Identifying pasta can be kind of intimidating but it doesn't need to be. The pastas that I have touched based on in this blog, I feel are relevant to know for restaurants here in America or just a basic type to identify in a store. I will share with you a few that you can find in almost any Italian restaurant along with pictures and a brief description as to how you might find these pastas in a dish. Let's get started shall we?? lol
So in no particular order the first one is pretty simple:
- Spaghetti (Spah-geh-tee) : This is probably the most commonly eaten pasta in America simply because it's the most easily identified. It's a long noodle with a circular shape and has a slight thickness to it. This a really versatile pasta because it goes great with a beef and tomato sauce, cream sauce, simple olive oil and lemon juice, you can bake with it, MEAT BALLS (lol) and is often times just referred to as spaghetti on a menu.
- Angel Hair : This is the exact same thing as spaghetti pasta but smaller in thickness. It cooks in a bit quicker than spaghetti too and can be used in the same way as spaghetti. If angel hair pasta is used in a dish it will state that it's angel hair pasta. Some people prefer it over regular spaghetti although I like both. :3
- Linguine (Lin-gwee-nee) : This pasta is also similar to spaghetti and angel hair except it is flat. It is the same length as spaghetti but instead of it being cylindrical it's flat. Kinda looks like a mini 2x4 that you can eat HAHA. This pasta is a little more sturdy than spaghetti or angel hair and is often paired with seafood such as clams and a wine sauce, or a tomato sauce with calamari, shrimp, mushrooms, etc.
- Lasagna (Luh-zan-ya) : This pasta is also really easily identified because it comes in long flat sheets. If you buy it in a store it almost always has wavy edges. The edges may serve another purpose besides decoration, maybe for support of layering, but I really don't know. This pasta is so great now because you can buy it parboiled and layer your lasagna as usual and bake it off like normal. This pasta will most likely be called lasagna on a menu unless another ingredient in the dish is more pronounced. For instance, if the lasagna is made in house and the actual pasta is made with spinach inside, it would be called Spinach Lasagna.
- Rigatoni (Rig-a-tony) : This pasta looks like straight hollow tubes. They are pretty short, no longer than 2 inches and are a little hefty too. Because they have a hollow inside, they hold onto sauce and cheese fantastically. Often times you will see this served in individual portions in a restaurant like in a little boat shaped dish topped with cheese, or done family style in a large dish. Great with meat sauces, regular tomato sauce and cream sauces.
- Penne (Pen-nay) : This pasta is very similar to rigatoni but is cut a little differently at the ends. Penne has a distinct angled cut at either end of the pasta and are a narrower than rigatoni. This pasta is great for baking like rigatoni and hold onto sauces really well.
- Manicotti (Man-eh-coht-ee) : This pasta is the Big Pappa of penne and rigatoni. This is a much longer and wider pasta It only takes 3-4 of these to make a meal. These are often filled with a mixture of cheeses including ricotta cheese, spinach, meat sauce, any sauce that is thick and hearty really. This too can be served family style or single portion in a little oval shaped dish. This dish almost always comes stuffed with ricotta cheese in a restaurant.
- Fusilli (Foo-see-lee) : lol what? This pasta looks like little cork screws. I see this more and more in restaurants now, especially in house made mac and cheese. These cook relatively quickly, and are great for holding onto cream sauces.
-Farfalle (Far-fall-lay) : This pasta is sooo stinkin' cute, they resemble little pinched ribbons or bow ties.They can come in a few different sizes and cook quickly. Sometimes in Italian restaurants this pasta is offered on the kids menu, but it really makes for a great pasta in a cold salad at home. This pasta goes fantastically with a pesto sauce or cream sauce.
- Shell/Conchigliette(Con-chee-glee-eh-teh) : These are conch shaped pasta often just called shells because their Italian name is a bit difficult to pronounce. The most popular way I see them are really small sizes like you would in Velveeta, or the large ones that get stuffed with seasoned ricotta cheese. When they are stuffed they are par cooked and then baked with the filling and topped with a tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. The stuffing can include spinach, meat, ricotta cheese or a variety of cheeses mixed with egg, vegetables your choice!
So that's it! I only covered a few types of pasta that I thought were really common and easy to identify. If you haven't tried any of these pastas yet I beg you to try them! Thanks so much for reading, have a great day!!
(Photos pulled from Google Images)
I can't stress enough when I say that there is beauty in simplicity. This can be applied so well with food. My example for you is one of my favorite ways to eat pasta.
You will need:
-Angel Hair Pasta - Salt/Pepper
- Lemon Juice - Raw Garlic
- Butter
-When I cook pasta like this, I add hot water to a pot so it doesn't take as long to boil. (All of the ingredient amounts are subjective to your taste)
- Cook the pasta as instructed on the box, or until al dente.****
- Place some butter in a serving bowl, along with a spritz of lemon and garlic (freshly grated or jarred kind is up to you).
- Drain off the pasta and add as much as you like to the serving bowl. Toss in the butter, lemon juice and garlic.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. (Lemon juice is great in pasta because it gives the taste buds the illusion of salt, so watch how much salt you add!!)
-Optional, zest the lemon for extra added flavor.
There is no need to overwhelm your pasta in a heavy cream or tomato sauce.
***Cooks note: Al Dente is a point where pasta is cooked and still has a little bite to it. Most certainly not soggy!
Enjoy my recipe!!
- Lasagna (Luh-zan-ya) : This pasta is also really easily identified because it comes in long flat sheets. If you buy it in a store it almost always has wavy edges. The edges may serve another purpose besides decoration, maybe for support of layering, but I really don't know. This pasta is so great now because you can buy it parboiled and layer your lasagna as usual and bake it off like normal. This pasta will most likely be called lasagna on a menu unless another ingredient in the dish is more pronounced. For instance, if the lasagna is made in house and the actual pasta is made with spinach inside, it would be called Spinach Lasagna. 
- Manicotti (Man-eh-coht-ee) : This pasta is the Big Pappa of penne and rigatoni. This is a much longer and wider pasta It only takes 3-4 of these to make a meal. These are often filled with a mixture of cheeses including ricotta cheese, spinach, meat sauce, any sauce that is thick and hearty really. This too can be served family style or single portion in a little oval shaped dish. This dish almost always comes stuffed with ricotta cheese in a restaurant. 
