25 Fun Facts About Pasta for World Pasta Day!

Happy World Pasta Day! As you may know, October is National Pasta Month (although, frankly, we celebrate pasta all year long). On October 25^th, the month-long celebration culminates with World Pasta Day!

To make the most of our favorite holiday (we know we’re a bit biased), we wanted to share 25 fun facts about our favorite food: pasta!

1. The first World Pasta Day was celebrated in 1995 when 40 pasta makers gathered to enjoy the World’s First Pasta Congress!
2. Pasta originated in China as "noodles," originally called “soup cake.”
3. Archaeologists found the oldest noodle bowl in Lajia, China, dating back 4000 years.
4. The earliest writing about pasta noodles dates back to the East Han Dynasty between 25 and 220 AD.
5. Marco Polo was said to have brought pasta to Italy in the 13^th century (although that may be just a rumor).
6. The original pasta was made from rice and millet—a grain native to China.
7. Durum wheat became the preferred ingredient for pasta in the Mediterranean.
8. Dried pasta doesn’t necessarily expire (but the quality decreases after a year or two).
9. Pasta was brought to the Americas by Spanish settlers.
10. Thomas Jefferson helped popularize pasta after enjoying it during a visit to Parise in 1789.
11. In the song “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” the macaroni reference could be any shape of pasta.
12. The ancient Judaic text, the Talmud, makes one of the first references to boiling pasta.
13. The earliest pasta was similar to vermicelli—an Italian word that translates to “little worms.”
14. Spaghetti comes from the word Spago, meaning string in Italian.
15. In 2021, German Andre Ortolf took the Guinness World Record for the most pasta (2.09 lbs) consumed in three minutes.
16. The largest bowl of pasta was created in Poland and weighed 7,900 kg. It took cooks 19 hours to prepare the pasta alla Bolognese (we bet it wasn’t as delicious as our fettuccini alla Bolognese!).
17. Pasta has had some great movie moments, including depictions in The Apartment, The Sopranos, Elf, The Godfather, Eat Pray Love, and of course, Lady and the Tramp.
18. The most expensive restaurant pasta dish is $2,000 at a New York restaurant called Bice. It has two pounds of lobster, black truffles, and veal. The Portofino restaurant in Las Vegas serves Diamond and Gold lasagna made from white diamond truffles and edible gold leaf for a more “reasonable” $100 per serving.
19. Two of the five winners of the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s Xtreme Eating Awards (the highest calories in a restaurant dish) were pasta dishes from popular chain restaurants, clocking in at 2800 calories and 1900 calories per dish! (None of our recipes made with It’s Skinny pasta come close to that calorie count!)
20. The most commonly searched-for pasta dish in the United States is Fettuccine Alfredo, with gnocchi and spaghetti as close runners-up.
21. There are at least 44 Italian pasta styles ranging from ravioli to cannoli to bucatini. By some estimations, there are more than 350 shapes of pasta around the world.
22. Perfect pasta is said to be "al dente," which means "to the tooth." In other words, it should have a little bit of texture.
23. Traditional pasta, like spaghetti, has 37-43 grams of carbohydrates and around 200 calories per cup.
24. Shirataki noodles (like It’s Skinny) are made from konjac root and have been enjoyed in Japan for 1500 years!
25. It’s Skinny Pasta has ZERO net carbs and only 9 calories per pack! It’s Skinny Pasta comes in three popular pasta styles: Spaghetti, Fettuccine, and Angel Hair (plus RICE)!

If you’re ready to celebrate pasta with us, enjoy GUILT-FREE It’s Skinny to make all your pasta dreams come true. It’s Skinny is keto-friendly, low-calorie with ZERO net carbs—perfect for any diet or lifestyle. So order a variety pack of It’s Skinny and create all your favorite dishes today!