When it comes to choosing a favorite pasta shape, it's a bit like choosing a favorite child, according to the Italian chefs we spoke with. "My love for pasta runs deep. I could never pick a 'worst' shape, but there are some criteria that make one less desirable," Indaco Executive Chef Tito Marino tells us.
In most cases, it comes down to what sauce you're pairing with the pasta and how you're serving it, says Osteria Olio, executive chef of JR Bearden. That means there's room for a wide variety of shapes as part of a tasteful menu, which is why we've created a guide to 27 pasta cuts—and how to use them—and have sorted all our pasta recipes by shape.
