By+Justin+Demetri

1. integrant [??nt?ɡr?nt] adj. 構成整体所必需的

2. staple [?ste?pl] n. （人们或某种动物的）主食

3. cuisine [kw??zi?n] n. （饭店中的）饭菜，菜肴

Nothing says Italy like its food， and nothing says Italian food like pasta. Pasta is an integrant1） part of Italy's food history. Wherever Italians immigrated they have brought their pasta along， so much so that today it can be considered a staple2） of international cuisine3）. Unlike other ubiquitous4） Italian products like pizza and tomato sauce， which have a fairly recent history， pasta may have a much older pedigree5）， going back hundreds—if not thousands—of years. To unravel6） the long and often complex history of this dish， we have to look at its origins and some of the myths surrounding it.

Many school children were taught that the Venetian7） merchant Marco Polo brought back pasta from his journeys to China. Some may have also learnt that Polo's was not a discovery， but rather a rediscovery of a product once popular in Italy among the Etruscans and the Romans. Well， Marco Polo might have done amazing things on his journeys， but bringing pasta to Italy was not one of them： noodles were already there in Polo's time.

There is indeed evidence of an Etrusco-Roman noodle made from the same durum wheat8） used to produce modern pasta： it was called "lagane" （origin of the modern word forlasagna9））. However this type of food， first mentioned in the 1st century AD， was not boiled， as it is usually done today， but ovenbaked. Ancient lagane had some similarities with modern pasta， but cannot be considered quite the same. The country will have to wait a few centuries for its most popular dish to make a further culinary leap forward.

Like so much of southern Italian life， the Arabic invasions of the 8th century heavily influenced regional cuisine. Today， the presence of Arabic people in the south of thepeninsula10） during the Middle Ages is considered the most likely reason behind the diffusion11） of pasta.

The modern word "macaroni" derives from the Sicilian term for kneading12） dough with energy， as early pasta making was often a laborious， day-long process. How these early dishes were served is not truly known， but many Sicilian pasta recipes still include typically middle eastern ingredients， such as raisins13） and cinnamon14）， which may be witness to original， medieval recipes.

This early pasta was an ideal staple for Sicily and it easily spread to the mainland since durum wheat thrives in Italy's climate. Italy is still a major producer of this hard wheat.endprint

By the 1300's dried pasta was very popular for its nutrition and long shelf life， making it ideal for long ship voyages. Pasta made it around the globe during the voyages of discovery15） a century later. By that time different shapes of pasta had appeared and new technology made pasta easier to make. With these innovations pasta truly became a part of Italian life. However the next big advancement in the history of pasta would not come until the 19th century when pasta met tomatoes.

Although tomatoes were brought back to Europe shortly after their discovery in the New World， it took a long time for the plant to be considered edible. In fact tomatoes are a member of the nightshade16） family and rumors of tomatoes being poisonous continued in parts of Europe and its colonies until the mid-19th century. Therefore it was not until 1839 that the first pasta recipe with tomatoes was documented. However， shortly thereafter tomatoes took hold17）， especially in the south of Italy. The rest of course is delicious history.

It is estimated that Italians eat over 60 pounds of pasta per person， per year easily beating Americans， who eat about 20 pounds per person. This love of pasta in Italy faroutstrips18） the large durum wheat production of the country； therefore Italy must import most of the wheat it uses for pasta. Today pasta is everywhere and can be found in dried and fresh varieties depending on what the recipes call for. The main problem with pasta today is the use of mass production to fill a huge worldwide demand. And while pasta is made everywhere， the product from Italy keeps to19） time-tested production methods that create a superior pasta.

Pasta： The Story of a Universal Food

如今想吃意面已经不用专门去意式餐厅，只需去超市购买一包意面，自己调好味道浓郁的酱汁，便可以享用一顿美餐。卷型、螺旋型、长条型、弯管型、蝴蝶型、贝壳型……意面的形貌之多，足够让你连续好几百天早餐不重样。不过饱餐之余，你是否想过，称霸全球的美食的那么少，究竟是什么让这道极具地方特色的主食在全球美食界稳占一席之地呢？

4. ubiquitous [ju??b?kw?t?s] adj. 无所不在的；随处可见的

5. pedigree [?ped?ɡri?] n. 背景；出身；家史

6. unravel [?n?r?vl] vt. 揭开；揭示

最能代表意大利的莫过于其美食，而最能代表意大利美食的莫过于意面。意面是意大利餐饮史中不可或缺的一部分。意大利人无论移居到哪儿都会带上他们的意面，以至于如今意面也被视为国际餐飲中的一道主食。不像其他随处可见的历史相对较短的意大利美食，如披萨和番茄酱，意面的家族史可能要久远得多，即使没有上千年，也有上百年。要揭开这道美食漫长而又通常很复杂的历史，我们必须去看看它的那些起源以及关于它的一些传说。

