These 'threads of God' make up the rarest pasta in the world (2024)

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These 'threads of God' make up the rarest pasta in the world? ›

Description. Su filindeu, or "threads of God," is the rarest pasta in the world. For a century, it was made by a single family in the Sardinian city of Nuoro for religious celebrations. Today, there are fewer than 10 people there who know the secret to making the pasta as thin as a strand of hair.

Su filindeu—literally “threads of God” in Sardo—is unfathomably intricate. It's made by only three women on Earth, all of whom live on Sardinia. And they make it only for the biannual Feast of San Francesco. It's been this way for the last 200 years.

This is exactly the case with a pasta called su filindeu, the rarest pasta in the world. Meaning "Threads of God" in Sardo, a small language that's actually quite similar to Latin, this pasta is made by only a scant few women in the Sardinian city of Nuoro. This pasta, rare as it is, is steeped in history.

So the Selis family began selling the pasta at about $33 per kilogram (a little over two pounds), enough to feed about 20 people. Today, some restaurants in Nuoro include su filindeu on their menus.

Su filindeu is—quasi-official designation here—the rarest pasta on the planet. The dish is made specifically for this occasion; its very existence revolves around this trek. So specialized and obscure and mind-bendingly intricate is it that only a few souls can make it. And only those who reach Lula will ever try it.

Many people credit BiCE Cucina's $2013 menu, featuring a main course of lobster and truffle tagliolini, as being the most expensive pasta in the world.

Carbonara, Cacio e Pepe and Amatriciana are the holy trinity of Roman pasta dishes on restaurant menus. Quite often, U.S. versions take liberties with the recipes, using bacon instead of guanciale (cured pork cheeks) or even Parmesan!!

Flying Spaghetti Monster, the deity of what began as a parody religion and grew to become a social movement. The adherents, who call themselves Pastafarians, purportedly number in the tens of thousands and are primarily located in North America, western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

There are four classic Roman pasta dishes: cacio e pepe, carbonara, amatriciana, and alla gricia.

Who makes the thinnest pasta? ›

Angel hair (Capelli d'angelo in Italian), with its ultra-thin strands, is often called the world's thinnest pasta shape.

Spaghetti. SHAPE: Long, thin, solid, cylindrical pasta. It's the most popular in the U.S. and the best-known pasta shape. SERVED: Spaghetti has a lot of versatility and mixes with a variety of sauces.

Filindeu (Sardinian: su filindeu) is a rare type of pasta from the Barbagia region of Sardinia. It is made by pulling and folding semolina dough into very thin threads, which are laid in three layers on a tray called a fundu and dried to form textile-like sheets.

The oldest evidence of noodles was from 4,000 years ago in China. In 2005, a team of archaeologists reported finding an earthenware bowl that contained 4000-year-old noodles at the Lajia archaeological site. These noodles were said to resemble lamian, a type of Chinese noodle.

Su Filindeu: The Stuff of Legends. For over 300 years, only a handful of women from the remote Sardinian town of Nuoro have known the secret to making this unfathomably intricate pasta. That makes it the rarest and one of the most expensive pasta shapes on earth.

Called shirataki or konnyaku, these noodles range from off-white to grey-beige in colour, and are sold in long strands or small bundles. They are great at absorbing the flavours of ingredients they are cooked with.

Testaroli has been described as "the earliest recorded pasta".