While in Italy a few years back, I was introduced to paparadelle pasta. It has become one of my favorites, especially in place of lasagna noodles in the Lasagna Casserole.
If I ever see squid ink pasta on a menu, I am quick to order that! I had it for the first time many years ago at a restaurant in Boston and have been able to enjoy it a few times since then.
I cook both fresh pasta and dried. For fresh pasta, my favorites are pappardelle, lasagna, and ravioli, but I also make fresh fettuccine and linguini.
For dried pasta, I like rotini/fusilli, white Dutch egg noodles, rigatoni, penne, and tagliatelle, and I tend to buy whole wheat dried pasta, when possible.
When I make fresh pasta, I generally use one part whole wheat flour, one part white flour, and one part semolina.
I prefer linguini to spaghetti, and so I never buy spaghetti, but I will buy capellini or vermicelli.
In addition, I cook a lot of rice and bean noodles. I'm not a big fan of soba noodles, and I've made them fresh, which is rather an ordeal, compared to other pasta.
It really depends on what I'm making, but I tend to keep orzo, rice noodles, linguini, penne and small shells on hand. Those work best in the recipes that I make regularly.
I remember some cookbook author raving about bucatini for use in one of her recipes. It's not a pasta that my grocery carries regularly, but I found it online. After using it, I laughed at myself for going to the trouble. Her recipe would have worked just as well with linguini or spaghetti.
I'm a real pasta lover. I think I've passed it on to my grandchildren. They'll ask for a bowl of pasta, no matter what kind, plain and will eat the whole thing. If I have to choose favorites, it would be thin spaghetti, bowties, and egg noodles.
I prefer spaghetti, DH prefers bucatini, for that type of pasta. Such conflict.
I like farfalle for some things, peppardelle for others, it's really about what I'm making, what kind of sauce, what else is in the dish.
Ooh, I do like orzo. I don't think of it as a pasta, but I guess it is. I like it as a side to salmon. But the next day, I toss the leftover salmon with farfalle and a light cream sauce (DH dilutes a jarred alfredo with a little milk and it's just right.)
I had a couple nearly empty boxes of pasta and have combined them, now I sometimes do it on purpose. The mix of textures or shapes makes it more interesting.
I like thin (or 'angel hair') spaghetti and the butterfly shape. I don't like thick bits like penne. Our Heinen's grocery has frozen "Italian Recipe" ravioli in tomato sauce and mushrooms w/fettuchini -- quick (6 minutes) and easy. Tender pasta.
In my pantry I keep orzo, linguini, fettuccini, spaghetti, capellini, large macaroni, campanelle and rotini. I also have a variety of asian noodles that I cook with, including soba, udon, rice noodles and ramen. I will buy large shells or lasagna noodles if I have plans to build a casserole, and pappardelle if I'm making a chunky ragu.
Shapes I don't care for include farfalle, penne, rigatoni, ziti, gnocchi, cavatelli, gemelli, orecchiette.
The only one I do not like is elbow macaroni - I pretty much like all the rest and have about 12-15 different kinds in stock at any one time, including the rice, bean, tapioca, soba, etc pasta. I have several Greek pastas that are very small - like couscous.
My all time favorite was DeBoles spaghetti with Jerusalem artichoke flour, but Hain bought DeBoles, and have pretty much disappeared them.
The extruded shapes I've liked the best are radiatore for thick sauces, orecchiette for thin sauces, shells for pasta salad with herb vinaigrette, fusilli for warm pasta salad with parmesan dressing, ditalini for deli style pasta salad with mayo-style dressing. For rolled, I like flat edged lasagna sheets for lasagna casserole, square sheets for stacked lasagna, buckwheat noodles for a variety of Asian dishes, and Auntie M's homemade "one egg noodles" for soup.
I like short cut pasta, but not if its really thick, like penne. I love campanelle, but can never find it anymore. I also love casareccia, and orecchectti. I use one of these to replace lasagna noodles and just do a baked layered pasta with my lasagna sauce instead. Not that I have anything against lasagne noodles, its just easier and more enjoyable for me to eat it with the short pastas.
