meatballs our entire family has been making for generations. I also share how I prep and cook that recipe on a 60" Rachiele workstation sink.

Thanks for visiting. Have fun cooking!