The greatest store cupboard item of them all?
Dried pasta is possibly the greatest of all the store cupboard items with so many good qualities. Stored correctly pasta will last for ages (although it doesn’t get the chance to last that long in our house!). Food waste can be reduced by only using the amount you need. Almost any other ingredients can be added to pasta to create your own dish and pretty much everyone knows how to cook it. On top of that it can be ready in minutes so that even in todays fast paced world there is time to make a filling and delicious meal.
What is pasta made from and how is it made?
Traditionally pasta is made from durum wheat semolina which gives it the yellow colour and the variety of shapes available is possible because of the high gluten content in durum wheat. Did you know that in Italy only dried pasta made from 100% durum wheat can be called pasta. Very little durum wheat is grown in the UK as it is more suited to drier climates. Most of the pasta consumed in the UK is imported from Italy or made in the UK from imported wheat.
Much of the pasta made today is mass produced and made very quickly. In order to achieve speed the pasta is extruded through Teflon dies which make the surface of the pasta very smooth. The pasta is then dried at higher temperatures so that it can be packed and shipped quickly.
These methods produce a pasta that loses some of its traditional qualities. The surface is smooth so sauces don’t cling to it as well. The high temperatures reduce the nutrients and changes the nature of the proteins in the pasta. In our opinion something is lost along the way.
What is different about Galloway Scottish Pasta?
Our pasta is made from a mixture of wheat flour, organic oat flour and sea salt. All of the flours are milled in Scotland with the oats grown and milled in Aberdeenshire. The sea salt is produced by sustainable methods using wind and sunlight on the Ayrshire coast. The addition of oat flour gives the pasta a creamy colour and a softer texture.
Slow drying of our pasta typically takes 24 hours and this preserves the creamy taste and texture that the oat flour adds to the pasta. Slow drying lets the proteins relax rather than be stressed and we believe this gives a more flavoursome pasta that is easier to digest.
We have invested in traditional bronze dies to make our pasta shapes. This gives the surface of the pasta a slightly rougher texture that is enhanced by the oat flour. Your favourite sauce clings to the pasta rather than being left on your plate making every mouthful the taste sensation that you wanted when you started to cook.