I've been to Italy for a few times already. And I thought that my sole favorite Italian dish is Frutti de Mare. That changed when, during our most recent deployment, we dined in a restaurant, which was literally just a few steps away from the place where we used to stay. It was my first time in that restaurant and my first time to taste nero pasta. By the way, "nero", in Italian, means black. It was so yummy that I did not mind being told by a Director that the squid ink painted my lips black. I thought that she was joking when she further said that I was wearing a Gothic lipstick!Nonetheless, knowing that I enjoyed my pasta so well, my seatmate gave me a quick cooking lesson on nero pasta dish. Thanks to her simple recipe, at that moment, I couldn't wait to buy and take home as much nero pasta as I can. Sad to say, not all grocery stores in Rome have nero pasta on their shelves. In my recollection, there were only three grocery stores that sell nero pasta, one of which is Conad City (but not all branches!). And take note, nero pasta is so expensive compared to other pasta noodles!
By the way, frutti de mare and nero pasta are both served with seafoods - shellfish and squid, respectively. My love for seafoods explains why the aforesaid dishes are my favorites!I haven't tried cooking nero pasta yet. It's been almost a month since I received the box containing, among others, my priced nero pasta. Just looking at the packed noodles brings back memories of how tasty the dish was. Perhaps this weekend, I will have the privilege to challenge my culinary skills (or incompetence) and hopefully savor what I am craving for right now. Perhaps this weekend.. ;)
