Pasta from Porreres in Mallorca may not have acquired the same fame as pasta from Palermo or anywhere else in Italy, but both of them may actually go back to the same source of influence. Some documents claim that pasta was originally introduced to Italy by the Moors via Sicily during the 8th century. The same Arab influence can possibly be traced in Mallorcan pasta making as well. After all, the Moors were in Porreres and in Mallorca for a few hundred years from the 10th century onwards and they may well have introduced a dried noodle-like Semolina product to Mallorca. The Moors are known to have consumed Semolina during their time in Mallorca.

The Gelabert family in Porreres manages one of a few outlets in Mallorca that produce dried pasta in the old, traditional way just like the Moors might have manufactured it. Semolina is used as a base for the noodle production in Porreres. The shape of the pasta product is produced by molds. The pasta is finally air dried over repositories of canya (reed). The finished fideu product is sold under the brand name of Bendinat. You might want to try some.

The photo (top) was taken in Porreres, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: November 22nd, 2009. The time was 12:35:14. The photo (bottom) was taken from the Internet, courtesy of canloi.blogspot.com.

Muchas gracias.