Ziti/Candele

Intrinsically Neapolitan, ziti cannot be separated from marriages. The word in fact means ‘the betrothed’ or ‘the bridegroom’, and ziti are invariably served as the first course of a wedding lunch. One by one, the long tubes are broken into four pieces before cooking. Their stout tubular shape works well with robust, meaty sauces as well as simpler ones. Candele (‘candles’), or ziti candelati are an outsize version – twice the width, three times the length and with thinner walls, they must also be broken – not only for tradition, but to fit in any pot. Ziti are eaten almost exclusively in the south, and could be considered symbolic of the great divide – northerners can be just as sneery about ziti as about the people who eat them.