Everything You'd Want To Know About Pasta

·40 min·3 clips

Katie Laird invested in an extruder after selling out of handmade pasta, sparking a debate on what 'handmade' really means.

["Ed Levine opens the episode by sharing that he's been eating pasta all summer while losing weight, teasing a future discussion on this.", "He introduces Katie Laird, founder of Martha's Vineyard Pasta, who makes fresh eggless pasta daily, and Sasha Marks, editorial director at Chef Steps and a former Serious Eats editor.", "Katie describes her pasta journey, starting with Italian-American family holidays in New Jersey and leading to culinary school in Emilia-Romagna and an externship in Puglia.", "She recalls her father's weekly meal rotation of spaghetti, chili, and 'wack' night, including a traumatic incident with strawberries in a savory dish.", "Sasha shares her background moving from New York to Rome at age five, where she ate pasta daily and later wrote a college essay about a Roman trattoria's matriciana.", "After a law firm stint, she attended Boston University's culinary program and worked at restaurants like Rialto, often on pasta stations.", "The conversation shifts to differences in Italian and American pasta approaches, with Sasha noting pasta is a meal component in Italy, not the main event.", "Katie adds that in Southern Italy, pasta often features vegetables from cucina povera traditions, unlike the U.S. where it's a centerpiece.", "They discuss the romanticization of handmade pasta in the U.S., with Sasha pushing back on the idea that handmade is always superior to high-quality dried pasta.", "Katie explains her experience selling only handmade pasta at farmers markets before investing in an extruder to increase production.", "Sasha details extruder mechanics, brass vs. Teflon dies, and drying processes, noting that freshly extruded pasta cooks faster but lacks the bite of slowly dried pasta.", "After a break with sponsor ads for IQ Bar and Monarch, they delve into pasta types, starting with fresh egg pasta from Emilia-Romagna like tortellini and tagliatelle.", "Katie describes egg pasta as 'supple' and 'expensive-tasting,' influenced by double zero flour and rich egg yolks, which she finds hard to replicate in the U.S.", "Sasha names her favorite dried pasta preparations: matriciana and a Sicilian pasta with tomato estratto, anchovies, raisins, pine nuts, and breadcrumbs.", "Katie prefers simple passata-based sauces with peperoncino and olive oil, though she sells a butter-enriched version inspired by Marcella Hazan.", "They mention resources like Gustiamo for Italian pantry items and conclude with promotional details for their respective websites.", "The episode is produced by Jocelyn Gonzalez, Perry Gregory, and Pedro Rafael Rosado of PRX Productions.", "Throughout, sponsor segments promote Good Shop for meat and seafood, Quince for cookware, IQ Bar for snacks, and Monarch for finance management.", "The tone is conversational and educational, blending personal anecdotes with technical insights into pasta making and culture.", "Key themes include regional Italian variations, production methods, and the evolution of pasta appreciation in the United States."]

As heard by us

A thoughtful pasta episode that moves from Puglia's vegetables to the labor behind fresh shapes.

Pasta is framed as a matter of proportion, labor, and place. The episode sets the American giant plate, where pasta often carries the meal and sauce sits on top, against the Italian habit of treating pasta as one familiar part of a larger meal.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You get a sharper way to think about pasta than simply putting sauce on top.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Special Sauce with Ed Levine