Your Ultimate Guide To Pasta Types

Whether it’s what you’ve been waiting for since your days as a student or you weren’t even sure you needed it, you can’t unread our ultimate pasta guide. Once you know the difference between lasagne and lasagnette and that spaghetti used to be double the length it is today, pasta will be your go-to topic at dinner parties (BBQs and mum’s on a Sunday) and you’ll wonder how you ever lived without such culinary knowledge.

Without further ado…

How is pasta made?

With 3 simple ingredients. Semolina flour, salt and water. That’s it. For fresh pasta, (when it’s already soft) egg is also used, but that really is it.

But before you think all you need to do is nip down to your local and get mixing, know that there’s a lot more to making homemade pasta – from proofing your dough to rolling it out with a pasta machine.

You know what’s much easier? Preparing your own with inspiration from our Ultimate Guide To Pasta Types.

Choosing your favourite pasta types

Are you more of a Conchiglie Rigate kind of gal or a Tagliatelle kind of guy? Not sure? Find out below.

Perfect for thick sauces…

• Fusilli – the screw shaped spiral threads are great for trapping heavier sauces
• Conchiglie Rigate – this one attacks your sauce two fold, from the rigate grooves and the cup like shell
• Penne Rigate – similar to conchiglie, penne’s tube construction is great for holding thick sauces

Perfect for light sauces…

• Spaghetti – much thinner than other pasta types, spaghetti works particularly well with light, creamy sauces
• Tortelloni – these parcels usually contain a filling, so only require a light butter or oil based filling to complement

Perfect for rich sauces…

• Tagliatelle – similar to spaghetti but a little thicker, this pasta type lends itself well to richer sauces, particularly meaty ones
• Lasagne – it’s thin sheet construction means lasagne is great for layering with meat or veg and adding a rich sauce for taste

Whether you’re looking for sauces for pasta, or pasta for sauces – being clued up on what to pair together will take dinner times from the British Isles to the Mediterranean with the stir of a spoon.

From Sicily through to Campania, Abruzzo and Emilia-Romagna – grab a taste of Italy at your local convenience store today.