From long thin ribbons of tagliatelle to spiral twists, pasta comes in many different shapes and sizes. Although some contain flavourings such as eggs or spinach, all are made from the same basic ingredients: Flour and Water.
Vermicelli, Spaghetti & Capellini
These pastas have a similar shape but different thicknesses. The finest of the three is capellini, which is also known as 'angels hair'. Delicate in texture and flavour, it must be cooked very quickly. Vermicelli is slightly thicker. Spaghetti, the thickest, is the most popular type of pasta.
Fettuccine
Also known as tagliatelle, fettuccine is formed by rolling out a flat sheet of pasta and cutting it into thin ribbons. It contains egg and is made from a softer flour than the many other types of pasta. The green version is made using spinach. It's best served with meat sauces as it absorbs the flavour well.
Lasagne & Cannelloni
Lasagne is available fresh or dried and is traditionally cooked with layers of cheese and bolognese sauces, although other fillings are often used. When fresh, lasagne can be rolled into cylinders to make cannelloni. Dried cannelloni is sold ready rolled, and must cooked slightly before being filled
Penne & Fusilli
Penne (meaning quills) are short, hollow tubes, similar to macaroni but with a larger diameter. The are suitable for hot dishes or salads. Fusilli are also known as spirals or twists. They were originally made by wrapping spaghetti around knitting needles. Serve with tomato or meat based sauces.
Farfalle & Conchiglie & Gnocchi
Farfalle (butterflies) are bow shaped. Gnocchi (also used to describe potato dumplings) and conchiglie are both she'll shaped pastas. They are good served with meat or tomato based sauces as they hold the sauces better than any other pasta.
Ravioli & Tortellini
The two most widely available stuffed pastas. Ravioli are sold as half moon shapes or squares, and traditionally filled with meat and spices, or a mixture of ricotta cheese and spinach. Tortellini are supposedly based on the shape of venus's naval. They are usually filled with ham, veal, eggs and spices.
Pasta (impasto) in Italian simply means dough, although it also describes the various pasta shapes made from the basic mixture.
Commercial pasta is made from durum wheat and water. The quality of the pasta is dependent on a good quality hard durum wheat.
The wheat is ground into semolina which is mixed with water to make a dough. The dough is then cut or extruded through various shaped nozzles to give different shaped varieties.
The pasta is the dried for 8-48 hours before packaging. Dried pasta has a shelf life of up to 2 years, provided it is stored in a cool, dry place.
There are about 600 different variations of pasta and they all fall into one of these categories:
Long Pasta
Short Pasta
Egg Pasta
Filled Pasta
Soup Pasta
Specialities
The most common types of pasta, such as spaghetti, lasagne, linguini, conchiglie, fusilli, vermicelli and noodles, are available both fresh and dried. While dried pasta is invaluable to storing in-cupboard food, the flavour and texture of fresh pasta is much better and is better to use with good quality ingredients.
Flavoured Pasta
Eggs may be added to the dough to enrich it. Natural flavourings and colourings are also sometimes added. To make a pasta Verdi, or green pasta , spinach is added. Tomatoes or red peppers produce a pink or red pasta. beetroot makes a dark purple pasta. Flavourings such as basil or garlic are often added to fresh pasta.
Wholewheat pasta contains more fibre and is more a substantial, flavoursome pasta.
Stuffed Pastas
Fresh stuffed pasta shapes are becoming increasingly popular. In addition to meat fillings, they are available with vegetarian fillings, such as smoked salmon. Dried pasta shapes can be stuffed with your own home-made fillings.
Home-Made Pasta
Making your own pasta is actually quite simple. For avid pasta fans there are machines that can handle large quantities and complex shapes. To start off with, try making flat sheets of lasagne. The best flour to use is semolina flour, a hard, fine wheat flour. If this is difficult to find, use a strong flour such as that used for making bread.
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