Join Dan Pashman on a journey through Italy to uncover lesser-known pasta dishes, challenge pasta stereotypes, and explore the evolution of Italian cuisine. Discover the secrets behind spaghetti all’assassina, the history of carbonara, and the unique pasta dishes of Lece. Preorder Dan's cookbook today and follow his culinary adventures on Instagram!
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Quick takeaways
Dan Pashman's creation of Cascatelli pasta shape prioritizes functional design for optimal sauce adherence and tooth feel.
The history of pasta, including the evolution of dishes like Carbonara and Spaghetti all’assassina, reveals the flexibility and adaptation of Italian food culture.
Deep dives
The Inventor's Pasta Shape
Dan Pashman invents a unique pasta shape called Cascatelli based on metrics like forkability, sauce adherence, and tooth syncability. After three years of development, the shape features ruffles that hold sauce well, resulting in a successful and widely acclaimed product named one of Time Magazine's best inventions.
Innovative Pasta Cookbook
Dan Pashman creates a cookbook titled 'Anything's Postable' featuring inventive pasta recipes beyond traditional Italian dishes like marinara or bolognese. Recipes include fusion dishes like Kimchi Carbonara and Kima Bolognese, showcasing a mix of global culinary influences and unique flavor combinations.
History and Evolution of Carbonara
Dan delves into the history of Carbonara with food writer Luca Cesari, revealing its relatively recent origins in the 20th century. Luca explains the dish's evolution and variations, including unconventional ingredients like clams and cream, shedding light on how Italian food culture continues to adapt and change over time.
The Birth of Spaghetti Alassassina
Dan explores the origin of Spaghetti Alassassina in Bari, Italy, where chefs accidentally created the dish by burning pasta and refining it into a unique, spicy, and crunchy delight. He witnesses debates among locals on cooking methods, highlighting the dish's evolving nature while respecting its original roots in pasta culture.
This week we're featuring an episode from The Sporkful's series on the creation of "Anything's Pastable," Dan Pashman's new pasta cookbook.
Dan talks with Roman about how this massive project came to be and all the design decisions required to put together a cookbook.
And then, in part two of “Anything’s Pastable,” Dan embarks on an epic trip across Italy in search of lesser-known pasta dishes — and to learn about the evolution of pasta more broadly. He starts in Rome, where food writer Katie Parla reveals a shocking truth about pasta. Then an Italian food historian challenges Dan’s thinking about carbonara. Finally, he heads south to meet a chef who was there when a regional specialty called spaghetti all’assassina (“assassin’s spaghetti”) was invented. All of this leads Dan to wonder: What does evolution look like in a food culture that’s so often depicted in sepia tones? And what’s his place in that process?