Ep 2. Pasta

Inside the Factory is back for a third season, and this episode explores Italy's most famous export- pasta. It's an Italian staple that everyone has enjoyed, but have you ever wondered about how this simple dish is made? With the help of Inside the Factory, you get to see the entire process from start to finish.

The episode takes us to a pasta factory where the pasta-making process begins with a variety of durum wheat that is grown on farms in Italy. The process starts with the wheat being cleaned and purified before it is transformed into semolina, which is essentially ground up wheat flour. This semolina is then used to make the pasta dough.

We see the dough being mixed and kneaded in a giant mixing machine before it's passed through a series of metal rollers, flattening it into long sheets of pasta. These rollers can be set to produce a variety of pasta shapes and sizes. The sheets are then cut and laid out to dry in a temperature-controlled room where they are left to rest and dry.

After the pasta has dried, it's ready to be packaged and shipped to stores. But how does it get there? The show takes us on a tour of a pasta distribution center where the pasta is sorted, packaged, and shipped to stores all around the world. It's a fascinating look at just how much work goes into getting a simple packet of pasta onto our dinner plates.

As well as exploring the production process, the episode gives us a fascinating insight into the history of pasta. Did you know that the first pasta recipes can be traced back to ancient Rome and ancient Greece? Or that pasta was originally sold as a street food by vendors known as maccheronai? The show provides plenty of interesting facts and tidbits about the history of this beloved food.

Of course, no exploration of pasta would be complete without a look at all the delicious ways it can be prepared. We see a pasta chef creating a variety of classic dishes using fresh pasta, including spaghetti carbonara and tagliatelle bolognese. It's mouth-watering stuff that will have you reaching for the nearest packet of pasta in no time.

But the episode isn't just about the pasta itself - it also explores the impact that pasta has had on Italian culture and identity. We see local residents in the town of Gragnano, known as the home of Italian pasta, sharing stories about their town and its traditional methods of producing pasta. We learn about the lengths that the town's pasta producers go to in order to ensure that their product meets the strict standards that have been in place for centuries.

Ultimately, this episode of Inside the Factory is a fascinating look at one of Italy's most beloved foods and the people who make it. Whether you're a pasta lover or just curious about how it's made, you're sure to learn something new from this episode. So why not pop a packet of pasta on to boil and settle in for a behind-the-scenes look at the delicious world of Italian pasta?