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Some different colours and shapes of pasta, in a pasta specialty store in Venice.
While the only basic difference between these names is the shape of the pasta, each pasta is typically matched with a particular sauce based on cooking time, consistency, ability to hold sauce, ease of eating, etc. For example, in the same way that hamburgers are generally not eaten on hot dog buns, pasta amatriciana is not made with angel hair spaghetti, but with bucatini. Some pasta varieties are uniquely regional and not widely known. In other cases, the cut of pasta is present in more than one region, but the cut is called by another name. For example, the cut rotelle is also called by the names ruote and wagon wheel.
Italian pasta names ending in "ini" carry the connotation "little"; "oni", large. Also, Italian pasta names ending in "i" and generally "e" are plural.
[edit] Pasta-like shapes
Image |
Type |
Common? |
Description |
Translation |
|
Campanelle |
No |
Flattened bell-shaped pasta with a frilly edge on one end |
Little bells |
|
Capunti |
No |
Short convex ovals resembling an open empty pea pod |
|
|
Casarecce |
No |
Short lengths rolled into an S shape |
From casereccio meaning homemade |
|
Cavatelli |
Yes |
Short, solid lengths |
From the verb cavare meaning to hollow |
|
Cencioni |
No |
Petal shaped, slightly curved with rough convex side |
Little rags |
|
Conchiglie |
Yes |
Seashell shaped |
Shells |
|
Conchiglioni |
Yes |
Large, stuffable seashell shaped |
Large shells |
|
Corzetti |
|
flat figure-eight stamped |
|
Creste di galli |
No |
Short, curved and ruffled |
Cocks' combs |
|
Croxetti |
Yes |
Flat coin-shaped discs stamped with coats of arms |
Little crosses |
|
Fantolioni |
No |
Panda-shaped bow-ties commonly served with boiled clives |
Pre-packaged pandas |
|
Farfalle |
Yes |
Bow tie or butterfly shaped |
Butterflies |
|
Farfallone |
No |
Larger bow ties |
Large butterfly |
|
Fiorentine |
Yes |
Grooved cut tubes |
Florentine |
|
Fiori |
Yes |
Shaped like a flower |
Little flowers |
|
Foglie d'ulivo |
Yes |
Shaped like an olive leaf |
Olive leaf |
|
Fusilli |
Yes |
Three-edged spiral, usually in mixed colours. Many vendors and brands sold as fusilli are two-edged |
From fusile, archaic/dialect form of fucile, meaning rifle. As the inside barrel of a gun is "rifled" using a similar screw-shaped device |
|
Fusilli Bucati |
No |
A spring-shaped variety of the above |
Holed rifles |
|
Gemelli |
Yes |
A single S-shaped strand of pasta twisted in a loose spiral |
Twins |
|
Gigli |
No |
Cone or flower shaped |
Lilies |
|
Gramigna |
No |
Short curled lengths of pasta |
Scutch-grass; more generically, "infesting weed" |
|
Lanterne |
No |
Curved ridges |
Lantern holders |
|
Lumache |
No |
Snail shaped |
From lumaca, meaning snail |
|
Lumaconi |
No |
Jumbo Lumache |
Large snails |
|
Maltagliati |
Yes |
Flat roughly cut triangles |
Badly cut |
|
Mandala |
No |
Designed by Philippe Starck in 1987 for French pasta maker Panzani.[1] |
Design based on compensating for overcooking. |
|
Marille |
No |
Designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro in 1983 - like a rolling ocean wave in cross-section with internal rugosities, but unsuccessful and no longer produced.[2] |
From mare, meaning "sea" |
|
Orecchiette |
Yes |
Bowl or ear shaped pasta |
Little ears |
|
Pipe |
Yes |
Larger versions of macaroni |
Smoking pipes |
|
Quadrefiore |
No |
Square with rippled edges |
Flower quadrants |
|
Radiatore |
Yes |
Shaped like radiators |
Radiator |
|
Ricciolini |
No |
Short wide noodles with a 90-degree twist |
From riccio, curly |
|
