In honor of National Pasta Day, we’re serving up a visual guide to pasta types, plus recipe ideas for each one!
The dried pasta options at the store can be bewildering. Do you want corkscrews, stovepipes, or little ears tonight? Perhaps a big dish of priest stranglers—that’d be strozzapreti in Italian. There are reasons that pasta exists in so many forms. It’s partly regional (Italian cities big and small always seem to have a specialty pasta), but it’s also practical: Certain pastas are best eaten with certain sauces. Others work well with a wide variety of sauces—the workhorse pastas, like farfalle.
Related Reading: The Best Gluten-Free Pasta You Can Buy
The general rule is that delicate noodles (including fresh pasta) are for delicate sauces while heartier noodles are for heartier sauces, but similar to wine pairing, it’s not always that simple. So here’s a guide to help you sort it all out. And if you can’t tell your radiatore from your penne, we’ve got pictures. Of course, if this is too much pasta structure for you, we won’t snitch if your gemelli ends up in a seafood sauce.
We’ve cross-referenced this visual guide by pasta or by sauce and included some suggestions for specific recipes you can try. So dig in and mangia!
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Whatever shape you make, drain it with this handy tool (but save some pasta water for your sauce).
Pasta Types: A Visual Guide
Chowhound
Pasta: Acini de Pepe
Best Served: In Soup
Acini di pepe are literally “little peppercorns,” named for their tiny ball shape. Reminiscent of Israeli couscous, you’ll find them floating in recipes like Italian wedding soup.
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Pasta: Anelli/Annellini
Best Served: In Pasta Salad, Soup
Annelli are, wait for it… little rings. These round pieces are best eaten by the spoonful.
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Pasta: Bucatini
Best Served: Baked; With Tomato Sauce
Bucatini is a long, pipe-shaped pasta with a hole in the center—just wide enough to soak up a few saucy juices. Check out our recipe for Bucatini all’Amatriciana alla Robert Sietsema.
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Pasta: Calamari
Best Served: With Seafood and Tomato Sauce
These pasta bands are named for their squidlike shape, and are best with other shapely ingredients and sauces with a bit of substance.
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Pasta: Campanelle
Best Served: With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad
Campanelle are bells, just the perfect size for pocketing little nubs of cheese, veg, or meat. Check out our recipe for Heirloom Tomato–Basil Pasta with Olives and Feta with campanelle.
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Pasta: Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair)
Best Served: With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Seafood, Pesto, Tomato Sauce; In Soup
Light and ethereal, these wispy strands do well with lighter, thin sauces. Check out our recipes for Angel Hair Pasta with Green Garlic Cream Sauce and Angel Hair Pasta with Spicy Vodka Sauce.
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Pasta: Casarecce
Best Served: With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Pesto, Seafood, Tomato, Vegetables
Casarecce literally means “homemade,” owing to their loose, free-form shape. Their crevices are great for soaking up sauce.
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Pasta: Cavatelli
Best Served: With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad, Soup
Cavare is “to scoop” in Italian, appropriate for the hot dog bun–style crevices in cavatelli. They’re a signature shape in the southern region of Puglia.
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Pasta: Cavaturi
Best Served: In Pasta Salad
Cavaturi also have that scooped center, but are slightly longer and scroll-like.
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Pasta: Conchiglie
Best Served: With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Pesto, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad
Named for their conch shell–like appearance, these tubes can hold ample amounts of liquid. Check out our recipe for Pasta with Arugula Pesto, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and Pine Nuts with conchiglie, or try one of our favorite Crock-Pot pasta sauce recipes.
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Pasta: Ditalini
Best Served: Baked; In Pasta Salad & Soup
These “tiny fingers” are a classic choice for soups like pasta e fagioli, although they are a great choice for soaking up cheese and sauce in bakes, too. Check out our Pasta e Fagioli recipe with ditalini.
