ABOUT
Accepting the hypothesis that the birth of pasta was, so to speak, "spontaneous and casual," occurring when primitive humans, during the Neolithic period, discovered agriculture and everything connected to it, such as cereal cultivation and preservation, the subsequent developments from ancient times to the present day, if not fortuitous, can be attributed to some culinary genius whose name we will never know.
Indeed, if not exactly pasta, something very similar was already mentioned in the oldest written testimonies found in the works of Latin authors. The poet Quinto Orazio Flacco, born in Venosa on the borders of Puglia and Lucania in 65 BC, describes in the first book of his Satires the pleasure of returning home to enjoy a soup of chickpeas, leeks, and lasagne. He uses the term "lasagne" to refer to the dish, which derives from the Greek word "laganum," equivalent to a fried or roasted flattened fritter, pizza, or dough, a clear ancestor of our traditional dish "ciciri e tria."
It is interesting to note that the word "laganum," plural "lagana," has been preserved in our dialect and corresponds to "lajana" for tagliatelle, lasagne, fettuccine, and "lajanaturu" for the rolling pin used to flatten the dough.
The other author, Apicio, a Roman gastronome who lived in the 1st century AD, mentions in his cookbook "De re coquinaria" the "tractum," a type of dough or layered pastry seasoned with honey and pepper. Putting aside the controversial and obscure origins of this food, and dispelling the legend that Marco Polo brought it from China, the true gastronomic revolution occurs in Naples in the 1600s. With southern creativity and astute intuition, pasta is combined with tomatoes, becoming our national dish. It is worth noting that along with bread, oil, wine, and vegetables, pasta is one of the essential elements of the Mediterranean diet, recently rediscovered and promoted by Americans and Japanese as the healthiest and most natural way of eating, capable of granting a long life. While it is well known that to prepare pasta, whether consumed fresh or dried for later use, one needs flour and water as the constant ingredients, it is less known that making good pasta requires good durum wheat semolina. In-depth knowledge of the characteristics of durum wheat semolina available on the market, as well as other ingredients used to characterize the product, along with the secrets of pasta making, is the true test for a skilled pasta maker, a master of the craft.
This "culture", a harmonious synthesis of knowledge, experience, professionalism, and sensitivity, is the essence of Elio Galiù, the master and director of the artisanal pasta factory "Grande Salento," owned by Ivonne De Giuseppe, located at Viale Mancini in Manduria, Taranto province. With thirty years of experience in the field of pasta production, Elio Galiù's expertise is rooted in his agricultural background (his parents were connected to the land they cultivated in Puglia, known as the granary of Italy). He has further enhanced his knowledge through studies in agricultural institutes, gastronomy, and restaurant management in Italy. The production process takes place in a technologically modern and sophisticated laboratory that complies with all legal requirements.
Since May 2023 the laboratory has been acquired by
“Pastificio dei Messapi srl”
A company with a clear and unequivocal vocation for preserving and disseminating the ancient traditions of
'knowing how to make pasta'
The production of the Pasta Factory ranges from traditional Apulian pasta to gastronomic specialties, offering flavors to suit all tastes. Filled pastas such as ravioli, ravioloni, tortellini, agnolotti, and more are also available, where careful attention is always given to the choice of ingredients and the freshness of the products.
The creativity, skill, and Mediterranean gastronomic tradition of this laboratory reach their peak in the production of orecchiette, the most typical pasta shape and dish of the Apulian cuisine. Orecchiette are known by various names such as recchie, recchje di prete, ricchiteddi, strascinate, stacchioddi, depending on the locality, but they are easily recognizable due to their unique convex shape that resembles the organ of hearing. Orecchiette are a historic food deeply rooted in the regional culture of Apulia, and their recipe has remained rigorously unchanged throughout time. They are made with durum wheat semolina, as well as with cruessu (wheat germ) and crusca (whole wheat flour), and they were traditionally handmade on a wooden surface called "mattra" (a kneading board) with skill and dexterity by peasant women who used their index fingers and a knife. From historical sources, we learn that as early as the 16th century, orecchiette, referred to as "strascinati" or "maccheroni incavati" in Bari, were part of the daily meal for the people of Apulia, particularly in the so-called "poor" cuisine, often constituting the only dish of the day.
Today, however, this pasta is served in numerous variations and has become one of the many courses in a meal, often considered the queen of dishes. It can be enjoyed with tomato sauce, ricotta cheese, meat sauce (ragù), or with turnip tops (cime di rapa), among many other creative and flavorful combinations. Orecchiette have evolved to showcase a wide range of tastes and culinary inventiveness, solidifying their place as a beloved and versatile dish.
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