spaghetti

spaghetti, thin, straight, cylindrical pasta of Italian origin, the most popular of all pastas eaten today.

Noodles made of wheat and eggs were known in the Mediterranean world in antiquity, but the pasta we know as spaghetti—which takes its name from the Italian spaghetto, “little cord”—was probably introduced to Sicily by the island’s Arab conquerors in the 8th century. The name was first recorded in 1874, however, suggesting that spaghetti may have remained a regional dish until shortly after the unification of Italy. Spaghetti was likely eaten with butter and cheese until about that time too; although the tomato was introduced to Italy as part of the Columbian Exchange, it was not widely eaten until the 19th century.

Made of durum wheat, or semolina, spaghetti is the most widely used of the “cord” pastas, which are cylindrical and solid. Related forms are spaghettini, which is a kind of particularly thin spaghetti, and vermicelli and angel hair pasta, which are thinner still. Spaghetti greatly outsells these other pastas. Italians eat about 24 kg (52 pounds) of dry pasta per capita annually, most in the form of spaghetti. Whereas Americans eat much less—about 9 kg (20 pounds) per capita per year—American consumption of carbohydrates is more problematic from a health standpoint, given that portion sizes are twice as large as those in Italy and that Italians are more inclined to walk than drive in the conduct of everyday life.

Throughout Italy, spaghetti is often eaten with a simple tomato sauce. In hot weather, southern Italians enjoy a dish called spaghetti aglio e olio, featuring a sauce of diced garlic lightly cooked in olive oil, into which the cooked spaghetti is then tossed. Spaghetti lends itself to serving with small shellfish such as mussels and clams, and in many Italian households a favourite dish is spaghetti al tonno, spaghetti with tomato sauce and canned tuna. If served with fish or shellfish, spaghetti in proper Italian etiquette goes without cheese; otherwise it is often topped with grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese. Not easily found in Italy, except in the most tourist-oriented restaurants, is spaghetti with fist-sized meatballs, an American variation on the tiny southern Italian meatballs called polpette. Spaghetti covered with a meat-based Bolognese sauce is also now internationally common.

Spaghetti is one of the simpler pastas to make fresh, involving only all-purpose flour, eggs, a little water, and, optionally, olive oil. Many commercial brands are available. Whether homemade or store-bought, however, spaghetti should be cooked al dente, with a slight chewiness.