🍝 Pasta

Pasta is a food made from a dough of flour or semolina and water, sometimes with eggs. The dough is shaped into strands, tubes, ribbons or shells, then dried or kept fresh and boiled in salted water. The word covers spaghetti and macaroni as well as lasagne, ravioli and gnocchi.

What pasta is made of. Classic Italian dry pasta is nothing but durum wheat semolina and water. Italian law (Presidential Decree No. 187 of 9 February 2001) reserves the name "pasta di semola di grano duro" for such dry pasta: at most 12.5 % moisture and at least 10.5 % protein in dry matter. Durum wheat gives a firm gluten network, so the pasta holds its shape and stays springy, al dente. Under Italian rules egg pasta contains at least four whole hen's eggs (200 g) per kilogram of semolina. Fresh pasta is not dried, or only partly dried, and is kept chilled. There is also pasta from wholemeal flour, spelt, buckwheat, chickpeas and lentils, rice and corn, the last ones gluten-free.

How it is made. The dough is mixed and pushed through dies, or rolled into sheets and cut. A bronze die leaves a rough surface that holds sauce better; a Teflon die gives a smooth one. Dry pasta is dried slowly so it does not crack.

Shapes. Long: spaghetti, linguine, bucatini. Ribbons: tagliatelle, fettuccine. Tubes: penne, rigatoni. Shaped: fusilli, farfalle. Soup pasta: orzo, stelline. Filled: ravioli, tortellini. Thin long pasta suits sauces of olive oil or butter with parmesan or pecorino; ridged tubes suit thick meat sauces. Ravioli are often filled with ricotta, and the béchamel for lasagne is made with milk.

Protected names. The EU protects pasta names as geographical indications, for example Pasta di Gragnano, Pizzoccheri della Valtellina, Maccheroncini di Campofilone, Pâtes d'Alsace and Schwäbische Spätzle.

History. In 1154 the Arab geographer al-Idrisi described how dried pasta was made in Trabia, Sicily, and shipped abroad, long before Marco Polo's travels. World Pasta Day is marked on 25 October.

Why it matters to you. 100 g of dry durum wheat pasta gives about 350–370 kcal, 12–14 g of protein and 70–75 g of carbohydrate. Pasta cooked al dente usually raises blood sugar more slowly than bread. Read the label: wheat pasta contains gluten and egg pasta contains eggs, both allergens.