spaghetti alla chitarra

Spaghetti alla chitarra is the one kind of spaghetti easy to make by hand, thanks to a wire-stringed 'guitar' (chitarra) that cuts the pasta sheets into uniform, squarish strands. A favourite all over central Italy, where it is considered the perfect pasta for rich meat and game sauces, and also in the south, where it goes equally well with seafood.

There's a different name for it in every corner, each with its own quirks, and sometimes made without a chitarra

manfricoli: Umbria

ciriole: southern Umbria

strangozzi Umbria and the Marche

stringhetti: Marche and Romagna

pici: southern Tuscany

tonnarelli: parts of Lazio

maccheroni alla chitarra: Abruzzo, where they like it with ragù di agnello e peperoni (a hearty sauce made with lamb, bell peppers, tomatoes and chilis), or con pallottine—with meatballs

troccoli: Puglia