Customer Reviews

Encyclopedia of Pasta (California Studies in Food and Culture)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

During the year that Marta from Lombardy lived with me, I was mystified at her insistence that certain coffees could only be consumed at certain hours, and that Americans not only cooked pasta badly, but served the "wrong" sauce with every noodle. Who cares? I wish I had read this book before her visit. Marta was right! Pasta is both a science and an art! So much more than a cookbook, the Encyclopedia of Pasta, is a social history of Italy, Europe, class struggle, regional parochialism, agriculture, food, religion, trade routes, women, families, religion, the universe and everything. OK, I exaggerate, but only slightly. From well-known pastas such as macaroni, in many varieties, to the exotic pi fasacc, this is truly an encyclopedic work. Well written, with lively descriptions and a plethora of anecdotes, de Vita mixes scholarship with an intense love of her subject, be it people or pasta.

If you ever wanted to know the complex and rigid Italian rules for the mating or sauce and pasta,this is your book. If you wondered about the Arab contribution to noodle cuisine (ravioli, among others), this is your book. If you ever wanted to know the ingredients of different pastas, this is your book. If you are interested in unique and highly specific pasta making tools, this is your book. If you want to amaze your friends with your esoteric knowledge, this is your book. Or if you simply want to curl up with a fascinating compendium about your favorite food, this is your book. Reading it also made me feel very hungry.

And, in case you were wondering, the author reveals that there were records of pasta in Italy 500 years before Marco Polo returned from China.

This is truly an Encylopedia of pasta. In that regard, it is well done and quite thorough. It is well researched and gives amazing history of each of the pastas. I use it as a history book. That said,it is lacking drawings for much of the pasta and that is unfortunate. The book would have been truly wonderful if it included photographs or drawings of each of the pastas. Without them, it makes some of the descriptions quite tedious, leaving too much to the imagination. Translations of more of the names of the pastas, would have also added much to the book since the names of the pastas, in Italian, are quite humerous: the mouse tails, the blind husband. It is not a cook book and that is a point that should be underscored: it is what it is, an Encyclopedia.

My son and daughter-in-law lived in Asia and they constantly amazed me with their dialogues on the various types of rice. A grain of rice isn't just a grain of rice! There are all sorts of variations in rice and in cooking rice.

Well, this book proves the same holds true for pasta. For the pasta lover, this book is an absolute delight. The role of pasta in social settings and in history is explored as well as explanations of hundreds of pastas and their origins.

Ms. Oretta Zanini De Vita not only explores over 300 pastas, but talks about how to make them, what sauce goes with what pasta and how to present the pastas. Entries are illustrated with ingredients and how the pasta is served along with a short history.

This is a fascinating book that must have taken years of research to produce. This is not a recipe book, but rather an exploration of pasta and a commentary on its history and how it fits into our current society.

If you like pasta, this is truly a fascinating look at how variations in the making of the dough produces sumptious dishes that have been the staple of cultures all over the world.

I bought this book after reading a review of it, and I'm so pleased - one of my hobbies is making pasta, and this book gives an incredibly detailed history of every kind of pasta imaginable. As someone of Italian heritage, I also found the book's cultural notes on when certain pastas were/are served in Italy, historical anecdotes and explanations, and other details to be fascinating. Overall, this is a very worthwhile addition to the library of anyone with an interest in Italy, food history, or pasta making in general.

The three very minor complaints I have are that the great illustrations of pasta shapes are not universal, which is a shame - it's hard to get a clear picture of what some styles look like from the description alone. Also, as someone with an interest in making pasta, for all of the homemade (as opposed to factory) styles, I would appreciate minor notations about recipe ratios so that I could try making some of them. I haven't read through the entire book yet, so perhaps I missed a note about this topic. Also, I agree with another reviewer who mentioned that it would be nice to get a translation of the pasta names for those of us who don't know Italian, as the few that I've managed to translate for myself tend to be entertainingly descriptive. These are so minor, however, that I wouldn't even consider them when recommending the book.

If you're into pasta and history, this book is incredible. You can feel the time and energy that went into this very informative book. As they said, don't purchase this book looking for recipes. Purchase it to understand what this food meant over centuries to it's people and their culture.

