Spaghetti alla chitarra
Spaghetti alla chitarra (), also known as maccheroni alla chitarra, is a variety of egg pasta typical of the Abruzzo region in Italy, with a square cross section about 2–3 mm thick. Tonnarelli are a similar pasta from Lazio. Ciriole is the thicker version of chitarra, approximately twice the thickness of spaghetti. It has a squared shape rather than a rounded one. Origin of the name. The name of this spaghetti comes from the tool (the so-called "chitarra", literally "guitar") this pasta is produced with. This tool gives the spaghetti its name, shape, and a porous texture  that allows pasta sauce to adhere well to the pasta itself. The "chitarra" is a frame with a series of parallel wires crossing it. History and production. The origin of the "chitarra" is still not very clear, though a traditional recipe from the province of Teramo originated in the early 1800s or even before. It is also claimed that the "chitarra" was invented in 1890 in the Abruzzo province of Chieti. Before then, pasta was cut with a special rolling pin with notches to obtain its particular shape. Although its origins are from Abruzzo, you can find different versions and  names in the southern part of Italy. It gets the name of "tonnarelli" in Lazio, "torchioli", "troccoli", or "truoccoli" in Basilicata and Apulia, or "cirioli Molisani" in Molise.</ref> The dough consists of durum wheat semolina and eggs, with no added salt. It is then worked and, after a rest of about 30 minutes covered, rolled flat with a rolling pin. The dough is then placed on the "chitarra" and pushed through with the rolling pin, so that the strings of the "guitar" cut it into strips. Pasta makers from Abruzzo bring down the cut dough by passing their fingers  over it, as they would "play a guitar." In Abruzzo, "maccheroni alla chitarra" are most typically prepared with a ragu of pork, beef, and lamb. In particular areas of the Abruzzi (for example Teramo) the traditional condiment is tomato sauce with beef meatballs, so-called "pallottine". In Abruzzo, chitarra alla teramana, which is a traditional Abruzzo recipe, is a long thin squared spaghetti pasta served with tiny meatballs ("polpettine"). It is generally a first course meal ("primo piatto"). A dried variation, without egg, is often marketed as spaghetti or maccheroni alla chitarra both within and outside Italy. Spaghetti alla chitarra