Ricciutelle |
No |
Short spiralled noodles |
From riccio, curly |
|
Rotelle |
Yes |
Wagon wheel shaped pasta |
Little wheels (from ruota—wheel) |
|
Rotini |
Yes |
2-edged spiral, tightly wound. Some vendors and brands are 3-edged and sold as rotini |
|
|
Spirali |
Yes |
A tube which spirals round |
Spirals |
|
Spiralini |
No |
More tightly-coiled fusilli |
Little spirals |
|
Strangolapreti |
Yes |
Rolled across their width |
Priest-chokers or priest-stranglers |
|
Torchio |
No |
Torch shaped |
Winepress |
|
Trofie[3] |
Yes |
Thin twisted pasta |
|
[edit] Tubular pasta
Image |
Type |
Common? |
Description |
Translation |
|
Bucatini |
Yes |
Hollow spaghetti |
little holes |
|
Calamarata |
No |
Wide ring shaped pasta |
squid (also known as "calamari") |
|
Calamaretti |
No |
Smaller Calamarata |
|
|
Cannelloni |
Yes |
Large stuffable tubes |
big pipes or big reeds |
|
Cavatappi |
No |
Corkscrew-shaped macaroni |
corkscrews; also known as Cellentani and Scoobi do |
|
Cellentani |
No |
Corkscrew-shaped tube |
also known as Cavatappi and Scoobi do |
|
Chifferi |
No |
Short and wide macaroni |
|
|
Ditalini |
Yes |
Short tubes; like elbows but shorter and without a bend |
small fingers |
|
Fideuà |
No |
Short and thin tubes |
|
|
Gomito maccheroni |
Yes |
Bent tubes |
Elbow macaroni |
|
Elicoidali |
No |
Slightly ribbed tube pasta; the ribs are corked as opposed to those on rigatoni |
Helicoidal |
|
Fagioloni |
No |
Short narrow tube |
little beans |
|
Garganelli |
No |
Square egg noodle rolled into a tube |
|
|
Maccheroni |
Yes |
As long as a little finger, usually striped. Note: The English term macaroni is used in the US for any tubular pasta, not just maccheroni. |
|
|
Maccheroncelli |
No |
Hollow pencil shaped pasta |
|
|
Maltagliati |
No |
Short wide pasta with diagonally cut ends |
Roughly cut |
|
Manicotti |
Yes |
Large stuffable ridged tubes |
Sleeves (from the Italian, "manica") |
|
Mezzani pasta |
No |
Short curved tube |
From Mezzo meaning half-size |
|
Mezze Penne |
Yes |
Short version of penne |
half-pens |
|
Mezzi Bombardoni |
No |
Wide short tubes |
Half bombards |
|
Mostaccioli |
Yes |
Sometimes confused to be another name for Penne, Mostaccioli differs in that it does not have ridges. Mostaccioli is also called Penne Lisce or "smooth penne" |
"mustaches" |
|
Paccheri |
No |
Large tube |
|
|
Pasta al ceppo |
No |
Shaped like a cinnamon stick |
|
|
Penne |
Yes |
Medium length tubes with ridges, cut diagonally at both ends |
literally "pens" because the tip is similar to that of a quill, or fountain pen |
|
Penne rigate |
Yes |
Penne with ridged sides |
|
|
Penne lisce |
Yes |
Penne with smooth sides |
|
|
Penne Zita |
No |
Wider version of penne |
|
|
Pennette |
No |
Short thin version of penne |
|
|
Pennoni |
No |
Wider version of penne |
|
|
Perciatelli |
No |
Thicker bucatini |
From the verb Perciare meaning Hollow inside |
|
Rigatoncini |
No |
Smaller version of rigatoni |
|
|
Rigatoni |
Yes |
Large and slightly curved tube |
from "riga," meaning line: rigatoni means that with lines (large). "rigato" or "rigate", when added to another pasta name means lined, or, with ridges added, as in "spaghetti rigati" |
|
Sagne Incannulate |
No |
Long tube formed of twisted ribbon |
|
|
Trenne |
No |
Penne shaped as a triangle |
|
|
Trennette |
No |
Smaller version of trenne |
|
|
Tortiglioni |
No |
Narrower rigatoni |
From the verb Torcere meaning To Twist; Twisted, wringed |
|
Tuffoli |
No |
Ridged rigatoni |
|
|
Ziti |
Yes |
Long, narrow hose-like tubes |
|
Zitoni |
No |
Wider version of Ziti |
|
[edit] Strand noodles
[edit] Straight round-rods
In order from thickest to thinnest.