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Pasta: Farfalle
Best Served: With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Seafood, Vegetables, Pesto, Tomato Sauce; In Pasta Salad & Soup
We may know them as bow ties, but these all-purpose shapes are actually named for fluttering butterflies. Check out our recipe for Bow Tie Pasta with Corn, Thyme, and Parmesan.
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Pasta: Fettuccine
Best Served: With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Seafood, Vegetables, Tomato Sauce
A versatile favorite, fettuccine are “little ribbons,” working famously with Alfredo sauce, but also holding steady against robust meat, seafood, and vegetables. Check out our recipes for Fettuccine Alfredo, Fettuccine with Pesto, Asparagus, and Artichoke, and Milk-Braised Pork Shoulder Ragu with Fresh Fettuccine.
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Pasta: Fregula
Best Served: In Soup & Tomato Sauce
A Sardinian specialty, these grainlike bits add a chewy bite to soups and more. They’re usually toasted, giving them a brown-hued cast. Check out our recipe for Soup of Fregula with Baby Clams (Fregula kin Arsellas).
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Pasta: Fusilli
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables, Pesto, Tomato Sauce; In Soup & Pasta Salad
Fusilli is a short “spun” pasta with twisted surfaces that provide a chute for sauce to slide down. Check out our recipes for Spinach Pesto Fusilli and Fusilli with Parsley, Walnut, and Black Olive Pesto.
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Pasta: Fusilli col Buco
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables, Pesto, Tomato Sauce; In Soup & Pasta Salad
Also known as fusilli bucati, these long corkscrew spirals have a tiny hole inside each strand. This shape was originally made by wrapping bucatini around knitting needles.
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Pasta: Fusilli Napoletani
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables, Pesto, Tomato Sauce; In Soup & Pasta Salad
Fusilli Napoletani look like ribbons that have been tightly twirled, although they have just enough space down the center to hold a range of sauces.
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Pasta: Gemelli
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables, Pesto; In Soup & Pasta Salad
Gemelli are “twins,” named for their double helix–shaped strands. Check out our recipe for Dill, Chickpea, and Feta Pasta Salad with gemelli.
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Pasta: Gigli
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Meat, Tomato Sauce
Similar to campanelle, gigli are a little bit tighter and frillier, resembling the lilies for which they’re named (not that regrettable J. Lo movie from the early aughts).
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Pasta: Jumbo Shells
Best Served: Baked; With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables
An oversized variation on conchiglie, these egg-sized pieces are great for filling with cheese, chopped veggies, and more. Check out our Swiss Chard Stuffed Shells recipe.
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Pasta: Lasagna
Best Served: Baked; With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables
These flat sheets are well known for their favorite use: baked into saucy, belly-filling recipes. Check out our Lasagna alla Bolognese recipe, our Butternut Squash Lasagna recipe, our Pesto and Pea Lasagna recipe, and our Vegan Lasagna recipe.
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Pasta: Linguine
Best Served: With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Seafood, Vegetables, Pesto, Tomato Sauce
Long, flat, and narrow, linguine are best known for their pairing with clam sauce, although they are versatile and suitable for use with a wide range of sauces. Check out our recipes for Linguine with Clams and Zucchini (Linguine con Vongole e Zucchini), Linguine with Squash Noodles and Pine Nuts, and Linguine with Clams and Chorizo.
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Pasta: Lumaconi
Best Served: Baked; With Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables
Named after snails, these large, roly-poly shapes are big enough to stuff with cheese and veggies.
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Pasta: Macaroni
Best Served: Baked; With Buttter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Meat, Vegetables, Tomato Sauce; In Pasta Salad
Macaroni, of course, are iconic for their ability to hold cheese. It’s a pairing that has already gone down in history. Check out our Classic Macaroni and Cheese recipe and Tex-Mex Macaroni and Cheese recipe for starters, then brand out into muffin pan mac and cheese bites and healthy mac and cheese options.
