DeepSummary
This episode of 99% Invisible features a conversation with Dan Pashman, the creator of the Cascatelli pasta shape and host of the Sporkful podcast, about his new cookbook "Anything's Pastable." Dan discusses his journey to create the cookbook, which aims to showcase unconventional pasta sauce recipes beyond the traditional Italian classics.
Dan shares his experience traveling across Italy to research lesser-known regional pasta dishes, like spaghetti all'assassina ("assassin's spaghetti") from Bari, and his realization that Italian pasta culture is more open to evolution than commonly perceived. He learns that even iconic dishes like carbonara have relatively recent origins and have undergone significant changes over time.
Through conversations with food historians and chefs, Dan gains a new perspective on his role as an outsider contributing to the ongoing evolution of pasta, rather than trying to disrupt a static tradition. The episode explores the design decisions involved in creating a visually compelling cookbook that captures the spirit of Dan's culinary adventures.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Italian pasta culture is more open to evolution and innovation than commonly perceived, with iconic dishes like carbonara having relatively recent origins.
- Dan Pashman's cookbook "Anything's Pastable" aims to contribute to the ongoing evolution of pasta by showcasing unconventional sauce recipes beyond traditional Italian classics.
- Preserving traditional origins and reference points is essential while embracing culinary innovation and evolution.
- Regional pasta dishes like spaghetti all'assassina from Bari demonstrate the diversity and lesser-known traditions within Italian cuisine.
- Creating a visually compelling cookbook involves meticulous design decisions, from recipe naming and photography to capturing the spirit of the culinary journey.
- Outsiders can contribute to the evolution of a cuisine by respectfully introducing new ideas while honoring traditional roots.
- The widespread popularity of pasta as a national dish in Italy is a relatively modern phenomenon, driven by political and economic factors in the 20th century.
- Debates and variations around traditional dishes, like the preparation methods for spaghetti all'assassina, are part of the natural evolution of culinary traditions.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “Pasta as part of an italian national identity is a 20th century thing.“ by Katie Parla
- “Before 1949, there's no trace of a pasta dish known as carbonara.“ by Luca Cesari (via interpreter)
- “I set out to try to write a cookbook that would have no traditional italian pasta sauce recipes in it. There is no recipe for marinara. There's no bolognese. There's no plain old cacio e pepe or carbonara. None of those. I'm not against those dishes. I just feel like the world didn't need another recipe for those.“ by Dan Pashman
- “I decide that when I work on my own recipe for my cookbook, I'll use the asacina from Giotto as my north star.“ by Dan Pashman
Entities
Company
Person
Book
Product
Episode Information
99% Invisible
Roman Mars
4/16/24
This week we're featuring an episode from The Sporkful's series on the creation of "Anything's Pastable," Dan Pashman's new pasta cookbook.
Dan talks with Roman about how this massive project came to be and all the design decisions required to put together a cookbook.
And then, in part two of “Anything’s Pastable,” Dan embarks on an epic trip across Italy in search of lesser-known pasta dishes — and to learn about the evolution of pasta more broadly. He starts in Rome, where food writer Katie Parla reveals a shocking truth about pasta. Then an Italian food historian challenges Dan’s thinking about carbonara. Finally, he heads south to meet a chef who was there when a regional specialty called spaghetti all’assassina (“assassin’s spaghetti”) was invented. All of this leads Dan to wonder: What does evolution look like in a food culture that’s so often depicted in sepia tones? And what’s his place in that process?
Preorder Dan’s cookbook today (including signed copies), and see if he’s visiting a city near you on his tour of book signings and live podcast tapings with special guests! Follow Dan on Instagram to see photos and videos from the Anything’s Pastable journey.