How pasta is made

Pasta making is the process that turns durum wheat semolina or flour and water into shaped pasta, either dried or fresh: mixing, shaping by extrusion or sheeting, drying and packing.

The finished product is defined mainly by Italy's Decree No 187 of 2001: dry durum wheat pasta must leave the factory with no more than 12.5 % moisture, while fresh pasta keeps much more water and has to be kept chilled. The specification of the protected name Pasta di Gragnano adds stricter rules for that pasta, including shaping through bronze dies.

Production starts with the ingredients: durum wheat semolina and water, and eggs for egg pasta. In the mixer the semolina is moistened into a crumbly dough with roughly 30 % water, often under vacuum so that no air bubbles remain; this keeps the pasta compact, bright and less likely to crack.

A screw press then forces the dough under high pressure through a die, a metal disc with shaped openings, and rotating knives cut short shapes. Bronze dies leave a rough, matt, slightly porous surface that holds sauce well. Teflon-lined dies give a smooth, glossy, more yellow pasta. Long pasta such as spaghetti is hung on rods, while lasagne sheets and many egg pastas are rolled out between steel cylinders and cut.

Drying is the most delicate stage. The pasta first loses surface moisture in a pre-dryer, then dries slowly under controlled heat and humidity so that the inside and outside shrink evenly. Artisan producers dry at lower temperatures for up to one or two days; industrial lines use higher temperatures and finish in a few hours. Drying too fast causes cracks. Fresh pasta is only surface-dried, usually pasteurised and packed in a protective atmosphere.

The process explains the words on the packet: "bronze-drawn" and "slow-dried" mean a rougher pasta that clings to sauce, while a smooth surface suits light, oily sauces. Either way, a well-made dry pasta stays firm when cooked al dente.