Rustichella

The family know that quality doesn’t always allow for efficiency. But they’re happy to take things slowly. Some of their pasta shapes can take 70 hours to dry (compared to 30 minutes for some commercial products). That means the pasta doesn’t caramelise, so it looks paler and is more digestible. And the taste is a world apart too. It goes without saying that all their shapes are made using bronze dies – the rough surface is essential for a good pasta dish as it holds the sauce, rather than letting it slide into the bottom of the bowl.

Pushing boundaries is part of the Rustichella way. The company have a long list of impressive ideas that somehow anticipate every new trend - their 100% spelt pasta sold out in America just two hours after featuring in the New York Times. But whenever they come up with a new idea, it’s always rooted in a deep respect for the tradition that allowed it to come into being in the first place.

Despite being a small regional producer, Rustichella have admirers around the world, from the late, great Pavarotti to the White House. And of course, we love their products as much as anybody. As our friend Aldo Zilli will tell you, their chitarrone is essential for an authentic Abruzzese meal. The Italian attitude to pasta is all about quality, not quantity. That philosophy could almost have been created to describe Rustichella - they can’t compete with the big factories in size and output, but they certainly outdo them on taste and quality. Those are traits this family business really understands.