This is a great book if you are interested in all things pasta. It is not a cook book so if that's what you're looking for you'll have to look elsewhere. This compact book is full of interesting facts about the history and development of pasta on the Italian penninsula. If you like food history, especially the history of Italian food, then this is a book which you will enjoy.

This book is one of the best resources for pasta that you will find. very well written with a lot of information about every type listed along with the history and other aliases. ingredients, uses, methods, dimensions. everything you would need to know about the particular pasta shape. Only one criticism would be that they are listed alphabetically so you must know the name in order to find what you are looking for with ease. the plus side to this is that you will spend a bit of time reading a brief synopsis of all the pastas until you find what you may be interested in. if you get the digital version you can tag the shapes as you see fit for easy reference.

Highly recommend this book if you love pasta and the history of it.

As others said, it is not a cookbook which suits me perfectly - I didn't expect one and I received what I wanted.

MEDIOCRE PRODUCTION OF SCHOLARSHIP. WHAT WE REALLY NEEDED, INSTEAD OF SUPERFICIAL BOOKS ABOUT PASTA, WAS AN AUTHORITATIVELY SCHOLARLY AND AT THE SAME TIME ACCESSIBLE VOLUME, FEATURING A FOLD-OUT PAGE OF ALL THE FANTASTIC SHAPES, ILLUSTRATED WITH BRILLIANTLY SHARP DRAWINGS. NATURALLY THE ENGLISH EDITION OF THE BOOK WOULD INSTRUCT THE AMERICAN READER EXACTLY, PRECISELY, HOW TO COOK THE VARIETIES OF SHORT AND LONG SHAPES, AND THE VARIETIES OF HARD FLOUR, SOFT FLOUR, AND POTATO AND OTHER CONSTITUENTS.

THIS IS NOT THAT BOOK. AMAZING. THE ILLUSTRATIONS ARE NOT CLEAR, AND RESEMBLE SOFT PENCIL SKETCHES, RATHER THAN ESSENTIAL RAZOR SHARP WORK.

AND THERE IS SIMPLY NO DISCUSSION WHATSOEVER OF ANY COOKING TECHNIQUES. NO SPACE FOR IT? WHEN DO WE ADD SALT? HOW MUCH WATER OR OTHER LIQUID DO WE USE FOR THE VARIOUS SHAPES AND MAIN INGREDIENT? WHEN DO WE KNOW THE FOOD IS COOKED ACCORDING TO ITALIAN CUSTOM? WHAT IS "AL DENTE" REALLY, IN ROME, IN PALERMO, IN VENICE, OR MILAN?

WHAT IS RAGU AND HOW DO WE GET IT? WHEN IT IS RIGHT TO ADD CHEESE AND WHEN DO WE ADD GARLIC? WELL, IT DOES SAY IN THE TERSEST POSSIBLE SPACE, "SERVED WITH XYZ", NOT EXACTLY INFORMATIVE. WELL, AGAIN, WE SHOULD LEARN TO DO OUR OWN WORK AND NOT RELY ON ENCYCLOPEDIAS OF PASTA TO HELP US OUT A LITTLE. LET'S JUST DO OUR OWN RESEARCH IN THE OTHER MILLION BOOKS ON PASTA THAT ARE OUT THERE FROM COFFEE TABLE TO POCKET SIZED.

THIS BOOK IS REALLY HALF A BOOK. THE OTHER HALF NEVER MADE IT TO PRESS.
WELL, IT WAS PUT OUT BY A UNIVERSITY PRESS SO THEY CANNOT BE EXPECTED TO ACHIEVE ANYTHING BEYOND ORDINARY RUN OF THE MILL MEDIOCRE RESULTS, SINCE THEY ARE NOT IN THE PUBLICATION BUSINESS, THEY ARE IN THE SUBSIDIZED, NO NEED FOR PROFIT BUSINESS. ALL THEY HAVE TO DO IF THEY FLOP IS BEG THE TAXPAYERS AND KAZILLION BUCKS CONTRIBUTORS FOR MONEY TO FILL THE GAP.

ZYBYSKO NOVEMBER 3 2009.