Pasta Shapes

[gfweb]

My favorite pastas...spaghetti, cavitappi,  cascarecci,  strozzapreti, rigatoni, Israeli cous cous

[gfweb]

@Katie Meadow
Agree completely on fat wavy edged lasagne noodles.

I use the no-boil flat thin ones. They build a more stable lasagna and are easier to work with.

They work great if soaked for 10 min and cooked for 50 min, contrary to the package instructions

[dcarch]

You guys don't know anything about what you can do with different pasta shapes.

 

dcarch

 

 

 

[heidih]

30 minutes ago, dcarch said:

You guys don't know anything about what you can do with different pasta shapes.

 

dcarch

 

 

 

 

I know kindergarten teachers that excel at it. The kids seem to enjoy sneaking the raw stuff and eating it also.  I do enjoy gemelli with any type of pesto. 

[liuzhou]

Here's another of those non-existent non-noodle Chinese pasta shapes. Multi-coloured couscous.

Coloured with beet, spinach and pumpkin.

 

 

 

Edited November 2, 2020 by liuzhou (log)

[Eatmywords]

On 11/1/2020 at 9:10 AM, shain said:

Bucatini is actually one of my favorite shapes. I just love its bite, mess be damned.

Me too.  Love the slippery-ness and flex from the straw hole.  One of the restos I worked in served it "ala Siciliana" - basically a chunky marinara w sautéed eggplant topped w a large dollop of ricotta.  Simple yet delicious.  Amicable customers were often warned, offered bibs or spoons to swirl and contain.  It didn't go well for the trouble makers.

[pastameshugana]

On 10/31/2020 at 4:25 PM, MokaPot said:

Angel hair pasta is a divisive pasta shape. Carla of Bon Appetit, who is Italian, disparages angel hair pasta. I would have to agree with Carla on angel hair. Too skinny for thick sauces (hard to get a good pasta to sauce ratio). If you want to make a chunky sauce, you've got big chunks plus skinny threads of pasta: not a good match. Angel hair is maybe easy to overcook because it's so skinny. Step away from the pot and boom, it's overcooked.

 

I'm sure there are sauces that go well with angel hair, however.

 

All of this is stated in good fun, in case it didn't come across.

 

Angel hair is great with something super simple: Like browned butter & sage, or just butter & garlic.

 

Or if you're my kids, just OO or butter.

 

But I agree anything meaty or chunky just kills it.

 

And farfalle is a pain in the butt. Even eating it. It just slides around your plate like you're trying to grab the last sliver of a bar of soap with wet hands.

[Alex]

Am I the only one here who doesn't mind farfalle? Granted there's only one dish* I make that uses farfalle, and even then, it's not required, but I think it's a fun shape. I just spear it one butterfly at a time. 

 

* browned butter + butternut squash cubes, shallot, sage, parsley

[kayb]

12 hours ago, liuzhou said:

Here's another of those non-existent non-noodle Chinese pasta shapes. Multi-coloured couscous.

Coloured with beet, spinach and pumpkin.

 

 

 

Well, that's cute. Bet kids love it.

 

[chromedome]

1 hour ago, Alex said:

Am I the only one here who doesn't mind farfalle? Granted there's only one dish* I make that uses farfalle, and even then, it's not required, but I think it's a fun shape. I just spear it one butterfly at a time. 

 

* browned butter + butternut squash cubes, shallot, sage, parsley

I don't mind it at all, often use it for salads. I also do baked mac & cheese with it for the grandkids sometimes, because they liked their 'butterflies." Though that may be over, now that the 5 yo is in school. Last time I offered to make her some butterflies, she give me the eyeroll and said "Papa...those are bowties."

 

Today's pasta goes in an entirely different direction, though. GF was watching Food Network and some guy was doing ricotta-filled ravioli with brown butter and sage. She asked "is that something you could do?" so yeah...that's what's for dinner. I made up the dough last night, and will make and fill them today.

[heidih]

1 minute ago, chromedome said:

I don't mind it at all, often use it for salads. I also do baked mac & cheese with it for the grandkids sometimes, because they liked their 'butterflies." Though that may be over, now that the 5 yo is in school. Last time I offered to make her some butterflies, she give me the eyeroll and said "Papa...those are bowties."

 

I think their use in pasta salads - bad ones - is part of my aversion. As to terminology - even little kids today are conversant with pollinator preservation so "bowties" probably prevails. 

[teonzo]

If you call farfalle "butterflies" or "bowties" you are correct in both cases. The main meaning for farfalle is "butterflies", while bowties are called "farfalline" or "cravatte a farfalla". For us it's an ambivalent term.

