Ziti () or ''zite'' () is a shape of extruded

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an Leavening agent, unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or Eggs as food, eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Pasta was originally on ...

originating from the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

regions of

Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

and

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

. It is shaped into long, wide tubes, about long, that generally need to be broken by hand into smaller pieces before cooking. It is also sold as "cut ziti" in pieces about 5 cm (2 inches) long, with the ends cut straight-across, unlike

penne Penne () are an extruded type of pasta in the shape of tubular pieces with ends cut at an angle. They are usually made from wheat flour. Etymology ''Penne'' is the plural form of the Italian ''penna'' (meaning "feather", but "pen" as well), de ...

which have the ends cut diagonally. Ziti has similarities to

bucatini Bucatini (), also known as ''perciatelli'' (), is a thick spaghetti-like pasta with a hole running through the center. It is common throughout Lazio, particularly Rome. The similar ziti () consists of long hollow rods which are also smooth in t ...

but is much larger in diameter.

Etymology

is the plural form of and , respectively meaning 'bride' and 'groom' in Sicilian. For this reason, ''ziti'' may also be rendered as in

(with the regular plural form for feminine nouns in ''-a'').

Composition and usage

Ziti strands are made of long and wide tubes, each around . Ziti has similarities to

rigatoni Rigatoni (, ) is a type of pasta. They are larger than penne and ziti, and sometimes slightly curved, but not as curved as elbow macaroni. Rigatoni are characterized by ridges along their length, sometimes spiraling around the tube; unlike pe ...

and

. Ziti is created from

durum Durum wheat (), also called pasta wheat or macaroni wheat (''Triticum durum'' or ''Triticum turgidum'' subsp. ''durum''), is a tetraploid species of wheat. It is the second most cultivated species of wheat after common wheat, although it repres ...

wheat flour and water. It is also used to make . In

, it is traditionally served at a wedding feast. ''Zitoni'', or ''zitone'', has a thicker cut than ziti, being in-between ziti and rigatoni.

Gallery

File:Ziti top (cropped).jpg, Ziti uncut File:Flickr - cyclonebill - Kylling og pasta.jpg, Uncut ziti being set into a pot File:RecipeoftheMonthNov SJ (10807432016).jpg, Cut ziti sitting in a

strainer A sieve (), fine mesh strainer, or sift is a tool used for separating wanted elements from unwanted material or for controlling the particle size distribution of a sample, using a screen such as a woven mesh or net or perforated sheet ma ...

Baked ziti

Baked ziti is a

casserole A casserole (French language, French: diminutive of , from Provençal dialect, Provençal , meaning 'saucepan') is a kind of large, deep cookware and bakeware, pan or bowl used for cooking a variety of dishes in the oven; it is also a categor ...

with ziti pasta and a Neapolitan-style tomato sauce. It is characteristic of

Italian-American cuisine Italian-American cuisine () is a style of Italian cuisine adapted throughout the United States. Italian-American food has been shaped throughout history by various waves of immigrants and their descendants, called Italian Americans. As immigra ...

. Typically, the pasta is first boiled separately until it is nearly, but not completely, done. The almost-cooked pasta is added to a tomato-based sauce. The sauce-coated pasta is then combined with cheese, typically a mixture of

ricotta Ricotta () is an Italian whey cheese made from sheep, cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo milk whey left over from the production of other cheeses. Like other whey cheeses, it is made by coagulating the proteins that remain after the casein h ...

mozzarella Mozzarella is a Types of cheese#Semi-soft cheese, semi-soft non-aged cheese prepared using the ('stretched-curd') method with origins from southern Italy. It is prepared with cow's milk or buffalo milk, taking the following names: * or mozz ...

, and

Parmesan Parmesan (, ) is an Italian cuisine, Italian Types of cheese#Hard cheese, hard, Types of cheese#Granular, granular cheese produced from Dairy cattle, cow's milk and aged at least 12 months. It is a Grana (cheese), grana-type cheese, along wit ...

. Other ingredients can be added to the cheese, such as

ground meat Ground meat, called mince or minced meat outside North America, is meat finely chopped by a meat grinder or a chopping knife. A common type of ground meat is ground beef, but many other types of meats are prepared in a similar fashion, incl ...

sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

mushrooms A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or another food source. ''Toadstool'' generally refers to a poisonous mushroom. The standard for the name "mushroom" is ...

, peppers, and

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

s. The combined ingredients are placed in a baking dish, covered with mozzarella cheese, baked in the oven, and served hot. If unavailable, ziti may be substituted for other tubular kinds of pasta such as

In popular culture

In the crime-drama series ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...

'', the phrase ''box of ziti'' is used as a euphemism for $1,000. This term has spread to become colloquial in New York. The term was used in Albany by

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

during the sentencing of '' Percoco v. United States'' in February 2018.

References