Penne Rigate De Cecco

From the family of short, obliquely cut, fluted pasta, Penne Rigate is one of the best-known pasta formats and, therefore, also the most versatile in the kitchen.

The term Penne refers, in the Italian language, to the goose quill that was formerly used for writing and that was cut on the bias to obtain a tip with a thinner line. The format, obtained from a paste tube, smooth or fluted, of variable length, has the characteristic diagonal cut typical of a writing pen.

Penne is one of the few pasta formats with a certain date of birth: in fact, in 1865, a pasta maker from San Martino d'Albaro (Genoa), Giovanni Battista Capurro, requested and obtained a patent for a machine diagonal cut. The patent was important because it allowed fresh pasta to be cut in the shape of a feather without crushing it, in a variable size between 3 and 5 centimeters (mezze penne or penne). It is read in the document preserved in the Central Archive of the State of Rome: " Until today, the diagonal cut could only be obtained by cutting by hand with scissors, a method that, in addition to being too slow and expensive, had the disadvantage of producing an irregular cut and to crush the pasta ".

Penne Rigate are perfect for preparing baked pasta or pasta seasoned with pork or beef sauces. But they are also excellent with vegetable-based seasonings and, in general, due to their versatility, for all recipes in the Mediterranean tradition, such as the classic seasoning with tomato, basil, extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. The combination with the all'arrabiata sauce is classic.