Penne () is an
extruded
Extrusion is a process used to create objects of a fixed cross-sectional profile by pushing material through a die of the desired cross-section. Its two main advantages over other manufacturing processes are its ability to create very complex c ...
type of
pasta
Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, are som ...
with
cylinder
A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base.
A cylinder may also be defined as an infin ...
-shaped pieces, their ends cut at an angle. ''Penne'' is the plural form of the Italian ''penna'' (meaning ''feather'' but ''pen'' as well), deriving from Latin ''penna'' (meaning "
feather
Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and a premier ...
" or "
quill
A quill is a writing tool made from a moulted flight feather (preferably a primary wing-feather) of a large bird. Quills were used for writing with ink before the invention of the dip pen, the metal- nibbed pen, the fountain pen, and, eventual ...
"), and is a
cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...
of the English word ''
pen
A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...
''. When this format was created, it was intended to imitate the then-ubiquitous steel
nib of
fountain
A fountain, from the Latin "fons" (genitive "fontis"), meaning source or Spring (hydrology), spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. ...
and
dip pens.
Origins
''Penne'' is one of the few
pasta shapes with a certain date of birth: in 1865, Giovanni Battista Capurro, a pasta maker from San Martino d'Albaro (
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
), obtained a patent for a diagonal cutting machine. His invention cut the fresh pasta into a pen shape without crushing it, in a size varying between ''mezze penne'' (half pens) and ''penne'' (pens).
Description and variations
In Italy, ''penne'' are produced in two main variants: ''penne lisce'' (smooth) and ''penne rigate'' (furrowed), the latter having ridges on each penna. Pennoni ("big quills") is a wider version of penne. In English-language contexts, a version is called mostaccioli by various manufacturers, which may be either smooth or ridged in texture.
Penne is traditionally cooked
al dente and its shape makes it particularly adapted for sauces, such as
pesto
Pesto () is a sauce that traditionally consists of crushed garlic, European pine nuts, coarse salt, basil leaves, and hard cheese such as Parmigiano-Reggiano (also known as Parmesan cheese) or Pecorino Sardo (cheese made from sheep's milk), a ...
,
marinara, or
arrabbiata
Arrabbiata sauce, or ''sugo all'arrabbiata'' in Italian (''arabbiata'' in Romanesco dialect), is a spicy sauce for pasta made from garlic, tomatoes, and dried red chili peppers cooked in olive oil. The sauce originates from the Lazio region, and ...
. The latter has been celebrated several times in Italian movies, notably in
Marco Ferrari
Marco Ferrari (born 21 August 1966 in Rimini) is a retired Italian professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Honours
;Parma
* UEFA Cup Winners' Cup winner: 1992–93.
* UEFA Super Cup winner: 1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From l ...
's ''
La Grande Bouffe
''La Grande Bouffe'' (Italian: ''La grande abbuffata''; English: ''The Grand Bouffe'' and ''Blow-Out'') is a 1973 satirical film directed by Marco Ferreri. It stars Marcello Mastroianni, Ugo Tognazzi, Michel Piccoli, Philippe Noiret and Andréa ...
'' and
Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...
's ''
Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Roma, Queensland, a town
** Roma Airport
** Roma Courthouse
** Electoral district of Roma, defunct
** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council
*Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
''.
See also
*
Cuisine of Liguria
Ligurian cuisine consists of dishes from the culinary tradition of Liguria, a region of northwestern Italy, which makes use of ingredients linked both to local production (such as preboggion, a mixture of wild herbs), an ...
*
List of Italian dishes
This is a list of Italian dishes and foods. Italian cuisine has developed through centuries of social and political changes, with roots as far back as the 4th century BC. Italian cuisine has its origins in Etruscan, ancient Greek, and ancien ...
*
List of pasta
There are many different varieties of pasta. They are usually sorted by size, being long (''pasta lunga''), short (''pasta corta''), stuffed (''ripiena''), cooked in broth (''pastina''), stretched (''strascinati'') or in dumpling-like form (''gno ...
References
{{Pasta
Cuisine of Liguria
Types of pasta