Pasta: The Story of a Universal Food

464 Pages·2003·7.34 MB·English

by  Silvano Serventi

PASTA: THE STORY OF A UNIVERSAL FOOD
arts and traditions of the table
arts and traditions of the table:perspectives on culinary history
Albert Sonnenfeld,series editor
Salt:Grain of Life
Pierre Laszlo,translated by Mary Beth Mader
The Civilization of the Fork
Giovanni Rebora,translated by Albert Sonnenfeld
French Gastronomy:The History and Geography of a Passion
Jean-Robert Pitte,translated by Jody Gladding
Pasta
THE STORY OF A UNIVERSAL FOOD
Silvano Serventi and Françoise Sabban
Translated by Antony Shugaar
columbia university press new york
columbia university press
Publishers Since 1893
New York Chichester,West Sussex
Copyright © 2000Gius.Laterza and Figli SpA
Translation copyright © 2002Columbia University Press
All rights reserved
This translation of La Pasta:Storia e cultura di un cibo universale
is published by arrangement with
Gius.Laterza and Figli SpA,Rome-Bari.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Serventi,Silvano.
[Pasta.English]
Pasta :the story of a universal food /
Silvano Serventi and Françoise Sabban ;
translated by Antony Shugaar.
p.cm.— (Arts and traditions of the table)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn0–231–12442–2(alk.paper)
1.Cookery (Pasta)
2.Pasta industry.
I.Sabban,Françoise. II.Title. III.Series.
TX809.M17S4713 2002
641.8'22—dc21 2002073840
Columbia University Press books are printed
on permanent and durable acid-free paper.
Printed in the United States of America
c 10987654321
CONTENTS
Series Editor’s Preface ix
Preface xi
Note Concerning a Definition of Pasta Products xvii
Acknowledgments xix
Introduction:In the Beginning Was Wheat 1
the king of cereals of the mediterranean 1
wheat in china,a latter-day use 4
1. The Infancy of an Art 9
going back to the myths 10
pasta,an unthinkable food source 12
first words,first hypotheses 14
the classical heritage 15
the sacred space of pasta 19
the primordial shape 22
lasagne:the original dough sheet 24
the family of vermicelli 28
dry pasta,fresh pasta 32
later developments of two traditions 34
recognition of a culinary category 38
2. The Time of the Pioneers 41
sicily,the cradle of dry pasta 42
sardinia and other centers of production 44
an article of mass trade 48
the market for dry pasta 50
the fresh pasta shop 53
rolling pins,blades,and brakes 56
3. From the Hand to the Extrusion Press 63
the routes of wheat 64
the emancipation of the pasta makers 70
the triumph of the brake 77
the revolution of the extrusion press 83
portrait of the modern pasta manufacturer 87
4. The Golden Age of the Pasta Manufactory 91
the birth of manufacturing 93
artisanal manufacturing 98
the hand that makes:the role of women 102
natural drying 108
a short guide to italian manufacturers 115
macaroni from naples and fine pasta from genoa 119
5. The Industrial Age 127
the momentum of modernity 128
the mechanics of progress 133
vi contents
the bronze man;or,the automated dough kneader 136
the triumph of the machine 142
drying without sunlight 150
the splendor and misery of a world
in transformation 157
from the industrial revolution to
the food revolution 162
6. Pasta Without Borders 169
the new horizons of pasta 170
from germany to the land of the cossacks 172
transatlantic migrations 175
french traditions 176
alsace and the passion for egg pasta 184
pasta from the new world:the example of
the united states 188
7. The Time of Plenty 197
the world of pasta 199
the thwarted ambitions of french industrialists 201
the italian reconquest 203
american lessons 208
victories and defeats in the regulation of
raw materials 212
the return to favor of artisans 216
the empire of fresh pasta 222
8. The Taste for Pasta 227
a tradition that comes from faraway 230
the gastronomy of fresh pasta 233
stuffed pasta:shapes,colors,and flavors 238
dry pasta as an architecture for the mouth 243
from pasta that melts in your mouth to pasta al dente 253
contents vii
pasta and its companions 257
pasta on the menu 267
9. China:Pasta’s Other Homeland 271
of pasta,breads,and flatbreads:the paradigm 276
BING
the distinguishing features of a civilization 279
favorite food of scholarly society 286
the worshipful 294
BING
the allure of pasta and the original form 297
the first recipes 304
the popularity of throughout china 311
BING
pasta products of the north spread to the south 315
exotic flavors,methods,and preparations 325
the end of a history,the richness of a heritage 333
10. The Words of Pasta 345
pasta:the gluttony of the land of cockaigne 345
pasta and temperance 346
a whiff of cinnamon 347
in search of italian pasta 348
service italian-style 349
the macaronic cademy 350
“spiked”macaroni casanova-style 350
neapolitan folklore 352
conviviality around the 353
TAVERNA
the dandy at the manufactory 356
behind the scenes in the pasta industry 357
the dreams of the hand 358
Notes 361
Bibliography 391
Index 413
viii contents
SERIES EDITOR’S PREFACE
And so we have
The broth seasoned with three meats,
The flour made of wheat of the fifth month.
Suddenly [the dough] swims in the water where it is stretched
out into long strings
That are lighter than a feather in the wind.
(Fu Xuan,217–278)
In our age of undeniable globalization and world travel,I find it more
than a little comforting to reiterate what turns out to be a fable. I
earnestly want to lend credence to Marco Polo’s mission to Venice in
1296as an emissary of pasta from a culinarily advanced China,import-
ing that future staple of la cucina italianato the peninsula and coincid-
ing chronologically with the “creation”of the Italian language and lit-
erature by Dante’s Commedia.
A fable it is,alas.Nor,as is often suggested,did these cereal-based
preparations migrate to Europe to accompany nutritively the west-
ward wanderings of nomadic Arab tribes.To make pasta would have
required access to a reliable supply of flour or semolina,to harvesters
and millers—hardly the wherewithal of the nomad!
These legends are the stuff of which gastronomic dreams of simplic-
ity and unity are made.The demonstrable truth is far more complex.