 

Bucatini is the real test if you are Italian or not: if you have troubles eating them, then you need more time here.

 

Angel hair pasta is meant to be served in broth (only broth and nothing more), serving it with a sauce is not "orthodox".

 

 

 

Teo

 

[Chimayo Joe]

Never been a fan of farfalle, and more recently I've discovered I don't like trompetti.  I like ridged tube shaped pastas, rigatoni probably being my favorite of those.  Linguine is my long strand pasta of choice, but I like all of those pretty well including bucatini and angel hair.

[gfweb]

2 hours ago, teonzo said:

If you call farfalle "butterflies" or "bowties" you are correct in both cases. The main meaning for farfalle is "butterflies", while bowties are called "farfalline" or "cravatte a farfalla". For us it's an ambivalent term.

 

Bucatini is the real test if you are Italian or not: if you have troubles eating them, then you need more time here.

 

Angel hair pasta is meant to be served in broth (only broth and nothing more), serving it with a sauce is not "orthodox".

 

 

 

Teo

 

 

I'd like a video of proper bucatini technique.

 

I've searched and only found a joke video of some gavone using it as a straw and eating it with fork and spoon

Edited November 2, 2020 by gfweb (log)

[weinoo]

I think the main thing with bucatini is that it really can't be cooked al dente. Well (properly) cooked all the way through, and it is less problematic.

 

[Katie Meadow]

Although I haven't made bucatini in several years I really don't remember it being problematic, either in the cooking or the eating, although I was probably more coordinated in times past. It was always the favorite pasta shape of my nephew, who since starting a hospitality business favored everything Italian. He learned to speak Italian, cultivated a Bed-Stuy soap opera accent (he grew up in CT) and dressed like a natty mobster. He never sprayed a drop of sauce from his bucatini on his beautiful suits. Hard times for that line of work these days; he's the sweetest, kindest guy on earth and is just torn up about all the people he has had to lay off. So grateful I am retired with very few obligations or reasons to leave home or get dressed up. And so so glad I don't own my own business in these pandemic times. Now I'm curious to make some bucatini and see just how much wrangling it demands. Not tomorrow.

[liuzhou]

9 hours ago, kayb said:

Well, that's cute. Bet kids love it.

 

I suppose so. It is marketed towards feeding kids.

[teonzo]

21 hours ago, gfweb said:

I'd like a video of proper bucatini technique.

 

No video, sorry.

It's something you learn when you are little: you make a big mess at the beginnings, your mother scolds you, you get sick of being scolded until you learn to not make a mess.

You just need to pick few bucatini with the fork and roll them gently. It's easier if you put your fork near the rim of the dish, not in the center. If you approach them like spaghetti then you are dead. If you are cautious starting from the outside, then you can eat them even at your wedding party.

 

The "al dente" phrase does not mean a defined texture (not soft, almost hard) and it being the only correct one every time. It just defines the correct point for each food, which varies each time. Bucatini al dente have a different texture than spaghetti al dente. Paccheri al dente are hard, angel hair al dente are soft. So on with every pasta shape, rice, every vegetable.

 

 

 

Teo

 

[Paul Bacino]

Saffron Chitarra (hairy pasta ) and Raditorri

 

[MokaPot]

That hairy pasta looks like the sauce would really cling to it.

[Paul Bacino]

17 minutes ago, MokaPot said:

That hairy pasta looks like the sauce would really cling to it.

Yeah..look at this stick

 

[Kim Shook]

I thought these were cute (but I bet I still wouldn't like them):

 

[Eatmywords]

5 minutes ago, Kim Shook said:

I thought these were cute (but I bet I still wouldn't like them):

 

 

 

Gluten free!  Did it come w seasoning? I would go more Asian over Italian. 

[Kim Shook]

9 minutes ago, Eatmywords said:

 

Gluten free!  Did it come w seasoning? I would go more Asian over Italian. 

I don't think there was any seasoning.  Just plain pasta.  I'm wondering if they are all rice or if they have some wheat in them.  I know some pasta labeled "rice" do have some wheat.  

[weinoo]

On 10/30/2020 at 11:10 AM, Eatmywords said:

I haven't found any issues w (slightly) better generic brands like Barilla or De Cecco.   (Not all us serfs have the means and access to the freshly picked good stuff off the semolina trees in Naples)

 

 

A sort of pasta e fagioli, but with added hot Italian sausage to the fagioli sauce I had saved from a dish I made earlier this week.

 

Fusilli works nicely.  And guess what - it's De Cecco! Just like the fancy Yorktown Heights people use. (De Cecco uses flours from California, Arizona and Italy (but not near Naples) and it cooks evenly all the way through).