Spaghetti alla chitarra

One of the most delicious Abruzzo dishes, something not to miss

Abruzzo cuisine focuses a great deal on first courses and egg noodles, the latter being the symbol of the traditional Abruzzo Sunday meal, holding a social function in the villages and for family get-togethers.
One of the leading first courses, especially in the province of Teramo, is spaghetti alla chitarra, a symbol of Abruzzo cuisine. The name is taken from the tool used to make this type of pasta: a chitarra. Which is a special rectangular frame, usually made of wood, with a row of very close parallel steel wires. A single sheet of pasta is placed on the frame, pressed with a rolling pin and cut by the steel wires, thus making this amazing spaghetti. If we see a cross-section of this type of noodle, it is square and about 2-3 mm wide and thick.
It is normally prepared with a mixed ragout of pork, beef or lamb, and the most traditional regional dish is the sauce with “pallottelle” meatballs measuring slightly less than 8 mm in diameter.
Over recent years, this type of spaghetti, traditionally made inland in Abruzzo and therefore with meat sauces, has also been used for fish dishes, which is an amazing combination with excellent results, reconciling the different ingredients of a very varied gastronomic culture.