Most of us venture to Bologna and Modena on our pasta pilgrimages, but Liguria has just as long a history with this Italian staple. Emilia-Romagna may boast tortellini, for example, but Liguria is the proud birthplace of ravioli – an equally important part of Italy’s pasta tradition. It’s also the home of Italy’s commercial pasta industry; the Agnesi family (famously the first Italian family to start making pasta commercially) opened their very first factory in the beautiful Ligurian town of Pontedassio. These days of course, dried pasta is a multi-million euro industry – but it all started in Liguria.
Ligurian pasta dishes aren’t just about the unique, traditional pastas on show; they’re also about the sauces. Pesto Genovese may well be the most widely eaten and popular pasta sauce in the world – the simple combination of basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan and pecorino makes a gorgeous, grainy sauce full of umami flavour. Salsa di noci (walnut sauce), made with walnuts, Parmesan, garlic, white bread and milk, is also a common and much-loved accompaniment to filled and flat pastas alike.
Wherever you decide to visit in Liguria, you can be sure to find some excellent pasta. Here are a few of the more unique pastas you can expect to find in this beautiful coastal region.