Featuring the long (spaghetti), the short (penne) and the twisty (fusilli).
The world of pasta shapes is a crazy one - there are just so many types of pasta! There are long pasta shapes, short pasta shapes, curly pasta shapes and even ones that look like little ears (mmmm, appetising...). So to help you understand the difference between fettucine and bavette, and to get an idea of what sauces work best with the likes of penne, farfalle and strozzapreti (which means 'priest choker' in Italian, btw *gulp*), here's a handy guide. An A - Z of pasta shapes, if you will.
Plus, while you're here, why not check out our favourite pasta recipes.
1
Pasta Shapes: A Is For Anelli
Category: Soup pasta
Pronunciation: Ah-nell-lee
Literal meaning: Rings
Typical pasta cooking time: 7-10 minutes
Anelli gets its name from 'anello', which is Italian for 'ring'.
2
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Anelli
Anelli is best served as part of delicious Italian soups.
3
Pasta Shapes: B Is For Bavette
Category: Ribbon pasta
Pronunciation: Bah-vet
Literal meaning: Little drip-threads
Typical pasta cooking time: 6-9 minutes
Bavette is believed to be one of the more ancient types of long pasta.
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4
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Bavette
Bavette is a narrower version of tagliatelle, so it works well with creamy sauces like our Creamy Tuscan sausage pasta.
5
Pasta Shapes: B Is For Bigoli
Category: Strand pasta
Pronunciation: Bee-go-lee
Typical pasta cooking time: 9-12 minutes
Initially, bigoli pasta was made with buckwheat flour, but it's now more commonly made with whole wheat flour.
6
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Bigoli
Seafood sauces work well with bigoli pasta.
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7
Pasta Shapes: B Is For Bucatini
Category: Tubular pasta
Pronunciation: Boo-ka-tini
Literal meaning: Little holes
Typical pasta cooking time: 9-13 minutes
Bucatini is a long pasta that's thicker than spaghetti and has a hole running through the centre.
8
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Bucatini
One of the most common sauces to be served with bucatini is the classic Amatriciana sauce. You've heard of bucatini all'amatriciana, right?
9
Pasta Shapes: C Is For Calamarata
Category: Tubular pasta
Pronunciation: Kah-lah-mah-rahta
Literal meaning: Squid-like
Typical pasta cooking time: 9-11 minutes
Calamarata originates from Naples and is often dyed with black squid ink to resemble calamari.
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10
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Calamarata
Calamarata goes well with most sauces, but ones with cheese always work well.
11
Pasta Shapes: C Is For Campanelle
Category: Shaped pasta
Pronunciation: Kam-pah-nelly
Literal meaning: Little bells
Typical pasta cooking time: 7-10 minutes
'Campanelle' is Italian for 'bell flowers' or 'little bells', which is where this cone-shaped pasta with ruffled edges gets its name.
12
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Campanelle
Campanelle is usually served with a thick sauce, or even in a casserole.
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13
Pasta Shapes: C Is For Cannelloni
Category: Tubular pasta
Pronunciation: Kan-uh-low-nee
Literal meaning: Large reeds
Typical pasta cooking time: 7-10 minutes
'Cannelloni' is Italian for 'large reeds'. This cylindrical type of lasagna generally served baked with a filling and covered with a sauce.
14
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Cannelloni
Cannelloni pasta tubes are basically a cylindrical type of lasagne. They are usually filled. Popular stuffings include spinach and ricotta or minced beef. The shells are then typically covered with tomato sauce and Béchamel, and baked in the oven.
15
Pasta Shapes: C Is For Capellini
Category: Strand pasta
Pronunciation: Kah-peh-lee-nee
Literal meaning: Fine hair
Typical pasta cooking time: 2-6 minutes
Capellini is a very thin variety of Italian pasta, with a diameter between 0.85mm and 0.92mm.
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16
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Capellini
Light sauces tend to work best with capellini pasta, as these won't weigh it down as much.
17
Pasta Shapes: C Is For Casarecce
Category: Shaped pasta
Pronunciation: Kah-sah-rech-ee
Literal meaning: From 'casereccio', meaning 'homemade'
Typical pasta cooking time: 10-12 minutes
Casarecce pasta originates from Sicily, and is shaped like short twists, which appear rolled up on themselves.
18
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Cassarecce
Cassarecce pasta goes with just about any sauce.
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19
Pasta Shapes: C Is For Cavatappi
Category: Tubular pasta
Pronunciation: Kah-vah-top-pee
Literal meaning: Corkscrews
Typical pasta cooking time: 9-10 minutes
'Cavatappi' is the Italian word for 'corkscrews'. This pasta is also known by other names, including cellentani, amori, spirali, and tortiglione.
20
Pasta Shapes: Cooked Cavatappi
Cavatappi is often served with tomato sauces such as amatriciana or pomodoro.
Anna Lewis
News Editor
Anna Lewis is the News Editor at Delish UK, which means she’s always either writing about food, cooking food or eating food. Anna is in charge of Delish UK’s epic food news output, ensuring you’re always up-to-date with the latest product launches, food trends, and restaurant news. She specialises in Slimming World recipes, but she’ll eat just about anything – ideally gherkins or ice-cream sandwiches (but not together).