Image |
Type |
Common? |
Pronunciation |
Description |
Translation |
|
Spaghettoni |
Yes |
[spagetˈtoni] |
Thick spaghetti |
Thick little twine |
|
Spaghetti |
Yes |
[spaˈgetti] |
Most common round-rod pasta |
spago means twine, spaghetto means little twine, spaghetti is plural |
|
Spaghettini |
Yes |
[spagetˈtini] |
Thin spaghetti |
thin little twine |
|
Fedelini |
No [1] |
[fedeˈlini] |
Between spaghetti and vermicelli in size |
little faithful ones |
|
Vermicelloni |
No [2] |
[vermitʃelˈloni] |
Thick vermicelli |
Thick little worms |
|
Vermicelli |
Yes |
[vermiˈtʃɛlli] |
Thicker than capellini, thinner than fedelini |
little worms |
|
Capellini |
Yes |
[kapelˈlini] |
Thinner than vermicelli, thicker than angel hair |
fine hair |
|
Capelli d'angelo |
Yes |
[kaˈpelli ˈdandʒelo] |
Thinnest round-rod pasta |
angel hair |
Image |
Type |
Common |
Description |
Translation |
|
Barbina |
No |
Thin strands often coiled into nests |
little beards |
|
Spaghetti alla chitarra |
No |
Similar to spaghetti, except square rather than round, and made of egg in addition to flour |
named after the device used to cut the pasta, which has a wooden frame strung with metal wires. Sheets of pasta are pressed down onto the device, and then the wires are "strummed" so that the slivers of pasta fall through. |
|
Ciriole |
No |
Thicker version of chitarra |
|
|
Fusilli lunghi |
No |
Very long coiled rods (like a thin telephone cord) |
long rifles |
|
Pici |
|
Very thick, long, hand rolled |
|
[edit] Ribbon pasta noodles
[edit] Micro pasta
[edit] Stuffed pasta
Image |
Type |
Common? |
Description |
Translation |
|
Agnolotti |
Yes |
Semi-circular pockets; can be stuffed with ricotta or mix of cheese and meats or pureed vegetables. |
Lambs' ears |
|
Cannelloni |
Yes |
Rolls of pasta with stuff inside. Usually cooked in oven. |
Big tubes |
|
Casoncelli |
Yes |
A semi-circular stuffed pasta, specifically associated with the style alla bergamasca, which is stuffed with a mixture of bread crumbs, egg, cheese, ground beef, salami, raisins, Amaretti biscuits, pear, and garlic.[4] |
|
|
Fagottini |
Yes |
A 'purse' or bundle of pasta, made from a round of dough gathered into a ball-shaped bundle, often stuffed with ricotta and fresh pear.[5] |
Little purses |
|
Mandu |
Yes |
Commonly referred as dumpling, "potsticker" or "gyoza." Stuffed with vegetables, meat, and seafood. Pronounced [Mah-n-doo]. Can be steamed, boiled, pan-fried or deep-fried. |
|
|
Mantı |
Yes |
Turkish dumplings. Small squares of dough with a bit of meat put in the middle, after which the four corners are pressed together, giving a pyramidal shape. Served with yoghurt sauce and melted butter. Central Asian mantı is more like mandu. |
|
|
Mezzelune |
No |
Semi-circular pockets; about 2.5 in. diameter. |
Half-moons |
|
Panzerotti |
Yes |
the pasta is made from eggs cheese and flour |
|
|
Pelmeni |
No |
Meat-filled dumplings, usually served in broth. |
|
|
Pierogi |
No |
Dumplings filled with meat, vegetables, cheese or fruit. |
|
|
Ravioli |
Yes |
Square. About 3x3cm. Stuffed with cheese, ground meat, pureed vegetables, or mixtures thereof. |
Possibly from rapa, "turnip". |
|
Sacchettini |
No |
|
Little sacks |
|
Tortellini |
Yes |
Ring-shaped. Stuffed with a mixture of meat and cheese. |
|
|
Tortelloni |
Yes |
Round or rectangular, similar to ravioli. Usually stuffed with a mixture of cheese and vegetables. (The term tortelloni is also used for a larger variety of tortellini.) |
|
[edit] Irregular shapes
Image |
Type |
Common? |
Description |
Translation |
|
Gnocchi |
Yes |
Round in shape and often made with flour plus potatoes. |
From the Italian gnocco, meaning "a knot in wood" |
|
Spätzle |
Yes |
German egg pasta that is either round in shape or completely irregular, when hand made. |
Means "little sparrow" in Swabian German. |
[edit] References