许多学生在学校学到的是威尼斯商人马可·波罗从中国游历归来，带回了意面。 也有的学生可能了解到马可·波罗之举并不是一项新发现，而只不过是重新发现了一种曾在意大利的伊特鲁里亚人和罗马人中流行的美食。嗯，马可·波罗可能在他的游历中做了许多令人惊叹的事，但把意面带到意大利这件事却并不是其中一件——在马可·波罗的时代，意大利就已经有面条了。

伊特鲁里亚-罗马面条和现代意面都是同样的硬质小麦制成的，这一点确实有据可查。这种面条被称为lagane，现代词语lasagna （意为“千层面”）就是由该词衍生而来。然而，不同于面条现在的通常做法，这种公元1世纪时首次被记录下来的食物不是煮着吃的，而是烤着吃的。古代的lagane面条与现代的意面确有相似之处，但并不能混为一谈。意大利还要等上几百年才让这道最受欢迎的美食在烹调工艺上跃进一步。endprint

一如公元8世纪阿拉伯人的入侵大大影响了意大利南部地区人们的生活，阿拉伯人的入侵对当地饮食也产生了深远影响。如今人们认为中世纪时期来到意大利半岛南部的阿拉伯人很有可能是意面得以传播的原因。

现代词语macaroni源自西西里语，意思是用力揉捏生面团，因为早期的意面制作通常是一项费力的工作，需要花上一天的时间。现在人们并不真正了解这些早期的美食如何烹制，但许多西西里的意面食谱中仍旧包含典型的中东调料，比如葡萄干和肉桂，这些可能都是那些中世纪时期意面原始配方的见证。

这种早期的意面是西西里人的理想主食，由于意大利的气候十分适宜硬质小麦生长，因此这种主食轻而易举就传到了意大利大陆地区。意大利现在仍是这种硬质小麦的主要生产国。

到了14世纪，干意面因营养丰富且保质时间长而倍受欢迎，成为长途航海旅行的理想食物。一个世纪之后的地理大发现使意面遍布世界各地。那时已经出现了不同形状的意面，而新的工艺使意面更加容易制作。随着这些创新到来，意面真的成了意大利生活的一部分。然而直到19世纪，意面与番茄相遇，才成就了意面发展史上的下一个重大进步。

虽然新大陆的番茄在被发现不久后就被带到了欧洲，但是经过很长时间人们才认定它是可以吃的。实际上，番茄属于茄属植物，直到19世纪中期之前，欧洲的一些地方和殖民地地区都一直流传着番茄有毒的说法。因此，直到1839年，才有了第一份有文献可考的含番茄的意面食谱。不过此后不久，番茄就确立了其地位，特别是在意大利南部地区。接下来的当然就是人人皆知的美味历史啦。

据估计，每个意大利人每年要吃掉60多磅意面，轻松击败美国人每人每年大约20磅的记录。意大利人对意面的热爱使这个国家的硬质小麦需求量远超其生产量，于是意大利大多数用来制作意面的小麦都必须依靠进口。如今意面的身影随处可见，根据不同食谱的需求分为不同种类的干面和鲜面。现在意面的主要问题在于利用规模化生产来满足全球的巨大需求。尽管意面到处都有人做，但这道来自意大利的美食仍旧遵循着那些经受了时间考验、创造了优质意面的烹制方法。

这幅14世纪的微型画描绘了当时制作意面的家庭作坊

19世纪，人们在

街头晒意面

7. Venetian [v??ni??n] adj. 威尼斯的

8. durum wheat： 硬质小麦

9. lasagna [l??z?nj?] n. 千层面，一种传统的意面

10. peninsula [p??n?nsj?l?] n. 半岛

11. diffusion [d??fju??n] n. （人类学用语）（风俗习惯等跨文化群落的）传流

12. knead [ni?d] vt. 揉，捏（面团或其他食物）

13. raisin [?re?zn] n. 葡萄干

14. cinnamon [?s?n?m?n] n. 桂皮；肉桂

15. the voyages of discovery： 地理大發现，指15～17世纪时期，欧洲许多国家进行远洋探险，期间不仅发现了美洲大陆，还发现了通往亚洲的多条新航线。这次航海之旅不仅让欧洲控制了整个大海，更让人类对地球的认识掀开了崭新的一页。

16. nightshade [?na?t?e?d] n. 茄属植物。这类植物很多都有毒，只有少数可以食用。

17. take hold： 生根；固定下来；确立

18. outstrip [?a?t?str?p] vt. 超过；胜过

19. keep to： 遵守；固守endprint