Patlal said:

Pasta.

My love, my mistress, my life.







Let's talk pasta!

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Addio Pasta


Carbohydrates and my body are no longer friends.

Every once in a while yes, as a rare treat.

Low carb high veggie is the name of the game

I just cant steadily gain hundreds of pounds


Carbs and I are through

shivas.wisdom said:

iggyhiggy said:

pasta here in Italy really is our everyday dish, its not stereotype.

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What part of Italy are you from? My family is from Calabria and it wasn't until I moved out with roommates that I realized most people don't eat pasta daily - I still do tho.

The staple pasta I grew up on is rigatoni with a thick and spicy tomato sauce; pork cooked in the sauce until ultra tender; and parmesan grated on top. The shape of the rigatoni is perfect for holding the sauce, and makes for a great saucy dish that gets mopped up with some cornbread at the end. Best eaten with a homemade red wine.

For special occasions, the pork is replaced with sliced eggs added just before baking the dish - and even more special occasions call for some gnocchi - but always the same sauce haha! My family were mountain villagers and it shows in their simple recipes. Don't think I'll ever get tired of it though.

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Tripsurfer said:

Pasta

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:Italianofapproval:

iggyhiggy said:

Mate, that's great. I'm from Calabria too. I've been living in central Italy forever now tho. But I come back there at any occasion (tipically Christmas, Easter, and Ferragosto wich is our middle august holiday).
But it's actually not that surprising, as there are many more Calabrian people abroad than in Calabria. For who doesn't know, Calabria is a small region in Southern Italy, and it's said to be the poorest in the country. many Italian migrants to North (and South) America and Australia, and all corners of Europe (expecially Germany and Belgium) come from there.
Do you mind me asking which part of Calabria? Nevermind if it would be too much of detail from you. I'm from central-east coast, in Crotone area, on the Ionian sea.

I'm Not sure if you talk about people in Italy or around the world don't eat pasta daily. Here, i try to vary my diet as possible but i end up eating pasta atleast 4-5 times a week, wich basically is daily. I can't complain tho. Also i cook it with so many different sauces...

The sauce you describe is a 'ragù' and rigatoni are a common kind of pasta used with ragù. In general, a ragù is a meat sauce cooked for loooong* time until meat is soft. In North Italy (Bolognese ragù) is usually made with minced meat. But if you come from Calabria it's probably made with larger piece of pork (or goat, wich is also traditional).
When you bake the thing with boiled eggs (sliced or crushed) and cheese (in Calabria the most used is Provola) you have Pasta al forno (wich simply means baked pasta). My grandma used to add chilly sausage in it, just to make a lighter dish XD.

*in Naples they use the expression 'a passiata do rragù' to say a long walk around with th only purpose of wasting time. the expression come from the long walk around the city men had (and some still have) on Sunday morning, while the wife cooked the ragù. Ragù and Pasta al forno are tipically Sunday pasta.
To enjoy with strong red wine.
The bread mopped up in the sauce is called 'scarpetta' (little shoe) and is a 'must do' even if considered rude (paradoxical, i know. we are now finally getting rid of these stupid prejudice about scarpetta, wich is an important positive social outcome).

Gnocchi deserve their own chapter

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shivas.wisdom said:

What's a nobely dobely? Maybe I am one.

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