Symbol of the great boot, synonymous with good company and fundamental ingredient in the Mediterranean diet, Italian pasta is famous all over the world for its goodness and genuineness. Today we discover together some historical and curious facts about our beloved pasta that you may not know yet.
Where does Italian pasta come from? A little history
There is a document dating back to 1154 where the geographer Al-Idrin describes the Triyha, a food in the form of flour-based threads, packaged in Palermo. He is talking about spaghetti, the type of pasta preferred by many who, apparently, would have been introduced in Italy by the Arabs. Although this is the oldest document on the subject, his testimony only makes us understand that in the middle of the twelfth century pasta was already widespread in southern Italy but we do not know, with precision, how long it was.
Italian pasta has its own festival: October 21!
So beloved, so famous, symbol of Italy all over the world to have its own world festival: the World Pasta Day which falls, every year, on October 21. In honor of the pasta Italian, during this day they organize parties and fairs to celebrate this food but also to raise awareness of a healthier diet that, As a result, it has a more sustainable environmental impact for our planet.
Pastafarianism, a cult inspired by Italian pasta
Loving it is almost obvious, yet there are also those who “adore” pasta and decided to make it a real cult. Founded by Bobby Henderson, Pastafarianism is a parodistic religion born as a form of protest against the decision of the Kansas Board of Education to replace, in science courses, the theories of evolution with those of creationism. Whether you like it or not, you can not deny the originality of their symbol: a creature with long tentacles of spaghetti called “Prodigious Spaghetti Flying”, with two meatballs instead of eyes.
Italian pasta in the world: the most popular recipes
Among the most popular versions of pasta in the world, the first owes its fame to the famous cartoon “Lilly and the Tramp” – which, recently, was produced a live-action: we are talking about the spaghetti with meatballs sauce. What a delicacy!
If we talk about the most popular pasta recipes in the world, impossible not to mention her: the carbonara! According to the Accademia Italiana della Cucina, this dish holds the record of “most falsified” recipe in the world. Pass the replacement of the pillow with bacon (in the absence of availability) but the egg as an omelet is inadmissible. An excellent advice from experts is to mix the raw egg with pecorino cheese and then add the pasta that, with its heat, will cook the egg as needed. Try to believe it!
In 2016 he was elected the coolest dish by New York Magazine: we are talking about the pasta cheese and pepper. Apparently a simple dish but it is not for everyone to be able to make that delicious cremina that distinguishes it. The secret? Use the cooking water because the starch released from the dough will help to form the delicious cream.
History of some names of Italian pasta
Have you ever thought about the origin of the pasta Italian? Some derive from the instruments used to make it, such as pens or rigatoni. Others, however, have more interesting stories, such as the reginette. Flat in the centre and wavy on the sides, they bring to mind the curly movements of the lace of the dresses of Margherita and Mafalda di Savoia. And that’s why they were called queens.
A story a little ‘more raw, instead, the one about the bottlenecks, created in an era during which there was an imposing ecclesiastical taxation on the population. Therefore, the will of most was to put an end to the life of these priests, who found their greatest pleasure in eating. That’s why this pasta format was born, more difficult to swallow than the others, and that’s why it is called so.
The Italian pasta is a pleasure that no one can give up and is so versatile to suit everyone’s tastes, so enjoy your meal!