Which Pasta Shape Goes With Which Sauce?

[ Photo: Flickr ] conchiglioni

Have you ever had a hard time to choose a pasta shape? Sometime we don't know exactly which pasta shape goes with which sauce. When the sauce matches the pasta, and the pasta shape matches the texture of the sauce, both can create the perfect taste. Here are some tips to choose the pasta for your incredible pasta dish. Press start on the top. 

[ Photo: Flickr ] conchiglioni

Conchiglioni shape looks like shells, so it is often stuffed and baked.

[ Photo: Flickr / Nanagyei] Fusilli

Fusilli means "twists" in Italian. This is a good choice for pasta salads, casseroles, or for serving with hearty, thick sauces. Pieces of meat and vegetable are captured in the crevices of fusilli, so it makes the taste good.

[ Photo: Flickr ] Farfalle

Farfalle resembles butterflies. They are served with chunky sauces or salads. A smaller version is called farfallini, and a larger version is called farfallone.

[ Photo: Flickr ] Ruote

Ruote means wheel in Italian. They match well with chunky sauces such as ragu, and salads. Tri-color pasta is especially good for salad because of the vibrant colors.

[ Photo: Flickr ] penne

The word "penne" is derived from Latin penna, meaning quill, and is a cognate of the English word pen. The ridges of Penne allow it to hold more sauce, so they are served with pasta sauces such as pesto and simple tomato sauce.

[ Photo: Flickr ] macaroni

Macaroni can go well with creamy or thick sauce. They are small so cannot hold chunky sauce.

[ Photo: Flickr ] capellini

Capellini literally means angel hair. They match best with light olive-oil-based sauces.

[ Photo: Flickr ] fettuccine

Fettuccine's thicker strands can hold thick cream sauce. The most popular sauce for fettuccine is alfredo. They also match with ragu.

[ Photo: Flickr ] linguine

It is wider than spaghetti, but not as wide as fettuccine. While spaghetti accompany meat and tomato sauce, linguine are often served with seafood or pesto.

[ Photo: Flickr ] spaghetti

Spaghetti is served with garlic and oilve oil, tomato sauce, meat, and many other sauces.