Yet another vote for spirals, and if it has to be long, then angel hair. I make enough of a mess as it is, and those seem to minimize it.
I guess for the same reason I’m not a big fan of rigatoni or other tube-type pasta.
Having said all this though, I’ve just about never met a pasta I won’t eat, since it is one of my favorite foods. I’m a carboholic. Yay me.
Hey, me too. I use it when making something with a thick sauce, like macaroni and cheese (except its obviously campanelle and cheese) and it gives a little more flair to an otherwise unexotic dish.
Color me as also not being fond of the really thin strand pasta. It’s okay with shrimp scampi, I guess, but for something with a marinara sauce, I’ll take a thicker spaghetti. For something with a cream or carbonara sauce, or a ragu, I like flat noodles, like fettucini or tagliatelle, preferably fresh made (you can really tell with flat noodles). With any pasta, boil al dente and then don’t wash it, as washing removes all the glutens that help the sauce stick to the noodles. Just toss it in a collander to remove the excess water from boiling and then plate it or toss the sauce over it.
Stranger
Seashells. I usually eat while reading or on the web, and normal pasta drives me crazy (even
tho oddly I kind of enjoy it in a social setting, with the twirling bit. But twirling while alone is
majorly distracting).
For clarification, don’t wash it if you’re going to immediately toss the pasta with the sauce. My family tends to make pasta and sauce separately and allow everyone to serve themselves their own portions of pasta and as much or little sauce (or main dish like eggplant parmesan which I serve over pasta) as you like. I’m a light on the sauce kind of girl, Mr. Armadillo is a mostly sauce with a little pasta kind of guy. We always rinse the pasta because if we don’t it ends up sticking together in a big clump in the colander.
Farfalle. Great when tossed with olive oil, sauteed garlic, Parmesan, parsley, oregano and sometimes garlic-lime chicken.
Well I’m kind of partial to this shape.
Although there are some who probably prefer these.
Fettucine. Of course, if there is place which makes their noodles thicker, I’m willing to change.
Spag Bog, plain and simple.
I love rigatoni, penne, and wagon wheels (rotelle). Mmmmmm.
Shells for me. Or conchiglie, as it seems they are called in Italian.
Fusilli for me - left-hand thread, if possible.
Campagnelle, which is getting hard to find 'round here, for pasta salads. Orzo for soups (I have a case in the pantry.) Linguine for a long noodle. I’m not a huge fan of angel hair either.
I like fettuccine. Enough tooth to feel like you’re eating something, and slathered all over with Alfredo sauce or a good pesto it’s hard to beat. Angel hair is another favorite. I just like the way it feels in my mouth.
Molto bene!