2020-04-01 Bon Appetit

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His fear, he says, is that American pasta might

sully his sensory recall of the revelatory pasta-

eating experiences he’s had in Italy. And

for the chef-owner of L.A.’s handmade-pasta

temple, FELIX TRATTORIA,

that’s simply not acceptable.

Funke is a man obsessed,

on a self-assigned lifelong

mission to save obscure

pasta shapes from the brink

of extinction. It all began 13

years ago with an appren-

ticeship in Bologna, where

he worked alongside pasta

maestra Alessandra Spisni.

Since then he has returned

to Italy twice a year to find

small-town sfoglini, or pasta

makers, each of whom has

perfected one particular

passed-down-through-the-

generations shape. He doc-

uments their anthropology,

masters their technique, and

brings each shape back to

L.A. with him, from floppy

diamonds of testaroli to ruf-

fled squares of quadrefiore.

In fact, no pasta shall grace

the menu at Felix if it hasn’t

been physically taught to

Funke by the hands of a

native Italian.

Which is to say, I was a bit intimidated when

I flew out to L.A. to meet Funke—especially

since I had gone to ask him for five regular old

store-bought dried pasta recipes that one

could easily make at home.

Walking past the glass-

walled pasta laboratory and

catching a glimpse of a

plaque that read “F*#% Your

Pasta Machine,” I was wor-

ried that when he heard my

request he might throw a vat

of perfectly salted pasta

water straight at my face.

But no! Turns out Funke is

nearly as enthusiastic about

cooking dried pasta (as

long as it’s very good dried

pasta—made in Italy, of

course) as he is the fresh

stuff. And though his metic-

ulousness may be slightly

maniacal, he’s also pretty

down-to-earth. Over the two

days we spent together, he

enlightened me, surprised

me, humbled me, and proved

to me that with a little finesse,

a lot of respect, and adher-

ence to the five simple rules

you’ll find on the following

pages, even dried pasta has

the potential to transcend.

If t here’s one fact that best defines

Evan Funke, it’s this: His literal

job is to make pasta, but he refuses

to eat the stuff in America.

3 Dried Pasta

Brands That

Funke Can Dig

The sauces in these recipes

are designed to highlight excellent

pasta. So your first ingredient

should be, well, excellent pasta.

RUSTICHELLA

D’ABRUZZO

When you’re on the hunt for

those obscure, lesser-known shapes,

look no further than this nearly

century-old brand, which started

in Penne, Italy, in 1924. ($10 for

17.5 oz.; casarustichellain.com)

GAROFOLO

Born back in 1789 in

Gragnano, Italy, where natural

spring water flows and the climatic

conditions are apparently ideal

for drying pasta (legit!), this brand

has mastered the art of texture

at an accessible price point.

($5 for 16 oz.; eataly.com)

MOLINI DEL PONTE

Funke spent some time in

Castelvetrano, Italy, with the guy

who makes this stuff, using an

ancient grain called tumminia.

Twisty busiate is Funke’s preferred

shape; he likes to pair it with pesto.

($15 for 17.6 oz.; gustiamo.com)