Pasta is one of the most popular meals in the world. It’s easy to cook and very delicious with the sauce. Let’s see some of the popular types of pasta.

Farfalle
This is also known as bowtie pasta because it looks just like a little bowtie with frilled edge. It’s excellent for holding sauce because of the crinkle where it comes together at the center. It holds up well when baked in the oven. It’s pretty shape also makes it a favored choice for pasta salads.

Shells
Pasta shells look like their namesake: open, rounded seashells. They come in many sizes from small to big enough to fill the palm of your hand. The smaller ones are great for fresh sauces or bakes, and the larger sizes are perfect for stuffing with your favorite fillings. They are often filled with a combination of creamy ricotta cheese and other ingredients.

Rotini or Fusilli
Rotini describes the spiral-shaped noodle. They look like little corkscrews and are loads of fun to bite into, especially for little kids that like to eat with their hands. All the curls in the corkscrew-shaped noodles are great for picking up lots of sauce.

Gnocchi
Gnocchi are little pasta dumplings made from potato and flour. They are lovely, round and pillowy, and are sold in a fresher form than most pasta, so they can cook in as little as two minutes. Their larger shape makes them wonderfully filling and comforting in dishes, great for feeding a crowd or a group of hungry kids!

Risoni
These tiny pastas look like grains of rice; in North America they’re commonly called orzo. They cook quickly, and are popular to use in soups and stews. They’re also great in salads, or bakes.

Orecchiette
The translation of orecchiette is literally ‘small ears’ because their round dimpled shape is similar to an ear. Their cupped shape holds pasta sauce and other ingredients well, and their texture when cooked is softer in the center and a little chewy around the edges.

Penne
These noodles are usually 5cm long and cut at an angle, so they resemble the tip of a fountainhead pen. The hollow is about the same size as a pencil. It can be smooth or ‘penne rigate’ which has ridges, a pleasing texture and great for holding even more sauce. Penne is a good choice for baked pasta dishes, it holds up well in the oven and is the perfectly sized mouthful. Try using this pasta with meat and vegetables. 

Macaroni
One of the smaller tube pastas, macaroni is short and has a narrow tube. Sometimes it has a bend in it, this is known as elbow macaroni. Macaroni is most famously used in rich and tasty mac and cheese, a classic comfort food or side dish.

Rigatoni
Rigatoni is a large tube noodle that is wider than penne and cut short and straight. It has ridges along its length. It goes great with pesto, an easy to make sauce of basil, pine nuts, cheese, garlic and oil. Serve with garlic bread for added deliciousness.

Spaghetti
Spaghetti is a classic for a reason. Its long, thin cylindrical shape is fun to twirl, easy to eat, and has a great texture that you can really sink your teeth in it. Loved around the world, and perhaps the most famous pasta dish, it’s the perfect way to eat this long noodle.

Linguine
Linguine takes the best traits from spaghetti and fettuccine and combines them. It’s about as wide as spaghetti but flat like fettuccine, and it works well with an assortment of sauces.

Fettuccine
Fettuccine’s shape is flat, wide and long, rather than thin and round. It pairs nicely with a cheese sauce. Whether you want chicken alfredo or a bacon carbonara, this is the perfect noodle to stir into a creamy base. Another great thing about this noodle is that it’s easy to make from scratch!

Thank you for reading!

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