pasta di Gragnano

This gourmet pasta, famous for absorbing the flavours of the sauce, is from the hills over the Bay of Naples, and was first recorded in the 16th century. To qualify for the IGP qualification, it must be made in or around Gragnano with durum wheat and water from the springs of Monte Lattari, which is very low in calcium. It must then be formed in rough bronze presses (trafilata al bronzo) and dried in the cool mountain air.

In the old days the streets of the village were lined with racks of drying spaghetti. Today it is made in in various forms, in factories including this one, proud of making the world's biggest pasta, the vaguely shell-shaped caccavella, 11cm long, and 9pm across