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Pasta: Malloreddus
Best Served: With Butter/Oil, Meat & Tomato Sauce
This Sardinian shape (a cousin to gnocchi) may resemble a grub, but its ridged surfaces and chewy, thick texture make it perfect for holding heavier sauces. Check out this recipe for Malloreddus with Pork and Pancetta (Malloreddus kin Purpuzza).
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Pasta: Manicotti
Best Served: Baked; With Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables
These large tubes are a favorite shape for stuffing, holding heavy bundles of ricotta or ground meat.
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Pasta: Orecchiette
Best Served: With Meat, Vegetables, Pesto, Tomato Sauce; In Pasta Salad
These “little ears” are popular for their soft, rounded shape that adapts easily around all manner of accompaniments. Check out our recipes for Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Red Pepper Flakes, and Anchovies, Orecchiette with Chorizo and Swiss Chard, and Orecchiette with Pistachios.
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Pasta: Orzo
Best Served: Baked; In Pasta Salad & Soup
These rice-shaped pieces can soak up flavor readily, making them perfect for lightly dressed salads or simmering bakes. Check out our recipes for Celery and Olive Orzo Salad and Poached Chicken and Pomegranate Orzo.
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Pasta: Paccheri
Best Served: With Tomato Sauce & Vegetables
These smooth, thumb-sized tubes have their origins in Naples. They are suited for tossing in tomato-based sauces, but can also be found stuffed in some recipes.
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Pasta: Pappardelle
Best Served: With Meat Sauce
These long, broad, and weighty egg noodles have the heft to hold up to heavy meat- and cream-based preparations. Check out our recipe for Fresh Pappardelle with Butternut Squash and Thyme Cream Sauce. (These are an easy shape to master when making pasta at home.)
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Pasta: Pastina
Best Served: In Soup
The tiniest pasta of them all, pastina can be eaten almost like a porridge or added to soups.
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Pasta: Penne Lisce (a.k.a. Mostaccioli)
Best Served: Baked; With Cream/Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Meat, Vegetables
A bit on the slippery side, these smooth-surfaced quills are cut on the diagonal. Check out our Beet Greens and Feta Pasta recipe using this pasta type.
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Pasta: Penne Rigate
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad
These penne have a bumpy surface, which picks up sauce better than their smooth counterparts. Check out our recipe for Fresh Tomato Sauce with penne.
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Pasta: Radiatore
Best Served: Baked; With Tomato Sauce
These short, frilled shapes may look like deep-sea creatures, but they can catch chunks of tomato or cheese between each wing.
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Pasta: Riccioli
Best Served: Baked; With Tomato Sauce; In Pasta Salad
These delicate, twisted scrolls are capable of picking up light sauces and can stud cheesy bakes.
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Pasta: Rigatoni
Best Served: Baked; With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables
Named for their ridged lines, rigatoni are most commonly found in Sicily. These guys are sturdy enough to take on thicker and chunkier sauces. Check out our recipe for Creamy Rigatoni with Chicken and Mushrooms.
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Pasta: Rotelle
Best Served: Baked; With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad & Soup
Rotelle are wheels—they even have spokes! These quarter sized circles can be used festively in a number of ways, from mac and cheese to soup.
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Pasta: Rotini
Best Served: Baked; With Cream/Cheese, Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad
Rotini are barely discernible from fusilli, but they do have a slightly tighter spiral and a shorter overall length. Check out our recipe for Pasta with Broccoli, Crispy Prosciutto, and Toasted Breadcrumbs.
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Pasta: Sfoglia
Best Served: Baked; With Meat, Tomato Sauce, Vegetables
These are broad sheets of pasta—the kind you can make simply by passing through your pasta roller. Use them to make stuffed cannelloni.
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Pasta: Spaghetti
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Meat, Seafood, Vegetables
The legendary classic: These are long pasta with a rounded shape, perfect for twirling around a fork. Check out our recipes for Spaghetti and Meatballs and Slow Cooker Spaghetti Bolognese.
