COOL PASTA SHAPES HOW TO

This banquet was held to mark the visit of Lucrezia Borgia to Bologna on her way to Ferrara to marry Duke Alfonso D’Este in 1487. It is thought that these flat ribbons of pasta were born as a result of a particular banquet held by Giovanni II of Bentivolgio in the 15th century. Tagliatelle has one of the more interesting stories of origin.

Similarly to penne rigate, sauces adhere well to the ridges of this pasta whilst the tubes are able to hold chunks of vegetables and meat. These short tubes of pasta are also favoured in Southern Italy, where they are often paired with thicker sauces. Rigatoni gains its name from the ridges (“righe”) on its wide, cylindrical surface. With its name harking back to a tool used to twist wool (the “fuso”), this type of pasta is perfect with meat or ricotta-based sauces which its coil are able to hold. A short, twisted shape, fusilli can be found in many recipes from the southern regions of Italy. Italy’s third favourite pasta shape is that of fusilli. Also, it’s important to remember that spaghetti is never used with bolognese sauce (ragù)! 3. A classic spaghetti aglio e olio is a classic example of this. Given that spaghetti is not made to retain sauce as well as other pastas, it is better suited to lighter, simpler sauces. Around 30cm in length, they are cylindrical strands known for their use in Carbonara or Puttanesca. Translating as ‘thin strings’, spaghetti is one of Italy’s most iconic pasta shapes. With ridges running along with surface, penne rigate are ideal for chunky sauces – the indentations help the pasta to hold sauce whilst the pasta is firm enough to be paired with larger pieces of vegetable. Although there are different types of penne, the most common is penne rigate. The machine meant that tubes of pasta could be cut diagonally to a standardised size, eliminating the need for using scissors as was done before. It was born in 1865, with a new device patented by Giovanni Battista Capurro in the small town of San Martino d’Albero, near Genoa.

This quill-shaped pasta is unusual in that it has a very precise origin.

COOL PASTA SHAPES HOW TO

Here are Italy’s five most popular pasta shapes and how to eat them. It’s estimated that there are about 350 forms, all used for different reasons.

All of this pasta comes in a wide variety of shapes. Whilst just under 2 million tonnes is exported (mostly to Germany, France, the UK, USA, and Japan), the rest is consumed within the country – the average Italian eats around 23.5 kgs a year. According to Aidepi (The Italian Association of sweets and pasta), the country produces over 3 million tonnes of the food-stuff annually. Although the origins of pasta are often debated, Italy is undoubtedly the homeland of this carby treat.

Cool pasta shapes