Those are my top 3. If i can't find any of those for whatever reason I use medium shells.. I only use elbows for Mac and cheese. I tend to use bowties or gnocchi when I make alfredo. (Fun fact, my autocorrect keeps trying to change "bowties" to "booties." I do NOT use booty or booties in my pasta dishes.....)
I have a bag of pink heart shaped pasta that came in a food basket SO got me a few years ago for Valentines day that I am dying to use, but if i use it, then I won't have a bag of pink heart shaped pasta anymore......
I am with Cooper. Generally like just about any pasta. Only exception is spaghetti. When I was growing up it was the ONLY pasta we had and I guess I got sick of it!
Per current pantry, our favorite is Cavatappi. I like any dried pasta with enough folds and crinkles to hold a good amount of sauce. I don't like the flat cartoon shapes because the flat sides aren't pleasing to the mouth, and I don't often buy elbows or shells because they're boring. We always have regular size spaghetti. I do not care for linguine (too thick), and actually dislike angel hair pasta (way too thin).
I'm not a big pasta eater but I like the fun shaped smaller ones. I bought a bunch to have on hand because my Italian student eats pasta nearly every day. I had the misfortune to buy ditalini. Don't ever have it in your cupboard when there is an Italian in your home.
I'm gluten intolerant, but my grands love buttered noodles. We don't call it pasta. They fight over who gets to crank the noodle machine. Once when we were eating take out lo mein the grands got never ending noodles and they got a kick out of it. So when I make my noodles I don't cut them and leave them 2 to 2 1/2 foot long. Then I got to thinking why does noodles have to be boring beige. So at Christmas I split the dough into thirds and left one beige, made one red and one green. Layered them and when rolled out it made a tie dye look. Last month my one grand requested purple noodles for her birthday. I still have half a batch in the fridge and will make them for Valentine's day.
That sounds intriguing. I just checked and they do have it on Amazon (I've not seen it in a store). How does it taste?"
Lucille, it isn't strongly flavored and I think I've only had it with seafood sauces, so I can't really say that it has a distinctive or strong taste. Somewhere I looked said it's a bit briny tasting. The color is spectacular, tho' and usually if a restaurant is serving it, they are probably going to have a fabulous sauce on it to showcase the color.
I don't know that I've had it dried; it seems to me it has always been fresh pasta.
I like thin spaghetti and linguini. I just make a couple of pasta dishes. I like chicken Tetrazzini and I make a dish with linguini that is mainly just sauteed zucchini and mushrooms. I add sauteed onions, and parmesan.
I don't care for any pasta salads and not a huge fan of spaghetti. I like lasagna, but haven't made it in years. Might do that soon.
Love pretty well all pasta....but Mac and cheese HAS to be elbows....and so does what I call "America chop suey" and others call "goulash". And I really LOVE spinach noodles, just with butter and a little parmesan cheese. I prefer angel hair to spagetti with a red sauce, and fusilli or farfalla with a white sauce. But for a pasta salad it has to be fusilli. And then there is pastina....which I love just buttered....and alphabet noodles....which I haven't seen since my kids were little!
I am not big on pasta but my favorite pasta dishes would be a simple garlic buttered angel hair served with scampi or veal piccata, and Braciole e Orrechiette which is rolled flank steak stuffed with herbs and garlic and slow braised and served on a bed of "little ears" pasta in tomato sauce or Sunday gravy. I also like stuffed shells. I'm a carnivore. I have to have meat or seafood at a meal. Pasta is just a side or the bed for it lie on.
In the summer we really like angel hair with fresh Sun gold tomatoes halved, EVOO, garlic, basil, and parmesan cheese. Angel hair with shrimp scampi or seared scallops is also delish.
Other than that it's usually thin spaghetti with red sauce and meat balls, or linguini for alfredo sauce with chicken or shrimp. Spiral pasta for pasta salad. On rare occasions we will use Manicotti or the large shells stuffed with sausage and Ricotta.
I prefer rotini over fusilli for pasta salad and make it with fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, mozzarella cheese, and a simple vinaigrette salad dressing. I don't particularly like pasta salads made with mayonnaise, however, and I won't eat them if they have sweet pickles in them. I'm okay with olives in pasta salad, however.
CA Kate z9
Olychick
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