Mafaldine Pasta: Reginette, Cooking Time and Best Sauces
Mafaldine are long, flat ribbons of pasta with ruffled edges on both sides, about 1 cm wide. They are also called reginette, “little queens”, and are strongly associated with Naples and southern Italy. The ruffles give the pasta a frilled outline and extra surface for sauce to cling to, which suits rich ragù, creamy mushroom […]
Fettuccine Pasta: Origins, Cooking Time and Best Sauces
Fettuccine is one of the best-known ribbon pastas in Italian cooking. The name means “little ribbons”, and the long, flat strands, about 5 to 6 mm wide, are made to carry creamy, buttery and meaty sauces. It is closely tied to Rome, and it became world famous through fettuccine Alfredo. This guide covers its origin, […]
Pappardelle Pasta: Tuscan Wide Ribbons, Cooking Time and Best Sauces
Pappardelle are very wide, flat ribbons of egg pasta, typically 2 to 3 cm across, and one of the signature pastas of Tuscany. They are made for slow-cooked, chunky sauces: wild boar and hare ragù, braised beef, mushrooms and other rich dishes. This guide explains where pappardelle come from, how they differ from other ribbons, […]
Tagliatelle Pasta: Origins, Cooking Time and Best Sauces
Tagliatelle are long, flat ribbons of egg pasta, a classic of Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy and the traditional partner of Bolognese ragù. The name comes from the Italian verb tagliare, “to cut”, because the rolled sheet of dough is cut into ribbons. This guide covers their origin, how they differ from fettuccine and pappardelle, how […]
Vermicelli Pasta: Types, Cooking Times and How to Use It
Vermicelli means “little worms” in Italian, and the word is used for very different foods depending on where you are. In Italy it is a long strand of wheat pasta that is traditionally a little thicker than spaghetti. In much of the English-speaking world and in Asia, “vermicelli” usually means thin, thread-like noodles made from […]
Cappelletti Pasta: Filled Hats from Emilia-Romagna
Cappelletti are small filled pasta shaped like little hats, which is what the name means. They come from Emilia-Romagna and neighbouring areas of northern Italy, where they are traditionally served in broth at Christmas and on other festive days. Each one is a square of thin dough, folded into a triangle around a spoonful of […]
Capellini (Angel Hair Pasta): Cooking Time and Best Sauces
Capellini, often sold as angel hair, is one of the thinnest long pastas you can buy. The name means “fine hairs”, and the strands are so slender that they cook in a few minutes and need a light touch from start to finish. Because it is so delicate, capellini suits thin, silky sauces rather than […]
Malloreddus Pasta: Sardinia’s Ridged Gnocchetti, Recipe and Serving Ideas
Malloreddus (also called gnocchetti sardi) are small, ridged, shell-shaped pasta from Sardinia. They are made from durum wheat semolina and water, with no potato, so despite the “gnocchetti” nickname they behave like pasta. The ridges and the hollow underside trap sauce, which is why malloreddus are traditionally served with a tomato and sausage ragù and […]
Ravioli Pasta: Fillings, Cooking Times and Best Sauces
Ravioli are small pockets of fresh pasta dough, usually square or round, filled with cheese, meat, vegetables or seafood. They come from Italy, and they are one of the best-known filled pastas in the world. The dough is thin, the filling is seasoned and concentrated, and the sauce is kept light so that the filling […]
Linguine Pasta: Origins, Cooking Time and Best Sauces
Linguine is a long, flat, narrow pasta from Liguria on Italy’s north-west coast. The name means “little tongues”, and the strands are slightly oval and about 3 to 4 mm wide, wider than spaghetti but narrower than fettuccine. That in-between shape suits seafood, olive oil, pesto and lighter tomato or cream sauces. This guide covers […]
