![]() And sometimes tradition dictates the pairing, like in spaghetti (or rigatoni) alla carbonara in Rome. Tubular, cupped and twisted shapes better trap pieces of meat, vegetables or sauce. It took time, purpose and buying and cooking my own food to learn that each type of pasta has particular attributes that lend themselves to particular types of sauce.įresh egg, extruded, bronze-cut and ridged pastas have a rough texture which helps sauces stick to them. I was oblivious to the fact that the pasta and sauce I was eating were paired together for a reason. I did not consider the possibility that the varieties in shape, texture and ingredients were intentional, not frivolous. You had it fresh when you had time (or a nonna was making it for you), dried was the standard, and it was mostly spaghetti. In stores, pasta is sold either fresh, made with flour and egg or sometimes only water and flour, or dried, made with durum wheat semolina.Ĭoming from a home where pasta was not even part of a monthly meal, when I first moved to Italy as a student, I viewed all pasta as, well, pasta. The northern region of Emilia-Romagna is known for its fresh egg pasta using regular flour, and other various regions are known for making pasta with only flour and water. Of course, pasta-making is not isolated to the south. Italy’s finest dried pasta makers are still located in these regions, like Molise, Puglia and Campania. For example, in the southern regions and islands of Italy, the hot, dry climate and well-draining, clay-like soils fostered growth of durum wheat, which was then used to produce durum wheat pasta. Italy hit the Powerball when it comes to climate, and its people have long known how to cultivate and create the best food from what nature gives them. Italian cuisine, down to the individual ingredients, is as diverse as the many city-states and regions that came together to form the Italian Republic.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |