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{{Short description|Type of pasta}}
{{Short description|Type of pasta}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Other uses}}
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{{Infobox food
{{Infobox food
| name             = Spaghetti
| name               = Spaghetti
| image           = Spaghettoni.jpg
| image             = Spaghettoni.jpg
| image_size       =  
| image_size         =  
| caption         = ''Spaghettoni''
| caption           = ''Spaghettoni'' hung to dry
| alternate_name   =
| alternate_name     =  
| country          = [[Italy]]
| creator           =  
| region          =  
| course             =  
| creator         =  
| type               = [[Pasta]]
| course           =  
| served             =  
| type             = [[Pasta]]
| main_ingredient   = [[Semolina]] or [[flour]], water
| served           =  
| variations         =  
| main_ingredient = [[Semolina]] or [[flour]], water
| variations       =  
}}
}}


'''Spaghetti''' ({{IPA|it|spaˈɡetti|lang}}) is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical [[pasta]].<ref name="dict">[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/spaghetti spaghetti]. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. (accessed: 3 June 2008).</ref> It is a [[staple food]] of traditional [[Italian cuisine]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Montanari |first=Massimo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C3uyEAAAQBAJ&q=italy&pg=PT7 |title=A Short History of Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce: The Unbelievable True Story of the World's Most Beloved Dish |date=2021-11-16 |publisher=Europa Editions |isbn=978-1-60945-710-5 |language=en}}</ref> Like other pasta, spaghetti is made of [[Mill (grinding)|milled]] [[wheat]], [[water]], and sometimes [[Enriched flour|enriched]] with vitamins and minerals. Italian spaghetti is typically made from [[durum]]-wheat [[semolina]].<ref name="nhg">{{cite web|url=http://www.bhg.com/recipes/ethnic-food/italian/how-to-make-spaghetti/|title=How to Make Spaghetti|publisher=Better Homes and Gardens}} Retrieved on 22 December 2014.</ref> The pasta is usually white because refined flour is used, but whole wheat flour may be added.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Suo |first1=Xinying |last2=Pompei |first2=Francesca |last3=Bonfini |first3=Matteo |last4=Mustafa |first4=Ahmed M. |last5=Sagratini |first5=Gianni |last6=Wang |first6=Zhangcun |last7=Vittadini |first7=Elena |date=2023-03-01 |title=Quality of wholemeal pasta made with pigmented and ancient wheats |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878450X23000070 |journal=International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science |volume=31 |article-number=100665 |doi=10.1016/j.ijgfs.2023.100665 |issn=1878-450X|hdl=11581/468816 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> ''Spaghettoni'' is a thicker form of spaghetti, while spaghettini is a thinner form. [[Capellini]] is a very thin spaghetti, while [[vermicelli]] refers to intermediate thicknesses.
'''Spaghetti''' ({{IPA|it|spaˈɡetti|lang}}) is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical [[pasta]].<ref name="dict">[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/spaghetti spaghetti]. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. (accessed: 3 June 2008).</ref> It is a [[staple food]] of traditional [[Italian cuisine]]. Like other pasta, spaghetti is made of [[Mill (grinding)|milled]] [[wheat]] (sometimes [[Enriched flour|enriched]] with vitamins and minerals) and [[water]]. Italian spaghetti is typically made from [[Durum wheat|durum]]-wheat [[semolina]].<ref name="nhg">{{cite web|url=http://www.bhg.com/recipes/ethnic-food/italian/how-to-make-spaghetti/|title=How to Make Spaghetti|publisher=Better Homes and Gardens}} Retrieved on 22 December 2014.</ref> The pasta is usually white because refined flour is used, but whole wheat flour may be added.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Suo |first1=Xinying |last2=Pompei |first2=Francesca |last3=Bonfini |first3=Matteo |last4=Mustafa |first4=Ahmed M. |last5=Sagratini |first5=Gianni |last6=Wang |first6=Zhangcun |last7=Vittadini |first7=Elena |date=2023-03-01 |title=Quality of wholemeal pasta made with pigmented and ancient wheats |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878450X23000070 |journal=International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science |volume=31 |article-number=100665 |doi=10.1016/j.ijgfs.2023.100665 |issn=1878-450X|hdl=11581/468816 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> ''Spaghettoni'' is a thicker form of spaghetti, while spaghettini is a thinner form. [[Capellini]] is a very thin spaghetti, while [[vermicelli]] refers to intermediate thicknesses.


Originally, spaghetti was notably long, but shorter lengths gained in popularity during the latter half of the 20th century and now it is most commonly available in {{cvt|25|-|30|cm|in|0}} lengths. A variety of pasta dishes are based on it and it is frequently served with [[tomato sauce]], [[meat]] or [[Vegetable|vegetables]].
Originally, spaghetti was notably long, but shorter lengths gained in popularity during the second half of the 20th century and now it is most commonly available in {{cvt|25|-|30|cm|in|0}} lengths. A variety of pasta dishes are based on it and it is frequently served with [[tomato sauce]], meat or vegetables.


==Etymology==
==History==
''Spaghetti'' is the plural form of the [[Italian language|Italian]] word ''spaghetto'', which is a [[diminutive]] of ''spago'', meaning 'thin string' or 'twine'.<ref name="dict" />
{{See also|Pasta#History}}
=== Early ===
[[File:6-alimenti, pasta,Taccuino Sanitatis, Casanatense 4182..jpg|thumb|14th century depiction of pasta making|upright=1.2]]
Spaghetti has its origin in an ancient, thin, and generally unleavened bread from the [[Middle East]]. This was known under various names at different times, including Asian Bread in some texts of antiquity, and ''lakhsha'' in the Persian [[Sasanian Empire]]. The bread was flattened, sometimes by hand and at other times with a rolling pin, and was occasionally dried for preservation. Under the Sasanian Empire, it took on the name ''rishta'' when cut into strips or strings before drying, the term possibly deriving from the Iranian word ''risnatu'', for which records of use exist as far back as the 2nd{{Nbsp}}millennium{{Nbsp}}BC.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|p=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/30/ 31]}}


==History==
Coinciding with this emerging tradition of drying pasta in Persia, pasta was eaten throughout [[Classical antiquity|antiquity]] in Roman and Greek societies after arriving from the Middle East.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|p=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/30/ 31]}}{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/32/ 32–33]}} There too, pasta was sometimes dried, most frequently the long, stretched [[Dough|doughs]].{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|p=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/34/ 35]}} In the 7th century, [[Muslim conquest of Persia|Arabs conquered Persia]], and thereafter spread the dried pasta custom throughout the lands they occupied, which included [[Sicily]] from the 9th{{Nbsp}}century. There, the dried pasta practice became associated with the European traditions of making fresh pasta, and the name ''itriyya'' entered the language, meaning "long-form dried pasta".{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/34/ 35]–[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/36/ 37]}}


===Origin===
=== Arrival in the Italian peninsula ===
Pasta may have first been worked into long, thin forms in Sicily around the 12th century, as the ''[[Tabula Rogeriana]]'' of [[Muhammad al-Idrisi]] attested, reporting some traditions about the [[Kingdom of Sicily]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/doc/198607/pasta|title=Pasta|first=Corby |last=Kummer|date=1 July 1986|work=The Atlantic}}</ref>
By the middle of the 12th century, records exist of several farms in Sicily producing ''itriyya'' at scale for local and export markets.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/36/ 37]–[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/38/ 38]}} Over the following centuries, this pasta appeared in Italian cookbooks, albeit infrequently.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|p=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/40/ 41]}} A precise description of the manufacture of "Sicilian macaroni" is given by [[Martino da Como]] in the later 15th century: a ball of dough, stretched thin, cut with a wire as "thin as ''spagho'' (string)", dried under the sun.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/42/ 42–43]}} The duration of this drying process varied with weather and humidity, but twelve days in the summer was typical.{{Sfn|Serventi|Sabban|2002|p=[https://archive.org/details/pastastoryofuniv00silv/page/112/ 113]}} In another recipe for a [[Genoa|Genoese]] pasta, Martino employs ''spagho'' for the first time in a culinary context when he says pasta ought to be cut "as thin as a ''spagho''".{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/42/ 42–43]}} Severals tools were employed for this cutting process, including ''chitarra'' in areas of southern Italy, which consisted of a wooden frame strung with wires, lowered onto the dough.{{Sfn|Serventi|Sabban|2002|pp=[https://archive.org/details/pastastoryofuniv00silv/page/82/ 83]–[https://archive.org/details/pastastoryofuniv00silv/page/82/ 84]}}


[[File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 6144 - (Mangiamaccheroni).jpg|thumb|Photo by [[Giorgio Sommer]] (19th century)]]
Pasta at this time was cooked for much longer than it is today; Martino recommends his Sicilian macaroni boil in water for two hours to achieve a desired, very soft texture. Contemporary ideas of how this pasta should be served was based on the ideas of physicians, who followed [[Hippocrates]] and [[Galen]]'s principle of {{Lang|la|contraria contrariis curantur}} ({{Gloss|opposites cure opposites}}). For a very soft pasta, this meant expensive accompaniments of dried spices and pepper.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/50/ 50–51]}} Cheese, particularly the drier, aged varieties, was another common pairing for the same reason, the most popular for the task by the mid-15th century being [[pecorino]] and [[parmigiano]].{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/54/ 54]–[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/56/ 56]}} The slippery texture and hot serving temperature of pasta facilitated the introduction of the [[fork]] to Italy, replacing earlier practices of eating pasta and other foods by hand, and by the 14th century, the first descriptions of spaghetti being twirled with a fork were emerging.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/56/ 57]–[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/58/ 59]}}
[[File:Pasta Sheeter built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation (circa 1935) 001.jpg|thumb|Pasta sheeter ({{circa}} 1935)]]
The popularity of spaghetti spread throughout Italy after the establishment of spaghetti factories in the 19th century, enabling the mass production of spaghetti for the Italian market.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Whiteman|first1=Kate |last2=Boggiano|first2=Angela |last3=Wright|first3=Jeni |title=The Italian kitchen bible|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vgjwEGFNYoQC|year=2007|publisher=Hermes House|isbn=978-1-84038-875-6|pages=12–13}}</ref>


==Production==
=== Later ===
Spaghetti is made from ground grain (flour) and water.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Gisslen, Wayne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EzSwCGBHr3YC&pg=PA635 |title=Professional Cooking for Canadian Chefs |author2=Griffin, Mary Ellen |author3=Le Cordon Bleu |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2006 |isbn=0-471-66377-8 |pages=635}}</ref> Whole-wheat and multigrain spaghetti are also available.<ref name="nhg" />
[[File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 6144 - (Mangiamaccheroni).jpg|thumb|19th century photograph of Neapolitans eating spaghetti in the street]]
In the 17th century, the region associated most with pasta moved from Sicily to Naples. Around 1630, Naples under Spanish rule was experiencing famines with a reduced supply of meat and vegetables due to poor governance. As technology permitting industrial mixing and extrusion dramatically reduced prices of output, pasta became a [[staple food]], no longer the domain of the elite.{{Sfn|Montanari|2013|pp=41–42}}{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/62/ 62–63]}} It is in this century that short cooktimes and firmer pasta textures emerged, although at first only for fresh pasta; it took until the mid-19th century in Naples for records of cooks taking a short cooktime and firm texture for granted.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/66/ 66–67]}}


===Fresh spaghetti===
Around this time, pairing tomato sauces with pastas was becoming established among the Naples populace, the first records of the combination having appeared at the end of the previous century.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/80/ 81]–[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/82/ 83]}} [[Grated cheese]] remained an essential element in preparations, although unlike in modern servings, sauces were served over grated cheese. It was not until the 20th century that the inverse became established.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|pp=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/84/ 84–85]}}  
[[File:Pasta machine 2.jpg|thumb|Fresh spaghetti being prepared using a pasta machine]]
Pasta can be made at home, cutting sheets of flattened dough with a knife into ribbons,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.instructables.com/id/Homemade-Pasta/?ALLSTEPS|title=Homemade Spaghetti|date=16 October 2008|work=Instructables.com|access-date=19 December 2014}}</ref> rather than spaghetti with circular cross-section. Some pasta machines have a spaghetti attachment with circular holes that extrude spaghetti, or shaped rollers that form cylindrical noodles.<ref name="Conran1997">{{cite book |last1=Conran |first1=Caroline |url=https://archive.org/details/essentialcookboo0000conr/page/238/mode/2up |title=The Essential Cook Book: The Back-to-basics Guide to Selecting, Preparing, Cooking, and Serving, the Very Best Of Food |location=New York, New York |publisher=Stewart, Tabori & Chang |year=1997 |pages=229,239 |isbn=978-1-55670-602-8 |access-date=2024-08-15 }}</ref>


