Comments on: Farro Pasta alla Chitarra

By: Jaeny@Wheat Free Cake

Jaeny@Wheat Free Cake — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 13:20:14 +0000

I’ve never seen this much passion in making pasta before. I know I’ve read plenty of pasta making articles but quite a few gave details like yours did. I would definitely want to get a hold of a chitarra and see what kinds of pasta I could make from it. Though I’ve always had this experience where manually doing things is much easier than doing the machines, but hey, I need a laugh too

By: Kristine

Kristine — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 22:00:38 +0000

Received a chitarra from family in Giulianova this summer. My husband had researched his family in Italy and we had a 1st meeting/reunion this July in Giulianova. The Italian’s repeatedly said they’ve been waiting nearly 70 years for an American Giorgini to come home…. Beyond fantastic trip. During our first meal there – we had pasta alla chitarra, and I was over the moon about the pasta. The family presented me with my own chitarra before we flew out. (had to scramble w/ the RyanAir carry-on restrictions, but it was worth it!!)

I’m using it for the first time this weekend and I sure appreciated the advice on the dough from this site. – grazie mille

By: hank

hank — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 03:58:42 +0000

Judith: All good stuff to know. I am working on getting good enough to roll out translucent pasta by hand… Looking forward to seeing you in Portland!

By: Judith Klinger

Judith Klinger — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 22:53:51 +0000

Congrats & Auguri on the Beard & IACP nomination! Bravo!

I live in Umbria most of the year and use and love my chitarra all the time. Pasta thickness is strictly a matter of personal taste/preference. There are no pasta-thickness police that I know of! I like it as thin as possible, so I can see the grain of my marble table when I roll it out (much quicker than the Atlas, IMHO).

Strangozzi or strangoprezzi (strangle the priest…who’s says the Italians don’t have a sense of humor about religion?) isn’t made on a chitarra. It’s another cutting device, but it’s all a variation on a theme.
A good torchio is hard to come by… absolutely look for brass dies and get one with a seat because you’ll need it. Email if you want some more info. Or… we can talk in Portland!

By: hank

hank — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 04:18:36 +0000

JA: I like black breads, actually. Great with lots of butter. As for the chitarra, I’ve been fascinated with them for years, but only bought one recently. Gotta say it’s more of a toy than anything, as I can hand-cut noodles pretty well without it.

Karen and Dawn: Tell me about it. Laughter is the best medicine…

Tovar: I often do the same thing, but if you are not careful the pasta will snap when you take it off the clothes dryer.

Kate: Those were probably hand-cut, or made with a torchio, which is a Renaissance-era pasta device I need to buy. It extrudes pasta with a ratchet action, and unless your dough is VERY strong, it’ll create those warped shapes, which actually catch sauce better.

Carol: I thought the same thing. They do look like soba. Don’t have a recipe, but I bet I could find one…

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 00:53:36 +0000

Great post! I love my chitarra, too. The square shape of your pasta, and its color, reminded me of Japanese soba noodles, made with buckwheat. Have you ever made those, and do you have a recipe? I’m now inspired to try! With the warm weather we’ve been having in L.A., cold soba with dipping sauce sounds awfully good…

By: Kate@LivingTheFrugalLife

Kate@LivingTheFrugalLife — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:38:50 +0000

Looks awesome, Hank. Glad to see you back on your feet after such recent hard knocks. Your noodles resemble the strangozzi (also sometimes spelled stringozzi) of central Umbria. They are thick, ropey, and substantive, apparently/possibly referencing the garrote in both form and name. They were definitely square-cut noodles. But all the strangozzi I was ever served were just slightly irregular and twisted, so I guess they weren’t made with a chitarra. Usually they were sauced with a tomato-cinghiale concoction.

By: Tovar Cerulli

Tovar Cerulli — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 19:26:59 +0000

Great post and pics, Hank and Holly.

We made pasta a few weeks ago, when my stepson and his wife were visiting. We sliced it fettucini-width and had it hanging over the bars of a clothes drying rack between the dining table and the kitchen. It felt just a tiny bit like an old-world kitchen in the village where Catherine’s grandmother grew up, in the hill country inland from Naples.

By: Dawn (KitchenTravels)

Dawn (KitchenTravels) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:29:38 +0000

Laughter. Nothin’ better. I like the fact that Holly has included you in some of the photos, Hank. My friends always ask me why I’m never in my blog pics… it’s because I’m always the one behind the camera!