Pasta factory in Italy: the best of our pasta in 4 stages

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«We will not talk about any Italian pasta factory, but about the best Italian pasta factories for the quality of pasta, the undisputed queen of our kitchen»

Pasta is not just a food, but an integral part of Italian popular culture. The writer Cesare Marchi wrote “(…) When it’s time for lunch breaks, sitting in front of a plate of spaghetti, the inhabitants of the Peninsula recognize themselves as Italians…”. Symbol of Unity, pasta, made with semolina or flour, has ancient origins in Magna Graecia. But it is in Italy that the boiling system and the pierced or stuffed pasta were born. Spaghetti, bucatini, lasagna, fusilli, rigatoni, penne, tortellini, gnocchi, orecchiette and many others are the types of pasta on the market today. After having seen pasta factories in Rome: the top 5 not to be missed, let’s discover the best of the Italian pasta factory.

Cavalieri Pasta Factory

The Cavalieri pasta factory in Via Garibaldi, 64 in Lecce, was founded in 1918. The wheat used to make pasta comes from north-west Puglia and part of Basilicata. “Every pasta package will have to credit the next one”, so Benedetto Cavalieri inaugurated the plant 100 years ago. The “delicate method” is the one used by the workers of this Italian pasta factory, for processing the raw material. Prolonged and slow kneading, pressing and bronze drawing and drying at low temperature. This procedure ensures the natural consistency of the final product. Spaghettoni, wheels and other 30 sizes of durum wheat semolina pasta. Do not miss the organic whole wheat pasta with 8 formats, including penne rigate and linguine.

Gentile Pasta Factory

The  Pastificio Gentile, founded in 1876 by the Zampino family, is located in Gragnano. The use of fine semolina and low temperature drying and artisan production make this Italian pasta factory offer products of the highest quality. The processing process used is the “Cirillo Method”, an innovative process that, by combining radiator and fan, reduces drying times. The wheat comes from northern Puglia, from  Lucania  and from  Molise. One of the most famous products of the establishment is SpaghettOne, a spaghetti with a diameter of 2.7mm. In addition to the great classics of tradition, of course, like the paccheri. All products, regardless of shape and length, are bronze drawn.

Vicidomini Pasta Factory

The pasta factory Vicidomini  was born in 1812 in Salerno. Calamaretti, bucatini, cannelloni and many other formats are produced in this Italian pasta factory. Colored, pasteurized and special formats created with extra durum wheat semolina from Puglia.  The raw material ends directly in the mixer with water, without additions. The first drying took place in the open air, while for some decades the extruded pasta was spread on the ventilated frames and placed in a room to be worked with the “Cirillo Method”.

Coconut Pasta Factory

The Pastificio Cocco was founded in 1989 in Chieti by Giuseppe Cocco. The passionate young man undertook the job of his father when he was only 14 and became Mastro Pastaio. Egg pasta, semolina and whole wheat, many formats and only one technique: handcrafted working with rough bronze die and static drying at solar temperature. The “landlord” decides the arrangement of the dough on the beech wood frames, the amount of air needed and scrupulously monitors the static driers.

Monica Mariani

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