Carb lovers of the world, behold: October 25 is World Pasta Day. People have been eating pasta since at least 5,000 B.C. However, this delightful holiday was only established in 1995, when 40 pasta producers from around the world gathered to hold the globe’s first World Pasta Congress. Since then, the world has joined forces each October to pay tribute to one of the most delicious and versatile foods known to man. Whether you prefer rigatoni, angel hair, or pappardelle, you’ll love this holiday!
Warm steaming spaghetti in a rich red sauce, littered with seasoned sausage, black olives, and mushrooms, or a rich Chicken Fettuccine in a creamy garlic white sauce that just absolutely blows your mind. There are over 600 shapes of pasta known to mankind, and their names are descriptive of their shapes. Spaghetti (‘cord’), vermicelli (‘little worms’), rotini (‘spirals’), fusili (‘spindles’), tortellini (‘little cakes’), linguini (‘little tongues’), conchiglie (‘shells’), fettucine (‘small ribbons’), penne (‘quills’) and capellini (‘fine hairs’) are the savoury little goodies that are essential to any pantry.
While Italian food made it famous, it was only a gateway drug of pasta. Chinese Chow Mein and German Spaetzle are just a couple of the ways the world has taken pasta and fallen in love with it all over again.
History of World Pasta Day
World Pasta Day was brought into existence as part of the World Pasta Congress on the 25th of October in 1995. Experts from all over the world came together to discuss the glories of the noodle, with particular emphasis on the importance of spreading knowledge of the world’s panorama of pasta. This organization uses World Pasta Day to promote the eating of pasta, along with its cultural and culinary importance.
Everything from encouraging consumers to try new pasta’s to providing important information to institutions and promotions of this increasingly popular food. Every country is encouraged to celebrate the day in their own way, while sharing the logo of the official organization and participating in the global strategy of World Pasta Day.
How to Celebrate World Pasta Day
One of the best ways to celebrate World Pasta Day is preparing your favorite dish and enjoying the delicious flavors and textures that come along with your noodley favorite. There’s no way to renew your appreciation than by wolfing down this healthy and nutritious food.
Or you can go all out, and host a World Pasta day party, where everyone comes together to share their favorite pasta dish, or exchange recipes with others to help the love of the noodle spread. Be sure to be prepared for one momentous night of rich and creamy carbohydrate overload, naps will be mandatory, but stomachs will be full!
For the truly daring, you can enhance the above by having your participants only bring pasta dishes they’ve never tried before. Try new noodle types, or making your own, experiment with sauces and flavors that may be outside your normal pallet. Did you know that Spaetzel was traditionally served with a sour sauce/gravy for Sauerbraten? It’s amazing! Imagine what else could unfold into your culinary world if you take World Pasta Day to broaden your horizons!
History of World Pasta Day
This may come as a shock, but Chef Boyardee did not invent pasta, although real-life Italian cook Hector Boiardi started the company in Pennsylvania over 80 years ago.
(By the way, he accumulated a net worth of $60 million.) Honestly, the world has enjoyed this dish since the first century AD.
While legend has it that Marco Polo imported pasta from China in the 1200s, British food writer Jane Grigson believes a Canadian spaghetti company may have started that tale in the 1920s.
We do know that dried pasta surged in popularity during the 14th and 15th centuries — mainly for its easy storage. This allowed people to bring pasta along on ships when exploring the New World.
Hungary boasted a pasta factory in 1859, while central Italy’s Buitoni Company began churning out pasta a mere eight years later. The trend moved into the present-day Czech Republic by 1884.
During a stay in Paris, President Jefferson ate what he called “macaroni,” but it might have been any type of pasta.
He eventually returned to America with two cases. Pasta’s popularity further blossomed in the U.S. during the late 19th century, when a large group of Italian immigrants (mostly from Naples), moved to America.
The World Pasta Day holiday itself only recently began in 1995 when 40 pasta producers from around the world gathered to hold the first World Pasta Congress.
Since then, diners around the world have joined forces each October to pay tribute to one of the most delicious and versatile foods ever.
World Pasta Day timeline
- 1965
"Uh-oh ..." you know the rest
Campbell Soup Co. exec Donald Goerke invents the wildly popular canned pasta known as SpaghettiOs. (The product came out under Campbell's "Franco-American" brand name.) Marketers determined that kids could eat these o-shaped rings without making a mess. Rejected shape ideas? Cowboys, Native Americans, spacemen, stars, and sports shapes.
- 1969
Factory made
The U.S. chain restaurant “The Old Spaghetti Factory” opens its first store in Portland. Today you can find them in a dozen states. Fact: Every location features antique lighting, intricate stained-glass displays, large colorful booths, and an old-fashioned trolley car in which guests can dine.
- 1998
World Pasta Day begins
The event aims to “maximize promotion of an extraordinary, good, healthy, nutritious, accessible and sustainable food — a pillar of the Mediterranean Diet, And you thought it was just linguine?
World Pasta Day FAQs
Is today National Pasta Day?
National Pasta Day falls on October 17. It’s a day for Americans to celebrate their undying devotion to one of our favorite — and simplest — foods. Pasta arrived in the U.S. during the late 19th century, when a large group of Italian immigrants moved to America.
When was National Pasta Day established?
No one seems to agree on when National Pasta Day started. We do know that President Jefferson, during a trip to France, was the first U.S. chief executive to try pasta back in the late 1700s.
What is celebrated on October 25?
Other October 25 holidays include National Art Day, National Breadstick Day (a favorite pasta side dish), and National Greasy Foods Day. Oh, and it’s Katy Perry’s Birthday if you’re keeping score.
World Pasta Day Activities
Make a tasty pasta dish
If you love to cook, whip up some pasta in your kitchen. Enlist the help of a few friends if you’d like company. For a quick dinner with easy clean-up, try a one-pan pasta recipe with tomato, basil, and mozzarella cheese. Or to celebrate an American classic, make some macaroni and cheese. If you’re in the mood to mix things up, make a Mediterranean pasta dish or tasty sesame soba noodles.
Share your pasta on social media
Each October 25 #WorldPastaDay lights up social media. (And let’s be real: since people love their pasta so much, the hashtag also shows up on Instagram and Twitter on lots of other days of the year.) Use the hashtag to show the world that you’re “pasta proud!"
Go out to a pasta dinner
Grab your friends or family (or take yourself out for a nice solo date) and head to your favorite local pasta joint. Order a pasta dish you’ve never tried before and enjoy every bite!
Why We Love World Pasta Day
It’s easy to make
No matter how lacking your kitchen skills may be, you can almost surely make yourself a bowl of pasta. Plus, pasta’s cheap. It’s also incredibly filling, so even if pasta wasn’t so affordable to begin with, you’d still be getting tons of food for your money.
It has health benefits
Pasta (especially the whole grain variety) can help sustain energy throughout the day with its rich carb content. It also includes folic acid, and has a low glycemic index, which means it’s not likely to cause uncomfortable spikes in your blood sugar. In addition, it's a great way to squeeze in your daily suggested whole grain servings
It's versatile
Pasta’s a perfect part of just about any lunch or dinner. (It can even make a great breakfast with a runny egg on top.) If you’re short on protein for the day, you can throw some chicken or fish in a pasta dish for dinner. If you haven’t eaten enough veggies, you can toss in some roasted broccoli and asparagus. You can pour on some thick sauce, or if you want to keep things lighter, you can toss it in olive oil. The point is that there is a pasta dish to fit every mood and need.
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