The pasta has been a staple in the town of Gragnano for centuries, and it has been passed down through generations of families. E così la gente emigrò negli Stati Uniti, esportando il proprio know-how di pastai dall’altra parte dell’Atlantico, cosa che si rivelò molto utile durante la prima guerra mondiale, quando l’Italia smise di esportare. Gragnano, a hill town located between a mountain crest and the Amalfi Coast, is a comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Naples in southern Italy's Campania region, located about 30 kilometres (19 miles) southeast of Naples city.

So much so, there was a slow abandonment of the coast as people relocated to carry out an activity which is still active today. In addition to enjoying Pasta Di Gragnano with your favorite sauce, you can also enjoy it with a salad or some bread.As a sea breeze blew in from the Gulf of Naples, small, gold-coloured dust-devils slowly sprouted along the factory rooftop, spiralling their way east toward Mount Vesuvius with the precision of ballerinas pirouetting across a stage floor. This is the natural characteristic that made of Gragnano the city of pasta.The reason is well explained to BBC Travel by Giuseppe Di Martino, head of Pastificio Di Martino and member of a family that has been producing pasta for three generations: “ You could produce and dry pasta every day ( in Gragnano) because of the predictability of this wind blowing inside the village into the valley.” It is as simple as that. Both types of pasta can be dried, and the recipe made with eggs will produce a rich yellow pasta thanks to the yolks. Egg pasta is traditionally a more decadent recipe, whereas pasta made simply with water and flour forms part of t he country's cucina povera heritage – using scant resources to make beautifully simple dishes.

A high quality pasta made using traditional techniques that hails from Southern Italy, in Campania, gragnano is increasingly considered a pasta suited to haute cuisine. Prepared from a selection of the best Italian durum wheat, mainly from the fields of the Apulia region, the pasta is made using a special technique where it is extruded through a bronze mould and slowly dried at low temperature on wooden frames. The second secret is the carefully-developed process, which continues to be regulated by a strict standard of production. In 2013, the European Union declared PGI (Protected Geographical Indication): the pasta made under the name “Pasta di Gragnano” must be produced in a legally defined area that still corresponds to the territory indicated by the king of the Napoli about two centuries ago. It is then dried for a longer period of time than other types of pasta, which allows it to absorb more flavor. Pasta di Gragnano is a type of pasta that is made in the town of Gragnano, located in the Campania region of southern Italy.The pasta is then served with a traditional Neapolitan sauce, which is made with tomatoes, olive oil, and fresh herbs. What Is Pasta Di Gragnano? Indeed, the geographical location of the town has been key to its role in dry pasta production: facing the sea, it is protected on the remaining three sides by mountains, guaranteeing the precious marino wind doesn’t get dispersed. The town itself was, in fact, cleverly built to “channel” the breeze through buildings and maintain ventilation constant in its streets, especially in Via Roma, where most of pastifici are set. Yes, because the wind is a key ingredient here, as it is needed to make of local pasta, dry pasta, the “white gold” Gragnano is known for. Dry pasta is made with durum wheat semolina and water. Photo: Dreamstime They produce pasta which combines modern technology with the strict tradition of using only 100% Italian durum wheat, water from the springs of Monti Lattari, bronze nozzles and slow drying at a low temperature. The proper way to eat Pasta Di Gragnano is to take a small piece of the pasta with your fingers and place it in your mouth.

These monthly encounters, called #indovinachivieneacena, have become eagerly anticipated events enjoyed by chefs, producers and diners alike. By the mid-19th Century, the city's dry pasta was so popular that the municipality of Gragnano started tearing down old buildings to make way for dozens of family-run factories that dried pasta on river reeds dangling like weeping willow branches outside their front door. Pasta di Aldo's artisan egg dried pasta is a favourite of Michelin chefs. The company hand-makes pasta in the Medieval town of Monte San Giusto on the east coast of Italy.

STORES

The first family-run factories were founded in the 16th century, but it was to supply the court of Ferdinand II of Bourbon from 1845 which formally sanctioned the birth of the ' City of Pasta'. Paccheri is a large tube pasta. It’s shorter than tubes like cannelloni and much wider. Some people think it looks like pieces of a cut up garden hose! Most pasta makers make this pasta more or less the same size. However, you can also find a smaller version called mezzi paccheri, meaning half paccheri. Paccheri is also available in lisce (smooth) and rigati (grooved) versions. The latter is sometimes called ‘paccheri millerighe’ or thousand-line paccheri! What does the name paccheri mean?