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Pasta: Spaghetti alla Chitarra
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Meat, Seafood, Vegetables
Associated with the central region of Abruzzo, these long strands have a square shape, created by running pasta sheets through the guitarlike instrument that gives them their name.
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The traditional stringed pasta cutting instrument for this shape.
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Pasta: Spaghettini
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Meat, Seafood, Vegetables
Thinner than regular spaghetti, these wiry pieces are best suited for lighter sauces.
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Pasta: Stelline
Best Served: In Soup
Oh my stars! These twinkling shapes will have you seeking out constellations in your soup.
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Pasta: Strozzapreti
Best Srved: With Meat & Vegetables
These twists are made by tightly coiling flat strips of pasta. The origin of their name (“priest stranglers”) is debated—some say that it’s because gluttonous priests would choke themselves on them.
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Pasta: Tagliarini
Best Served: With Butter/Oil & Cream/Cheese
Similar in width to fettuccine, these long, flat strands are often served in butter sauce.
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Pasta: Trenette
Best Served: Baked; With Tomato Sauce, Vegetables, Pesto
Associated with the northwestern region of Liguria, these linguine-like threads are usually served with pesto or simple sauces.
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Pasta: Trofie
Best Served: With Pesto
Trofie pasta is formed from tapered twists of dough. It’s most closely associated with Genoa, where it can often be found with pesto.
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Pasta: Tubettini
Best Served: Baked; In Soup
Smaller than ditalini, these tubular pieces are associated with minestrone soup. Check out our recipe for Minestrone.
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Pasta: Ziti
Best Served: Baked; With Butter/Oil, Cream/Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Meat, Vegetables; In Pasta Salad
Ziti are tubular and short like penne, but lack the ridges and have a square cut. They’re best known as an element in pasta bakes, although they also match up perfectly well with a range of sauces. Check out our recipe for Baked Ziti with Prosciutto.
Accompaniments and Preparations Index
Baked Pasta
Chowhound
Pictured: Our Easy Baked Macaroni and Cheese recipe
These shapes work best in baked casseroles such as Winter Greens Lasagna or Baked Radicchio and Mozzarella Pasta: Bucatini, Ditalini, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Gigli, Jumbo Shells, Lasagna, Lumaconi, Macaroni, Manicotti, Orzo, Penne Lisce (a.k.a. Mostaccioli), Penne Rigate, Radiatore, Riccioli, Rigatoni, Rotelle, Rotini, Sfoglia, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini, Trenette, Tubettini, Ziti
Butter/Oil
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Pictured: Our Basic Garlicky Spaghetti recipe
These pastas are best with delicate butter- and oil-based sauces, such as sage brown butter or aglio e olio: Campanelle, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Farfalle, Fettuccine, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Gigli, Linguine, Macaroni, Malloreddus, Penne Rigate, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini, Tagliarini, Ziti
Cream/Cheese
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Pictured: Our Fettuccine Alfredo recipe
Use more delicate sauces such as cacio e pepe or green garlic cream sauce with the thinner noodles in this list, and a robust sauce such as one made with Robiola Bosina cheese for the more substantial noodles: Campanelle, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Casarecce, Cavatelli, Conchiglie, Farfalle, Fettuccine, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Jumbo Shells, Lasagna, Linguine, Macaroni, Penne Lisce (a.k.a. Mostaccioli), Penne Rigate, Rigatoni, Rotelle, Rotini, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini, Tagliarini, Ziti
Meat
