Pasta non basta!

The other day, I was about to make my usual weekly radio recording for my program at NTV Radio, and falling short of finding a topic, I asked our director for ideas. Her reply was swift: Keep it simple; pick a humble ingredient, something that everyone can reach, easy on the pocket, yet high in satisfaction... and then she bluntly added: Why not Makarna!

She was right. And to my astonishment, I realized that I never fully covered pasta dishes in the four-year history of my program. Sometimes we do not see what is right in front of our nose. Pasta dishes are crowd-pleasers, and the variations are endless. Makarna is the generic word given to all pasta dishes in Turkish. Needless to say, it comes from the Italian word "maccheroni." The word maccheroni was first mentioned in the city archives of Genoa in 1279, at that time it was a word for all types of pasta. Within time the word came to be used only for short pasta varieties. As we all know, in today’s Italian cuisine there are countless variations to pasta shapes, and of course, each type is named differently, usually in the most creative ways. By the 19th century, maccheroni was only used for the slightly curled tube pasta, but the name prevailed in many other countries and languages, all the way from Türkiye to the United States.

There is a much-repeated popular culinary myth that Marco Polo brought pasta back to Italy back from China. The date of the Genoise city archives is important as it debunks this culinary fakelore. Marco Polo returned to Venice in 1295-96 from his 24-year-long voyage deep into Asia. It is not likely that he introduced spaghetti, or pasta in general, to the Italian kitchen. Though he mentions a wheaten dough dish similar to lasagna in his accounts, various pasta-making techniques were already in place in Italy. Actually, the pasta traditions around the Mediterranean are a well-known phenomenon. Tracing the origins of this culinary myth takes us back to 1938 in America. The editors of “Macaroni Journal” are the sole creators of the Marco Polo connection. Macaroni Journal was the newsletter of the National Macaroni Manufacturers Association, an association of American pasta makers. Apparently, the idea of including a historical angle to their macaroni stories was too good to resist, and so the Marco Polo macaroni myth was born and readily accepted.

Coming back to our own connection with maccheroni, Italian pasta came to us in the late 1700s during the Ottoman period and even found its way into the homes of poor people. Of course, we have our own pasta heritage, such as “erişte” the cut-noodles, or short-cut pasta dishes such as “tutmaç” and of course the “mantı” dumplings, or “su böreği” technically a lasagna without the sauce, but Italian long or short pasta had been a novel introduction to the Ottoman world. Pasta varieties had long been a trade item in the Mediterranean basin, and “obra de pasta” or in other words “pasta business” was a prosperous trade. In the 1830s, pasta production started in the Selimiye barracks for the palace and the army, and even the surplus was sold to the public. According to the 1913 industrial census, there were two pasta factories in the center of İzmir. The pasta was one of the most important food provisions for the soldiers during the Gallipoli wars. Initially, we named Italian pasta as “makaronya,” which eventually was turned into “makarna” in Turkish.

The westward voyage of pasta to America has an interesting presidential connection. Of course, there were a large number of Italian immigrants in America, but it was Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who ordered a special machine in 1789 to make Italian pasta in Monticello. Thus began the American adventure of maccheroni. Eventually, when pasta-making became a big industry, the famed Marco Polo legend was crafted by the Macaroni Journal to make pasta attractive to larger masses. Since Italian immigrants were the poorer stratum of society, they made up such a story in an effort to create a more romantic history for pasta, and everyone believed it. Nevertheless, we all believe in pasta, and we know that pasta is never enough: Pasta non è mai basta!

Fork of the Week: Viva Italia! Aficionados of Italian food will have a chance to experience special tastes this week. Michelin-starred chef Giuseppe Gasperoni and Terrazza Italia Chef Claudio Chinali will be joining forces for an exquisite “4 Hands Dinner” that will be held on January 15th at the restaurant Terrazza Italia located in Eataly, Istanbul. On this special night, the traditional flavors of Italian cuisine will be combined with the modern touches of the chefs to create an unforgettable gastronomic experience for the lucky guests. Istanbul diners already know Chinali’s refined cuisine, making the most of the best ingredients and offering truly refined Italian cuisine to his frequent clientele. There are committed regulars making Terrazza Italia their home, just because of his honest premium dishes.

Giuseppe Gasperone, chef of Fourghetti Restaurant has a unique approach to cooking, making humble ingredients shine like superstars. He says: “My cooking is original, creative, and straightforward — not necessarily technical but focused on the substance and the quality of the dish itself. There’s a touch of modernity, but without distorting the flavors. I love playing with flavors and combinations. I respect environmental sustainability as much as possible by fully utilizing raw ingredients and avoiding waste. When it comes to seafood, the challenge lies in highlighting so-called ‘humble’ fish that are actually rich in flavor, like mullet. For land dishes, I choose meats like chicken and rabbit, paired with specialties from my region, such as passatelli and tortellini.” Gasperoni is known for his pasta dishes representing the land and the sea, Here in Istanbul, he will focus on ingredients found locally, of course apart from premium Italian cheeses.

At the Istanbul dinner, the two talented chefs will be serving dishes featuring humble ingredients, elevating them into a fine dining experience. Chef Gasperoni will be coming to Istanbul just for this one-night event, so it is an event not to be missed!