Spaghetti can be made by hand by manually rolling a ball of dough on a surface to make a long sausage shape. The ends of the sausage are pulled apart to make a long thin sausage. The ends are brought together and the loop pulled to make two long sausages. The process is repeated until the pasta is sufficiently thin. The pasta knobs at each end are cut off leaving many strands which may be hung up to dry.<ref name="Hand Pulling Noodle">{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYZM_ZDZHlQ  |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/TYZM_ZDZHlQ| archive-date=11 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=How To Make Hand-Pulled Noodles: Part 2 of 2, Pulling|author=Luke Rymarz|publisher=YouTube |date=24 June 2008}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
By the 1920s food writer [[Waverley Root]] could witness scenes in Naples of "home-made macaroni hung out to dry like the family washing—at the mercy of dust, dirt, insects and the depredations of passing pigeons, children and dogs".{{Sfn|Root|1968|p=[https://archive.org/details/cookingofitalyfo0000wave/page/162/ 162]}} By 1955, annual consumption of spaghetti in Italy doubled from {{cvt|14|kg|lb|0}} per person before World War II to {{cvt|28|kg|lb|0}}.<ref name="1955cons">{{cite news |last=Salerno |first=George |date=13 December 1956 |title=Spaghetti consumption up as national dish in Italy |newspaper=Wilmington Morning Star |location=[[Wilmington, North Carolina]] |volume=90 |number=52 |agency=[[United Press International|United Press]]}}</ref> In that year, Italy produced almost 1.5 million tons of spaghetti, of which approximately 5% was [[export]]ed.<ref name="1955cons" />  


Fresh spaghetti is usually cooked within hours of being formed. Commercial versions of fresh spaghetti are manufactured.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-17 |title=Fresh Spaghetti |url=https://www.metro.ca/en/online-grocery/aisles/pantry/herbs-spices-sauces/marinades-cooking-pastes/fresh-spaghetti/p/059749979818 |website=Metro}}</ref>
=== Marco Polo story ===
Through the end of the 13th century, the Venetian merchant and adventurer [[Marco Polo]] travelled into Asia, detailing his expedition in ''[[The Travels of Marco Polo]]''. Two centuries later, the geographer [[Giovanni Battista Ramusio]] read Polo's accounts in preparation for a new edition. In one of his stories, Polo told of the preparations made by the people of Sumatra with [[sago]] flour, likening them to the pastas and lasagnas he was familiar with in Italy, and described how he brought back samples to Venice. Misunderstanding this, in his 1559 publication Ramusio conveyed that Marco Polo had discovered pasta in [[China]] and brought it to Italy.{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|p=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/26/ 27]}}


===Dried spaghetti===
This legend persisted, and was developed further in a 1929 article in the American industry newsletter the ''Macaroni Journal'', where the author credited the invention of spaghetti to a member of Polo's crew named Spaghetti. In the story, Spaghetti made landfall in China in search of water. On shore, he encountered a farm woman stirring a batter which hardened in the hot, dry climate. Realising this would store well on long voyages, Spaghetti returned to the boat with some batter and kneaded it, formed it into long strips, and cooked it in the salty [[Seawater|sea water]].{{Sfn|Serventi|Sabban|2002|p=[https://archive.org/details/pastastoryofuniv00silv/page/10/ 10]}}{{Sfn|Montanari|2021|p=[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp0000mont/page/28/ 28]}}
The bulk of dried spaghetti is produced in factories using auger [[Food extrusion|extruders]]. While essentially simple, the process requires attention to detail to ensure that the mixing and kneading of the ingredients produces a homogeneous mix, without air bubbles. The forming dies have to be water cooled to prevent spoiling of the pasta by overheating. Drying of the newly formed spaghetti has to be carefully controlled to prevent strands sticking together, and to leave it with sufficient moisture so that it is not too brittle. Packaging for protection and display has developed from paper wrapping to plastic bags and boxes.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.epa.gov/ttnchie1/ap42/ch09/final/c9s09-5.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219095025/http://www.epa.gov/ttnchie1/ap42/ch09/final/c9s09-5.pdf | archive-date=December 19, 2014 | title=Pasta Manufacturing | publisher=Epa.gov | date=August 1995 | access-date=19 December 2014}}</ref>
 
== Production ==
[[File:Pasta Sheeter built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation (circa 1935) 001.jpg|thumb|Pasta sheeter ({{circa}} 1935)]]
Spaghetti is made from grain ground into a flour and water.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Gisslen, Wayne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EzSwCGBHr3YC&pg=PA635 |title=Professional Cooking for Canadian Chefs |author2=Griffin, Mary Ellen |author3=Le Cordon Bleu |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2006 |isbn=0-471-66377-8 |pages=635}}</ref> Whole-wheat and multigrain spaghetti are also sold.<ref name="nhg" /> Most spaghetti is produced in factories using auger [[Food extrusion|extruders]]. As the ingredients are mixed and kneaded, attention is paid to prevent air bubbles and ensure a homogenous mix. The forming dies are water cooled to prevent overheating and spoiling the pasta. While drying the spaghetti, care is taken to prevent strands sticking together and to leave sufficient moisture to avoid a product that is too brittle. Packaging for protection and display has moved from paper wrapping to plastic bags and boxes.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.epa.gov/ttnchie1/ap42/ch09/final/c9s09-5.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219095025/http://www.epa.gov/ttnchie1/ap42/ch09/final/c9s09-5.pdf | archive-date=December 19, 2014 | title=Pasta Manufacturing | publisher=Epa.gov | date=August 1995 | access-date=19 December 2014}}</ref>


<gallery class="center" widths="180" heights="220">
<gallery class="center" widths="180" heights="220">
File:Hydraulic Spaghetti Press with Automatic Spreader built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation 001.jpg|A hydraulic press with an automatic spreader by the [[Demaco|Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation]], Brooklyn, New York. This machine was the first to spread long cut alimentary paste products onto a drying stick.
File:Hydraulic Spaghetti Press with Automatic Spreader built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation 001.jpg|A [[hydraulic press]] with an automatic spreader by the [[Demaco|Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation]], [[Brooklyn|Brooklyn, New York]]. This machine was the first to spread long cut alimentary paste products onto a drying stick.
File:Industrial spaghetti dryer built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation 01.jpg|An industrial dryer for spaghetti or other long goods pasta products, also by the Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation
File:Industrial spaghetti dryer built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation 01.jpg|An industrial dryer for spaghetti or other long goods pasta products, also by the Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation
File:Spaghetti spiral, 2008.jpg|An artistic arrangement of dried spaghetti
File:Spaghetti spiral, 2008.jpg|An artistic arrangement of spaghetti
File:Spaghetti measure macro.jpg|Dried spaghetti measured with a "spaghetti measure". One portion of dried pasta weighs {{convert|116|g|oz|frac=8|abbr=on}}, twice the amount of one serving on the package (12&nbsp;mm circle or 60&nbsp;g.). The measure can portion out 1, 2, 3 or 4 servings based on the diameter of the circle.
File:Spaghetti measure macro.jpg|Spaghetti measured with a "spaghetti measure"The measure can portion out 1, 2, 3 or 4 servings based on the diameter of the circle.
</gallery>
</gallery>


===Variations===
===Variations===
In Naples, spaghetti is thinner than it is in the US.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Arthur |title=Naples at Table: Cooking in Campania |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |year=1998 |isbn=0-06-018261-X |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/naplesattablecoo0000schw/page/132/ 132]}}</ref> ''Spaghettoni'' is a thicker spaghetti and spahettini is a thinner spaghetti, although it is thicker than the pasta of Naples.{{citation needed|date=August 2025}}
[[File:Spaghetti with Lamb Meat.jpg|thumb|Spaghetti with [[Lamb and mutton|lamb meat]]]]
In [[Naples]], spaghetti is thinner than it is in the [[United States]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Arthur |title=Naples at Table: Cooking in Campania |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |year=1998 |isbn=0-06-018261-X |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/naplesattablecoo0000schw/page/132/ 132]}}</ref> ''Spaghettoni'' is a thicker spaghetti and spaghettini is a thinner spaghetti, although it is thicker than the pasta of Naples.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Radio 4 - Radio 4 in Four - Ten tantalising facts about spaghetti |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/27bYSfFTYVJvv5ZWXYgNfT8/ten-tantalising-facts-about-spaghetti |access-date=10 December 2025|website=BBC |language=en-GB}}</ref>


==Preparation==
==Preparation==
[[File:Spaghetti2.jpg|thumb|Dry industrial spaghetti]]
Fresh or dry spaghetti is cooked in a large pot of salted, boiling water and then drained in a [[colander]] (Italian: ''scolapasta''). [[Kitchen utensil|Utensils]] used in spaghetti preparation include the spaghetti scoop and spaghetti tongs.
Fresh or dry spaghetti is cooked in a large pot of salted, boiling water and then drained in a [[colander]] (Italian: ''scolapasta''). [[Kitchen utensil|Utensils]] used in spaghetti preparation include the spaghetti scoop and spaghetti tongs.


In Italy, spaghetti is generally cooked [[al dente]] ({{literally|to the tooth}}), fully cooked but still firm to the bite. It may also be cooked to a softer consistency.
In Italy, spaghetti is generally cooked [[al dente]] ({{literally|to the tooth}}), fully cooked but still firm to the bite. It may also be cooked to a softer consistency. ''Spaghettoni'' takes more time to cook than regular spaghetti, and spaghettini less time.


''Spaghettoni'' takes more time to cook than regular spaghetti, and spaghettini less time.
In [[southern Italy]], spaghetti is sometimes placed in a [[dishcloth]] and broken into pieces to be served with vegetables, beans or in a broth. This originated at a time when the region was very poor, and broken pieces of spaghetti were sold at discount to prevent [[waste]]. Offcuts are still sold in parts of Italy, alone and as part of {{lang|it|pasta mista}} (an assortment of pasta shapes), and some factories donate their broken pieces to hospitals and nursing homes.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Arthur |title=The Southern Italian Table |publisher=[[Crown Publishing Group|Clarkson Potter]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-307-38134-7 |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/southernitaliant0000schw_u7z9/page/80/ 81]}}</ref>
 
In southern Italy, spaghetti is sometimes placed in a dishcloth and broken into pieces to be served with [[Vegetable|vegetables]], [[Bean|beans]] or in a [[broth]]. This originated at a time when the region was very poor, and broken pieces of spaghetti were sold at discount to prevent waste. Offcuts are still sold in parts of Italy, alone and as part of {{lang|it|pasta mista}} (an assortment of pasta shapes), and some factories donate their broken pieces to hospitals and nursing homes.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Arthur |title=The Southern Italian Table |publisher=[[Crown Publishing Group|Clarkson Potter]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-307-38134-7 |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/southernitaliant0000schw_u7z9/page/80/ 81]}}</ref>


<gallery class="center" widths="200" heights="160">
<gallery class="center" widths="200" heights="160">
File:Spaghetti-cooking.jpg|Spaghetti being placed into a pot of boiling water for cooking
File:Spaghetti-cooking.jpg|Spaghetti being placed in boiling water
File:Spaghetti draining.jpg|Draining the water from boiled spaghetti
File:Spaghetti draining.jpg|Draining the water
File:Spaghettiheber-02.jpg|A spaghetti scoop
File:Spaghettiheber-02.jpg|A spaghetti scoop
File:Spaghettizaang.jpg|Spaghetti tongs
File:Spaghettizaang.jpg|Spaghetti tongs
Line 79: Line 81:


==Serving==
==Serving==
{{Main list|List of pasta dishes}}
{{Main|List of pasta dishes}}


===Italian cuisine===
===Italian cuisine===
[[File:Espaguetis carbonara.jpg|thumb|250px|Classic ''[[Carbonara|spaghetti alla carbonara]]'']]
[[File:Espaguetis carbonara.jpg|thumb|''[[Carbonara|Spaghetti alla carbonara]]'']]
 
An emblem of [[Italian cuisine]], spaghetti is frequently served with [[tomato sauce]], which may contain various [[herb]]s (especially [[oregano]] and [[basil]]), [[olive oil]], meat or vegetables. Other spaghetti preparations include [[Amatriciana sauce|amatriciana]] or [[carbonara]]. Grated [[Types of cheese#Hard cheese|hard cheeses]], such as ''[[pecorino romano]]'', [[Parmesan]], and [[Grana Padano]], are often sprinkled on top.
An emblem of [[Italian cuisine]], spaghetti is frequently served with [[tomato sauce]], which may contain various [[herb]]s (especially [[oregano]] and [[basil]]), [[olive oil]], meat or vegetables. Other spaghetti preparations include [[Amatriciana sauce|amatriciana]] or [[carbonara]]. Grated [[Types of cheese#Hard cheese|hard cheeses]], such as ''[[pecorino romano]]'', [[Parmesan]], and [[Grana Padano]], are often sprinkled on top.
Below are some of the most important spaghetti dishes:
* ''[[Spaghetti alle vongole]]''{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}
* ''[[Spaghetti aglio e olio]]''<ref>{{cite web
|url=https://www.lacucinaitaliana.com/italian-food/how-to-cook/spaghetti-aglio-olio-e-peperoncino-the-easy-pasta-recipe
|title=Spaghetti Aglio Olio e Peperoncino, the "Why-Not?" Midnight Pasta
|date=November 17, 2019
|publisher=La Cucina Italiana
|access-date=18 June 2024}}</ref>
* ''[[Spaghetti alla puttanesca]]''{{sfn|Zanini De Vita|Fant|2013|p=68}}
* ''[[Spaghetti alla Nerano]]''<ref>{{cite web
|url=https://www.lacucinaitaliana.com/recipe/pasta/spaghetti-alla-nerano
|title=Spaghetti alla Nerano
|date=August 29, 2023
|publisher=La Cucina Italiana
|access-date=18 June 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
|url=https://www.lacucinaitaliana.com/italian-food/italian-dishes/how-to-make-spaghetti-alla-nerano
|title=The Basics of Spaghetti alla Nerano
|date=October 12, 2021
|publisher=La Cucina Italiana
|access-date=18 June 2024}}</ref>


<gallery class="center" heights="135" widths="120" mode="packed" caption="Spaghetti dishes">
<gallery class="center" heights="135" widths="120" mode="packed" caption="Spaghetti dishes">
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===International cuisine===
===International cuisine===
[[File:Spaghetti bolognese (hozinja).jpg|thumb|170px|[[Bolognese sauce#Spaghetti bolognese|Spaghetti bolognese]], very common outside of Italy, but not customary in that country]]
[[File:Spaghetti bolognese (hozinja) (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|[[Spaghetti bolognese]], common outside of Italy, but not customary inside]]
In the Philippines, a popular variant is the [[Filipino spaghetti]], which is distinctively sweet with the tomato sauce sweetened with [[banana ketchup]] or sugar. It typically uses a large amount of ''[[Picadillo|giniling]]'' ([[ground meat]]), sliced [[hot dog]]s, and cheese. The dish dates back to the period between the 1940s to the 1960s. During the [[History of the Philippines (1898–1946)|American Commonwealth Period]], a shortage of tomato supplies in the [[World War II|Second World War]] forced the development of the banana ketchup.<ref name="halpern">{{cite news |last1=Halpern |first1=Sue |last2=McKibben |first2=Bill |title=Filipino Cuisine Was Asian Fusion Before "Asian Fusion" Existed |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/filipino-cuisine-asian-fusion-180954947/ |access-date=16 December 2018 |work=Smithsonian Magazine |publisher=Smithsonian Institution |date=May 2015}}</ref><ref name="juancarlo">{{cite web |title=The Origin of the Filipino Style Spaghetti |url=https://juancarlo.ph/blog/origin-filipino-style-spaghetti/ |website=Juan Carlo |access-date=16 December 2018|date=15 April 2016 }}</ref><ref name="pepper">{{cite news |last1=Estrella |first1=Serna |title=The Origins of Sweet Spaghetti: A Closer Look at the Filipino Sweet Tooth |url=http://www.pepper.ph/history-sweet-spaghetti/ |access-date=16 December 2018 |work=Pepper.ph |date=30 July 2014}}</ref> Spaghetti was introduced by the Americans and was tweaked to suit the local Filipino predilection for sweet dishes.<ref name="aia">{{cite web |title=How to make Sweet Filipino Spaghetti with Meat Sauce |url=https://www.asianinamericamag.com/2012/10/filipino-spaghetti-with-meat-sauce-how-to-eat-sweet-spaghetti/ |website=Asian in America |access-date=16 December 2018|date=23 October 2012 }}</ref>
In the [[Philippines]], a popular variant is the [[Filipino spaghetti]], which is distinctively sweet with the tomato sauce sweetened with [[banana ketchup]] or sugar. It typically uses a large amount of ''[[Picadillo|giniling]]'' ([[ground meat]]), sliced [[hot dog]]s, and cheese. The dish dates back to the period between the 1940s to the 1960s. During the [[History of the Philippines (1898–1946)|American Commonwealth Period]], a shortage of tomato supplies in [[World War II]] forced the development of the banana ketchup.<ref name="halpern">{{cite news |last1=Halpern |first1=Sue |last2=McKibben |first2=Bill |title=Filipino Cuisine Was Asian Fusion Before "Asian Fusion" Existed |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/filipino-cuisine-asian-fusion-180954947/ |access-date=16 December 2018 |work=Smithsonian Magazine |publisher=Smithsonian Institution |date=May 2015}}</ref><ref name="juancarlo">{{cite web |title=The Origin of the Filipino Style Spaghetti |url=https://juancarlo.ph/blog/origin-filipino-style-spaghetti/ |website=Juan Carlo |access-date=16 December 2018|date=15 April 2016 }}</ref><ref name="pepper">{{cite news |last1=Estrella |first1=Serna |title=The Origins of Sweet Spaghetti: A Closer Look at the Filipino Sweet Tooth |url=http://www.pepper.ph/history-sweet-spaghetti/ |access-date=16 December 2018 |work=Pepper.ph |date=30 July 2014}}</ref> Spaghetti was introduced by the Americans and was tweaked to suit the local Filipino predilection for sweet dishes.<ref name="aia">{{cite web |title=How to make Sweet Filipino Spaghetti with Meat Sauce |url=https://www.asianinamericamag.com/2012/10/filipino-spaghetti-with-meat-sauce-how-to-eat-sweet-spaghetti/ |website=Asian in America |access-date=16 December 2018|date=23 October 2012 }}</ref>
 
==Consumption==
By 1955, annual consumption of spaghetti in Italy doubled from {{convert|14|kg|lb|0}} per person before World War II to {{convert|28|kg|lb|0|abbr=off}}.<ref name="1955cons">{{cite news|title=Spaghetti consumption up as national dish in Italy|last=Salerno|first=George|agency=[[United Press International|United Press]]|newspaper=Wilmington Morning Star|location=[[Wilmington, North Carolina]]|date=13 December 1956|volume=90|number=52}}</ref> By that year, Italy produced 1,432,990 tons of spaghetti, of which 74,000 were [[export]]ed, and had a production capacity of 3 million tons.<ref name="1955cons" />


==Nutrition==
==Nutrition==
{{Infobox nutritional value
{{Infobox nutritional value
| name           = Spaghetti (enriched, dry)
| name = Spaghetti (enriched, dry)
| image          = <!-- Filename is enough -->
| serving_size = {{cvt|70|g|oz|frac=4}}
| image_size      = <!-- Defaults to 235px -->
| kJ = 460
| image_alt      =
| carbs = 22g
| caption        =
| sugars = 0g
| serving_size   = {{cvt|70|g|oz|frac=4}}
| fiber = 1g
| kJ             = 460
| fat = 0.5g
| carbs           = 22g
| satfat = 0g
| starch          =
| transfat = 0g
| sugars         = 0g
| protein = 4g
| lactose        =
| vitA_ug = 0
| fiber           = 1g
| vitC_mg = 0
| fat             = 0.5g
| calcium_mg = 0
| satfat         = 0g
| iron_mg = 4
| transfat       = 0g
| sodium_mg = 0
| monofat        =
| note = Source: USDA<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/HHFSSPAGHETTI100426oct2012.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704134451/http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/HHFSSPAGHETTI100426oct2012.pdf | archive-date=July 4, 2014 | title=Spaghetti, Enriched, Dry | publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |date=October 2012| access-date=16 December 2014}}</ref>
| polyfat        =
| omega3fat      =
| omega6fat      =
| protein         = 4g
| tryptophan      =
| threonine      =
| isoleucine      =
| leucine        =
| lysine          =
| methionine      =
| cystine        =
| phenylalanine  =
| tyrosine        =
| valine          =
| arginine        =
| histidine      =
| alanine        =
| aspartic acid  =
| glutamic acid  =
| glycine        =
| proline        =
| serine          =
| hydroxyproline  =
| water          =
| alcohol        =
| caffeine        =
| vitA_ug         = 0
| vitA_iu        =
| betacarotene_ug =
| lutein_ug      =
| thiamin_mg      =
| riboflavin_mg  =
| niacin_mg      =
| pantothenic_mg  =
| vitB6_mg        =
| folate_ug      =
| vitB12_ug      =
| choline_mg      =
| vitC_mg         = 0
| vitD_ug        =
| vitD_iu        =
| vitE_mg        =
| vitK_ug        =
| calcium_mg     = 0
| iron_mg         = 4
| magnesium_mg    =
| manganese_mg    =
| phosphorus_mg  =
| potassium_mg    =
| sodium_mg       = 0
| zinc_mg        =
| opt1n          =
| opt1v          =
| opt2n          =
| opt2v          =
| opt3n          =
| opt3v          =
| opt4n          =
| opt4v          =
| note           = Source: USDA<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/HHFSSPAGHETTI100426oct2012.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704134451/http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/HHFSSPAGHETTI100426oct2012.pdf | archive-date=July 4, 2014 | title=Spaghetti, Enriched, Dry | publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |date=October 2012| access-date=16 December 2014}}</ref>
| source          =
| source_usda    =
| noRDA          =
| float          =
}}
}}


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==In popular culture==
==In popular culture==
In the 1955 animated movie ''[[Lady and the Tramp]]'', the sequence of the title characters sharing a plate of spaghetti—climaxed by an accidental kiss as they swallow opposite ends of the same strand of spaghetti—is considered an iconic scene in American film history.<ref>{{cite web |last=Dirks |first=Tim |title=100 Most Iconic Film Images, Moments, or Scenes |url=https://www.filmsite.org/iconicfilmscenes.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150718035200/https://www.filmsite.org/iconicfilmscenes.html |archive-date=July 18, 2015 |access-date=December 25, 2017 |work=filmsite |publisher=AMC}}</ref>
A sequence in the 1955 animated movie ''[[Lady and the Tramp]]'' features the title characters sharing a plate of spaghetti, culminating in an accidental kiss as they meet, eating the same strand of spaghetti. It is considered an iconic scene in American film history.<ref>{{cite web |last=Dirks |first=Tim |title=100 Most Iconic Film Images, Moments, or Scenes |url=https://www.filmsite.org/iconicfilmscenes.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150718035200/https://www.filmsite.org/iconicfilmscenes.html |archive-date=July 18, 2015 |access-date=December 25, 2017 |work=filmsite |publisher=AMC}}</ref> The BBC television program ''[[Panorama (British TV programme)|Panorama]]'' featured a [[Spaghetti-tree hoax|hoax program about the spaghetti harvest]] in Switzerland on [[April Fools' Day]] in 1957.<ref>{{cite news |date=1 April 2005 |title=1957: BBC fools the nation |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/1/newsid_2819000/2819261.stm |work=On This Day |publisher=[[BBC]]}}</ref>[[File:Alberto Sordi - scena degli spaghetti - Un americano a Roma (1954).jpg|thumb|[[Alberto Sordi]] in the movie ''[[An American in Rome]]'']]
 
Poorly structured [[computer]] [[source code]] is often described as ''[[spaghetti code]]''.<ref name="Markus4">{{cite journal|last1=Markus|first1=Pizka|title=Straightening spaghetti-code with refactoring?|journal=Software Engineering Research and Practice|date=2004|pages=846–852|url=http://itestra.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/04_itestra_straightening_spaghetti_code_with_refactoring.pdf|access-date=5 March 2018|archive-date=5 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305202716/http://itestra.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/04_itestra_straightening_spaghetti_code_with_refactoring.pdf}}</ref> A similar and more physical concept, "cable spaghetti", applies to poor [[cable management]]. In women's clothing, very thin straps supporting a dress or topwear are called "[[spaghetti strap]]s".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spaghetti%20strap|title=Definition of spaghetti strap |publisher=[[Merriam-Webster]]|access-date=June 28, 2019}}</ref> The term ''[[spaghetti Western]]'' refers to [[Western film]]s made in Europe which were produced and directed by [[Cinema of Italy|Italians]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.spaghetti-western.net/index.php/Introduction | first1 = Simon | last1 = Gelten | last2 = Lindberg | date = 10 November 2015| title = Introduction | website = Spaghetti Western Database | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170630005758/https://www.spaghetti-western.net/index.php/Introduction | archive-date = 30 June 2017 | url-status = live | access-date = 2 May 2021}}</ref>
The BBC television program ''[[Panorama (British TV programme)|Panorama]]'' featured a [[Spaghetti-tree hoax|hoax program about the spaghetti harvest]] in Switzerland on [[April Fools' Day]] in 1957.<ref>{{cite news |date=1 April 2005 |title=1957: BBC fools the nation |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/1/newsid_2819000/2819261.stm |work=On This Day |publisher=[[BBC]]}}</ref>
 
===Terminology===
[[File:Alberto Sordi - scena degli spaghetti - Un americano a Roma (1954).jpg|thumb|250px|[[Alberto Sordi]] in the movie ''[[An American in Rome]]'']]
Poorly structured [[computer]] [[source code]] is often described as ''[[spaghetti code]]''.<ref name="Markus4">{{cite journal|last1=Markus|first1=Pizka|title=Straightening spaghetti-code with refactoring?|journal=Software Engineering Research and Practice|date=2004|pages=846–852|url=http://itestra.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/04_itestra_straightening_spaghetti_code_with_refactoring.pdf|access-date=5 March 2018|archive-date=5 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305202716/http://itestra.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/04_itestra_straightening_spaghetti_code_with_refactoring.pdf}}</ref> A similar and more physical concept, "cable spaghetti", applies to poor [[cable management]].
 
In women's clothing, very thin straps supporting a dress or topwear are called "[[Spaghetti strap|spaghetti straps]]".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spaghetti%20strap|title=Definition of spaghetti strap |publisher=[[Merriam-Webster]]|access-date=June 28, 2019}}</ref>
 
The term ''[[spaghetti Western]]'' refers to [[Western film|Western movies]] made in Europe which were produced and directed by [[Cinema of Italy|Italians]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.spaghetti-western.net/index.php/Introduction | first1 = Simon | last1 = Gelten | last2 = Lindberg | date = 10 November 2015| title = Introduction | website = Spaghetti Western Database | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170630005758/https://www.spaghetti-western.net/index.php/Introduction | archive-date = 30 June 2017 | url-status = live | access-date = 2 May 2021}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
{{Commons category-inline}}
{{Wiktionary-inline}}
{{Portal|Italy|Food}}
{{Portal|Italy|Food}}
* [[List of pasta]]
* [[List of pasta]]
* ''[[Spaghetti alla chitarra]]'' (or ''maccheroni alla chitarra'')


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


==Further reading==
== Sources ==
* {{cite book |last1=Zanini De Vita |first1=Oretta |last2=Fant |first2=Maureen B. |year=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rUczAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |title=Sauces & Shapes: Pasta the Italian Way |location=New York |publisher=W. W. Norton & Company |isbn=978-0-393-08243-2 }}
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite web | url=http://www.history.com/news/hungry-history/spaghetti-and-its-sauces | title=Spaghetti and Its Sauces | publisher=[[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]] | date=12 June 2014 | access-date=16 December 2014 | author=Butler, Stephanie}}
* {{Cite book |last=Montanari |first=Massimo |title=Italian Identity in the Kitchen, or Food and the Nation |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]] |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-231-53508-3 |edition=English |location=Chichester, West Sussex |translator-last=Brombert |translator-first=Beth Archer}}
* {{Cite book |last=Montanari |first=Massimo |author-link=Massimo Montanari |title=A Short History of Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce |publisher=Europa Editions |year=2021 |isbn=978-1-78770-328-5 |location=London |translator-last=Conti |translator-first=Gregory |orig-year=2019 (in Italian)}}
* {{Cite book |last=Root |first=Waverley |author-link=Waverley Root |title=The Cooking of Italy |publisher=[[Time-Life Books]] |year=1968}}
* {{cite book |last1=Serventi |first1=Silvano |url= |title=Pasta: The Story of a Universal Food |last2=Sabban |first2=Françoise |author-link2=:fr:Françoise Sabban |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-231-12442-3 |location=New York |page= |translator-last=Shugaar |translator-first=Antony |orig-year=2000 (in Italian)}}
{{refend}}
 
== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline}}
* {{Wiktionary-inline}}
* {{Wikibooks-inline}}


{{Pasta}}
{{Pasta}}

Latest revision as of 19:55, 30 December 2025

Template:Short description Script error: No such module "other uses". Template:Pp Template:Pp-pc Template:Pp-move-indef Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Script error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "check for unknown parameters".

Spaghetti (Script error: No such module "IPA".) is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical pasta.[1] It is a staple food of traditional Italian cuisine. Like other pasta, spaghetti is made of milled wheat (sometimes enriched with vitamins and minerals) and water. Italian spaghetti is typically made from durum-wheat semolina.[2] The pasta is usually white because refined flour is used, but whole wheat flour may be added.[3] Spaghettoni is a thicker form of spaghetti, while spaghettini is a thinner form. Capellini is a very thin spaghetti, while vermicelli refers to intermediate thicknesses.

Originally, spaghetti was notably long, but shorter lengths gained in popularity during the second half of the 20th century and now it is most commonly available in Template:Cvt lengths. A variety of pasta dishes are based on it and it is frequently served with tomato sauce, meat or vegetables.

History

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Early

File:6-alimenti, pasta,Taccuino Sanitatis, Casanatense 4182..jpg
14th century depiction of pasta making

Spaghetti has its origin in an ancient, thin, and generally unleavened bread from the Middle East. This was known under various names at different times, including Asian Bread in some texts of antiquity, and lakhsha in the Persian Sasanian Empire. The bread was flattened, sometimes by hand and at other times with a rolling pin, and was occasionally dried for preservation. Under the Sasanian Empire, it took on the name rishta when cut into strips or strings before drying, the term possibly deriving from the Iranian word risnatu, for which records of use exist as far back as the 2ndScript error: No such module "String".millenniumScript error: No such module "String".BC.Template:Sfn

Coinciding with this emerging tradition of drying pasta in Persia, pasta was eaten throughout antiquity in Roman and Greek societies after arriving from the Middle East.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn There too, pasta was sometimes dried, most frequently the long, stretched doughs.Template:Sfn In the 7th century, Arabs conquered Persia, and thereafter spread the dried pasta custom throughout the lands they occupied, which included Sicily from the 9thScript error: No such module "String".century. There, the dried pasta practice became associated with the European traditions of making fresh pasta, and the name itriyya entered the language, meaning "long-form dried pasta".Template:Sfn

Arrival in the Italian peninsula

By the middle of the 12th century, records exist of several farms in Sicily producing itriyya at scale for local and export markets.Template:Sfn Over the following centuries, this pasta appeared in Italian cookbooks, albeit infrequently.Template:Sfn A precise description of the manufacture of "Sicilian macaroni" is given by Martino da Como in the later 15th century: a ball of dough, stretched thin, cut with a wire as "thin as spagho (string)", dried under the sun.Template:Sfn The duration of this drying process varied with weather and humidity, but twelve days in the summer was typical.Template:Sfn In another recipe for a Genoese pasta, Martino employs spagho for the first time in a culinary context when he says pasta ought to be cut "as thin as a spagho".Template:Sfn Severals tools were employed for this cutting process, including chitarra in areas of southern Italy, which consisted of a wooden frame strung with wires, lowered onto the dough.Template:Sfn

Pasta at this time was cooked for much longer than it is today; Martino recommends his Sicilian macaroni boil in water for two hours to achieve a desired, very soft texture. Contemporary ideas of how this pasta should be served was based on the ideas of physicians, who followed Hippocrates and Galen's principle of Script error: No such module "Lang". (Template:Gloss). For a very soft pasta, this meant expensive accompaniments of dried spices and pepper.Template:Sfn Cheese, particularly the drier, aged varieties, was another common pairing for the same reason, the most popular for the task by the mid-15th century being pecorino and parmigiano.Template:Sfn The slippery texture and hot serving temperature of pasta facilitated the introduction of the fork to Italy, replacing earlier practices of eating pasta and other foods by hand, and by the 14th century, the first descriptions of spaghetti being twirled with a fork were emerging.Template:Sfn

Later

File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 6144 - (Mangiamaccheroni).jpg
19th century photograph of Neapolitans eating spaghetti in the street

In the 17th century, the region associated most with pasta moved from Sicily to Naples. Around 1630, Naples under Spanish rule was experiencing famines with a reduced supply of meat and vegetables due to poor governance. As technology permitting industrial mixing and extrusion dramatically reduced prices of output, pasta became a staple food, no longer the domain of the elite.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn It is in this century that short cooktimes and firmer pasta textures emerged, although at first only for fresh pasta; it took until the mid-19th century in Naples for records of cooks taking a short cooktime and firm texture for granted.Template:Sfn

Around this time, pairing tomato sauces with pastas was becoming established among the Naples populace, the first records of the combination having appeared at the end of the previous century.Template:Sfn Grated cheese remained an essential element in preparations, although unlike in modern servings, sauces were served over grated cheese. It was not until the 20th century that the inverse became established.Template:Sfn

By the 1920s food writer Waverley Root could witness scenes in Naples of "home-made macaroni hung out to dry like the family washing—at the mercy of dust, dirt, insects and the depredations of passing pigeons, children and dogs".Template:Sfn By 1955, annual consumption of spaghetti in Italy doubled from Template:Cvt per person before World War II to Template:Cvt.[4] In that year, Italy produced almost 1.5 million tons of spaghetti, of which approximately 5% was exported.[4]

Marco Polo story

Through the end of the 13th century, the Venetian merchant and adventurer Marco Polo travelled into Asia, detailing his expedition in The Travels of Marco Polo. Two centuries later, the geographer Giovanni Battista Ramusio read Polo's accounts in preparation for a new edition. In one of his stories, Polo told of the preparations made by the people of Sumatra with sago flour, likening them to the pastas and lasagnas he was familiar with in Italy, and described how he brought back samples to Venice. Misunderstanding this, in his 1559 publication Ramusio conveyed that Marco Polo had discovered pasta in China and brought it to Italy.Template:Sfn

This legend persisted, and was developed further in a 1929 article in the American industry newsletter the Macaroni Journal, where the author credited the invention of spaghetti to a member of Polo's crew named Spaghetti. In the story, Spaghetti made landfall in China in search of water. On shore, he encountered a farm woman stirring a batter which hardened in the hot, dry climate. Realising this would store well on long voyages, Spaghetti returned to the boat with some batter and kneaded it, formed it into long strips, and cooked it in the salty sea water.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Production

File:Pasta Sheeter built by Consolidated Macaroni Machine Corporation (circa 1935) 001.jpg
Pasta sheeter (c.Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". 1935)

Spaghetti is made from grain ground into a flour and water.[5] Whole-wheat and multigrain spaghetti are also sold.[2] Most spaghetti is produced in factories using auger extruders. As the ingredients are mixed and kneaded, attention is paid to prevent air bubbles and ensure a homogenous mix. The forming dies are water cooled to prevent overheating and spoiling the pasta. While drying the spaghetti, care is taken to prevent strands sticking together and to leave sufficient moisture to avoid a product that is too brittle. Packaging for protection and display has moved from paper wrapping to plastic bags and boxes.[6]

Variations

File:Spaghetti with Lamb Meat.jpg
Spaghetti with lamb meat

In Naples, spaghetti is thinner than it is in the United States.[7] Spaghettoni is a thicker spaghetti and spaghettini is a thinner spaghetti, although it is thicker than the pasta of Naples.[8]

Preparation

File:Spaghetti2.jpg
Dry industrial spaghetti

Fresh or dry spaghetti is cooked in a large pot of salted, boiling water and then drained in a colander (Italian: scolapasta). Utensils used in spaghetti preparation include the spaghetti scoop and spaghetti tongs.

In Italy, spaghetti is generally cooked al dente (Template:Literally), fully cooked but still firm to the bite. It may also be cooked to a softer consistency. Spaghettoni takes more time to cook than regular spaghetti, and spaghettini less time.

In southern Italy, spaghetti is sometimes placed in a dishcloth and broken into pieces to be served with vegetables, beans or in a broth. This originated at a time when the region was very poor, and broken pieces of spaghetti were sold at discount to prevent waste. Offcuts are still sold in parts of Italy, alone and as part of Script error: No such module "Lang". (an assortment of pasta shapes), and some factories donate their broken pieces to hospitals and nursing homes.[9]

Serving

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Italian cuisine

File:Espaguetis carbonara.jpg
Spaghetti alla carbonara

An emblem of Italian cuisine, spaghetti is frequently served with tomato sauce, which may contain various herbs (especially oregano and basil), olive oil, meat or vegetables. Other spaghetti preparations include amatriciana or carbonara. Grated hard cheeses, such as pecorino romano, Parmesan, and Grana Padano, are often sprinkled on top.

International cuisine

File:Spaghetti bolognese (hozinja) (cropped).jpg
Spaghetti bolognese, common outside of Italy, but not customary inside

In the Philippines, a popular variant is the Filipino spaghetti, which is distinctively sweet with the tomato sauce sweetened with banana ketchup or sugar. It typically uses a large amount of giniling (ground meat), sliced hot dogs, and cheese. The dish dates back to the period between the 1940s to the 1960s. During the American Commonwealth Period, a shortage of tomato supplies in World War II forced the development of the banana ketchup.[10][11][12] Spaghetti was introduced by the Americans and was tweaked to suit the local Filipino predilection for sweet dishes.[13]

Nutrition

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Pasta provides carbohydrates, along with some protein, iron, dietary fiber, potassium, and B vitamins.[14] Pasta prepared with whole wheat grain provides more dietary fiber[14] than that prepared with degermed flour.

In popular culture

A sequence in the 1955 animated movie Lady and the Tramp features the title characters sharing a plate of spaghetti, culminating in an accidental kiss as they meet, eating the same strand of spaghetti. It is considered an iconic scene in American film history.[15] The BBC television program Panorama featured a hoax program about the spaghetti harvest in Switzerland on April Fools' Day in 1957.[16]

File:Alberto Sordi - scena degli spaghetti - Un americano a Roma (1954).jpg
Alberto Sordi in the movie An American in Rome

Poorly structured computer source code is often described as spaghetti code.[17] A similar and more physical concept, "cable spaghetti", applies to poor cable management. In women's clothing, very thin straps supporting a dress or topwear are called "spaghetti straps".[18] The term spaghetti Western refers to Western films made in Europe which were produced and directed by Italians.[19]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ spaghetti. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. (accessed: 3 June 2008).
  2. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". Retrieved on 22 December 2014.
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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Sources

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External links

Template:Pasta Template:Authority control

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