Durum wheat semolina 7
One of the key ingredients of the Puglia cuisine is semolina from durum wheat. In Italian, semolina translates into “semola di grano duro”.
Semolina can only be made from durum wheat and is very yellow in color. It is completely different from the white flour (farina Bianca) which comes from softer wheats.
Durum wheat semolina is much richer in protein and healthier because slower to be digested.
Puglia is a big producer of durum wheat. In fact Puglia is also known as the “Granaio d’Italia”, Granary of Italy. If you go to the Northern part of Puglia, the so-called Tavoliere di Puglia, you will be amazed by the beautiful yellow grain fields.
In Puglia all types of fresh handmade pasta, dry pasta, bread and even some cakes are made of durum wheat semolina. For pasta nothing else is used but durum wheat semolina and water. Our personal experience is that kneading the pasta dough made of durum wheat semolina is much easier than with other kinds of flour. It just gives you the perfect consistency right away and the resulting taste is unique!
All bread made in the Altamura (read this interesting article The Bread Is Famously Good, but It Killed McDonald’s ), Laterza and Matera areas, is made of durum wheat semolina as well, which results in a more yellow bread. The interesting thing about bread made of durum wheat semolina is that it can last for many days or even a week, if kept in a dry environment and in a paper bag (we actually think it is much better after two or three days). No preservatives are added to this bread!
Very impressive results are also reached when semolina is used to bake cakes or tarts. Not only the color is very warm and beautiful, but also the taste is much richer.
