Pasta is one of the best exports of Italy. Eating in a café on a lazy afternoon isn't the same without a plate of spinach lasagna or spaghetti bolognese. Pasta is famously Italian, but there are many who debate on its true origins. There are those who say that pasta is a dish that was originally Chinese and North African. The question of where the dish originated from still remains unanswered. Although the origin of pasta is unclear until today, it cannot be denied that the art of pasta making has been mastered by the Italians. Italians even have a law stating dry pasta can only be made with the durum wheat flour or semolina. This is to assure that all the different types of pasta they make are of the highest caliber. Pasta-making has become an art for Italians. So much that it became so diverse. There are a hundred types of pasta to choose from, thanks to them. There are actually three things that make pasta types different: Noodles, sauce and cooking. Italian noodles can be categorized into four: Long pasta, short pasta, minute pasta and pasta al forno. The long and short variants are the most common ones. Long pastas include spaghetti, vermicelli and linguine (flat pasta) and short pastas include Farfalle (butterfly-shaped), Rotini (spiral) and conchigle (shell-shaped). Minute pastas are the ones used in soups, like the stelline (star-shaped) and quadretti (square). Al fornos are the ones firm enough for baking, like the lasagna and the ziti. The types of pasta also depend on the sauce used. The most popular ones are puttanesca, marinara, carbonara and alfredo. The latter two are dairy-based white sauces, while the former are tomato-based red sauces. An array of spices, seafood, meat and vegetables are also mixed into the sauce to give the dish more character. Another factor that makes pasta diverse is how it's cooked. The only common rule in pasta making is to boil the noodles until firm, or as the Italians call it, al dente. Traditionally, one would mix the cooked sauce into the noodles. But one can certainly do whatever they want to the pasta they cook. Lasagna and ziti can be baked. Minute pastas are mixed with soups and are boiled together with the broth. And macaroni can be mixed with some salads. However the dish is made is basically up to your taste.
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