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Pictured: Our Pasta with Roasted Chicken, Raisins, Pine Nuts, and Parsley recipe
Pair these pastas with chunky meat sauces such as Wild Boar Ragu or Ragu alla Bolognese: Campanelle, Casarecce, Cavatelli, Conchiglie, Farfalle, Fettuccine, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Gigli, Jumbo Shells, Lasagna, Linguine, Lumaconi, Macaroni, Malloreddus, Manicotti, Orecchiette, Pappardelle, Penne Lisce (a.k.a. Mostaccioli), Rigatoni, Rotelle, Rotini, Sfoglia, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini, Strozzapreti, Ziti
Pasta Salad
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Pictured: Our Antipasto Pasta Salad recipe
Match the smaller pastas with recipes using finely chopped ingredients, such as this Couscouc salad with zucchini and pine nuts in which you can substitute pasta like acini di pepe or fregula for the couscous. The larger pastas in this list will hold up well with other pasta salad recipes that call for coarsely chopped ingredients: Anelli/Anellini, Campanelle, Cavatelli, Cavaturi, Conchiglie, Ditalini, Farfalle, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Macaroni, Orecchiette, Orzo, Penne Rigate, Riccioli, Rotelle, Rotini, Ziti
Pesto
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Pictured: Our Basil-Parsley Pesto recipe
Try anything from a Watercress-Walnut Dip or arugula pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, and pine nuts to parsley, walnut, and black olive pesto with these shapes: Bavette, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Casarecce, Conchiglie, Fettuccine, Farfalle, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Linguine, Orecchiette, Trofie
Seafood
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Pictured: Our Shrimp, Lemon, and Herb Kamut Spaghetti recipe
These shapes are ideal for scooping up pieces of seafood; try them with this San Marzano red clam sauce or clams and chorizo: Bavette, Calamari, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Casarecce, Farfalle, Fettuccine, Linguine, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini
Soup
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Pictured: Our Easy Chicken Noodle Soup from a Leftover Roasted Chicken recipe
Brothy soups are made even better when a handful of pasta is thrown in. Try these in Minestrone, Pasta e Fagioli, or as a substitute for the rice in this chicken soup: Acini di Pepe, Anelli/Anellini, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Cavatelli, Ditalini, Farfalle, Fregula, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Orzo, Pastina, Rotelle, Stelline, Tubettini
Tomato Sauce
Chowhound
Pictured: Our Angel Hair Pasta with Spicy Vodka Sauce recipe
The more delicate noodles pair well with simple sauces, such as a Basic Tomato Sauce or raw tomato sauce (marinate tomatoes and garlic in oil for a few minutes, then toss with cooked pasta and torn basil), while the more substantial noodles hold up nicely when prepared all’Amatriciana or paired with caramelized tomatoes and sausage: Bavette, Bucatini, Calamari, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Casarecce, Conchiglie, Farfalle, Fettuccine, Fregula, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gigli, Jumbo Shells, Lasagna, Linguine, Lumaconi, Macaroni, Malloreddus, Manicotti, Orecchiette, Paccheri, Penne Lisce (a.k.a. Mostaccioli), Penne Rigate, Radiatore, Riccioli, Rigatoni, Rotelle, Rotini, Sfoglia, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini, Trenette, Ziti
Vegetables
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Pictured: Our Kale and Mushroom Stroganoff recipe
Try these pastas with an assortment of vegetable sauces, from Eggplant-Pepper Tomato Sauce to beet greens and feta or broccoli, prosciutto, and toasted breadcrumbs: Campanelle, Capellini (a.k.a. Angel Hair), Casarecce, Cavatelli, Cavaturi, Conchiglie, Farfalle, Fettuccine, Fusilli, Fusilli col Buco, Fusilli Napoletani, Gemelli, Jumbo Shells, Lasagna, Linguine, Lumaconi, Macaroni, Manicotti, Orecchiette, Paccheri, Penne Lisce (a.k.a. Mostaccioli), Penne Rigate, Rigatoni, Rotelle, Rotini, Sfoglia, Spaghetti, Spaghetti alla Chitarra, Spaghettini, Strozzapreti, Trenette, Ziti
This post was originally published by Chowhound Editors on May 12, 2008.
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