Strozzapreti translates, rather alarmingly, as "priest stranglers". Legend has it that greedy clergymen wolfed them down so fast they choked. We simply recommend chewing.

These short, twisted lengths come from the Emilia-Romagna tradition. Egisto Grilli makes them in Italy from durum wheat semolina, bronze-drawn for a rough surface and slow-dried at low temperature to keep the flavour of the grain and a firm structure.

The twists give a lively, springy bite and trap sauce in every turn, so each piece arrives coated rather than merely dressed. The flavour is clean and wheaty, a good match for bold ingredients.

Try them with crumbled sausage, tomato and a little chilli, or with basil pesto, green beans and potato in the Ligurian way.