The worst pasta shapes, according to BA editors
Pray for wagon wheels, send help to angel hair
Pasta and arguments go hand in hand. They both get imported from Italy in equal volume, making Americans sound uncannily like Italians when bickering over the best pairings of shapes and sauces. As for the best and worst? Well, asking my colleagues brought out everyone’s inner Tucci. As we have established in this newsletter, the Bon Appetit staff can’t even agree on what a serving of pasta is.
The Worst
It’s a tie between rotelle (wagon wheels) and cappellini (angel hair). Wagon wheels have a horrible tendency to stay raw in the middle, but break apart at their support struts, leading to…flat tires? They do love to soak up thicker sauces. I have a fond childhood memory of my mom’s very bechamel-forward mac and cheese with this shape,. but even nostalgia can’t save it for me. In 15 years, not one Bon Appétit recipe has called for it.
Angel hair is often maligned as well, and while I will never pick it over spaghetti for something like tomato sauce, its off-label uses make it hard for me to write it off completely. I like to break it up and cook small quantities into soups like an alt pastena, toast it in butter then make rice pilaf, or treat it like fideos. But angle hair and meatballs? Fuggeddaboutit.
The Best
Clearly rigatoni’s day. It is an easy pasta to love, and as a recipe developer, I often chose it because it looks great in photos and works with almost any sauce. The volume it fills on a plate or bowl, given the negative space each tube contains, makes it consistently visually appealing. It also cooks effortlessly, given its perfectly even walls and uniform shape.
The shocker here is that orecchiette beat out bucatini, a favorite among food stylists. I don’t have anything against orecchiette, and love it particularly as a fresh pasta, since it is so easy to shape by hand. But as dried pasta? Meh. It sits a bit densely on the plate, but admittedly is great in combination with other chunky ingredients, like broccoli rabe and sausage, or alongside chickpeas in a tomatoey broth.
I often marvel at how divergent the opinions on our staff are, and not just about pasta. Recipes and food culture aren’t about reaching consensus, and moments like this remind me that our goal is not necessarily to agree. It’s to come together at the same table, share our perspectives, and maybe pass the Parm while we’re at it.
Here is a special link for free access to one of my favorite summer pasta recipes: Summer Squash and Basil Pasta.
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In the last year I discovered Gemelli pasta for the first time and it became an immediate favorite. It's incredibly versatile, holds up well when cooking for a lot of people and can take a fair amount of abuse, i.e. doesn't fall apart or turn into mush if a bit overcooked.
I found it when planning a pop-up dinner for a friend's wine bar using a fantastic recipe for a tomato based dish where the pasta is cooked in the sauce and arugula is added at the end. I needed something that could be kept warm to serve throughout the evening as diners would arrive anytime during a 3 hr period. The dish was a hit and no one complained about mushy pasta. Gemelli for the win!
Fusilli, the darling of American pasta salad recipes just shouts mediocrity, not Italian