Can The Bear's cavatelli really be prepared in under 3 minutes?

The Bear is the series that has won over critics, chefs and food lovers around the world with a tense, hungry plot full of passion (and stress). Created by Christopher Storer, it was released for the first time in 2022 and stars Jeremy Allen White, who plays Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzatto, a young, high-profile fine-dining chef who, after the death of his brother, returns to Chicago to manage and reinvent the family sandwich shop. 

The series has found its way into the hearts of foodies because it doesn’t romanticise cooking: it tells it for what it is: a minefield of tension, beauty and sacrifice. That’s why we arrived at the latest season, the fourth, hungry for what’s next.

This time, the plot delves even deeper into the characters' personal experiences, their pasts and unresolved relationships. We see the trials, limitations and conquests of the brigade, between flashbacks, new challenges and the increasingly concrete goal of a Michelin star.

No, we won't tell you how it ends, because we don't want spoilers here – like cream in carbonara.

In this season, a dish of cavatelli pasta becomes symbolic of the trials of the restaurant and its personnel. We see the pasta shapes in the hands of chef Tina, one of the most human and toughest characters in the show, who puts herself to the test by trying to prepare them in less than three minutes, to guarantee a starred level of service.

Spoiler alert: Tina can't do it at first. As long as the timer is there to oppress her, something jams. Then something happens: one of the new arrivals, an expert pastry chef and old colleague of Carmy, asks her for a plate of cavatelli just for himself. No service, no pressure. And she succeeds.

The question is: can you really make cavatelli with sauce in under three minutes? The answer is yes… but only if you have a ready line (as the jargon goes). 

Stopwatch in hand: our test

For Fine Dining Lovers readers, we tested the challenge. We prepared both the fresh pasta and the sauce in advance, exactly as a real brigade would.

The sauce 

It sounds simple, but it isn't. You start with fresh tomatoes, preferably two or three varieties. They must be blanched, cooled in water and ice, and peeled. You then add them to a garlic sauté (yes, there is a scene where Carmy asks if it “tastes too garlicky,” so we can guess), season and cook for 40 minutes on low heat.

Once cooked, whisk and strain through a fine-mesh strainer – you need a smooth, deep sauce that tastes sunny yet concentrated.

The pasta

Cavatelli are a typical fresh pasta from Southern Italy, often made with remilled semolina, hot water, a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt. You knead the dough for 10 minutes, then let it rest for at least 20 minutes (although since it doesn’t contain eggs, this last step could be skipped). From there you make noodles from the dough, about 5-6 mm thick, which you cut into chunks and drag onto a gnocchi line – this is what we’ve guessed from seeing the dough-making in the series.

Once you are ready, you can start the stopwatch.

The three-minute test

Minute 0: Plunge the cavatelli into boiling salted water

Minute 1.30: Being very thin, they should be cooked.

Minute 2: In a frying pan, heat the sauce.

Minute 2.15: Add the pasta to the pan with a small ladle of the cooking water, add a knob of butter and toss.

Minute 2.45: Remove from heat, add Parmigiano Reggiano and stir-fry.

Minute 3.00: Plate.

We made it. But only because everything was ready and we had already practised, watching Tina repeatedly.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter if it takes three minutes or 10: what matters is the result. We don't have a restaurant, or a brigade, or a sous chef yelling at us. But if you, too, like Tina, want to challenge yourself, remember that the real achievement is not the stopwatch. We are not looking for a star. We are just, constantly, hungry for things done right.