Expert's Guide to Italian Pasta

Testing expert Jack Bishop breaks down everything you need to know when shopping for your next pasta at the supermarket.

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[javaskull]

I sure like Jack. He just radiates kindness.

[Mainecoonlady.]

Perfection…. Both my Nonnas would be proud. One from Naples, the other from Calabria made homemade pasta. Naples made heavier meat and cheese ravioli and potato gnocchi; while Calabria made long spaghetti, linguini and fettuccine. They moved from NY to Florida when I was a child. On visits, grandma was always drying the long pastas out in the sun on a little twig tree. My grandpa made her a mandolin pasta maker out of wood and guitar strings. She would stretch the dough over the strings and run the rolling pin over it. The pasta just fell through. Then out to the spaghetti tree, as we called it. Great video. Great memories. 👍🏻❤️👍🏻

[ratlips]

Thanks Jack. A great lesson for those of us that love our pasta!

[Berkana]

1:35 There's one thing I would dispute from this video: this notion that you need to boil pasta in a lot of water. In a lot of the dishes that I make, some of the pasta water is used in the sauce, and the starch in that water helps the sauce thicken. When I make aglio e olio, I use one pan, barely enough water to cook the pasta in, and only as much salt as I intend to eat in the dish. 100% of the starch from the pasta is retained, and it makes a fantastic smooth emulsion with the garlic flavored oil. You can't get as smooth an emulsion without using the starchy pasta water. But if you cook the pasta in a massive amount of water, the water simply will not be as starchy because the starch would be diluted.

[ssatva]

I've been very surprised by Garofalo, which I assumed was a discount brand as it's available in bulk at Costco. Turns out it's bronze cut, I think semolina, and it cooks and sauces very nicely in my experiments with it. Strongly absorbs the flavors when you finish it in a sauce, even if left very al dente.

[galaxy_mosaic]

that is wonderful. I gave up pasta during the low carb/no carb craze. then I discovered Lidia Bastianich and her recipes. and I fell in love with Italian cooking again and how comforting pasta is. thanks for the tip about gemelli (sp).

[kathrinlancelle]

La Molisana is better than De Cecco, widely available at grocery stores and affordable. Every time it goes on sale I buy a few packs.

[pizzapie]

I used to watch this show as a kid on PBS good to see it going strong on the internet

[stimpy]

Always loved DeCecco but when I found out about Rummo I was floored by the texture (chew) and taste which other people are not that fond of. Now I use both depending on what shape pasta it is.

[marcberm]

Gemeli is easily top for me also. My favorite Italian restaurant in Providence has a white ragu with veal and sweet peas over gemeli that is to die for!!! 😋

[wink]

Jack does such a nice job informing....

[JoeZasada]

The slow-dried/low-temp factor is huge. Rapidly-dried/high-temp pasta does not hold up well. Example: rigatoni, where the rapid-dried stuff will break apart in the pot before it is al dente.

Also the high temperatures used in rapid drying causes darkening of the pasta and changes the flavour.

To be fair, there really isn't a whole lot of bronze-die extruded pasta that is rapidly-dried at high temperatures. Usually, if a producer goes to the trouble of using bronze dies, they will go to the trouble of slow-drying and they will also go to the trouble of using premium wheat.

[melissastokes]

I learned several new tips to use when buying pasta, thank you!!

[thedracophile]

It was your Ligurian green bean, potato, pesto pasta that introduced me to gemelli. Been in pasta love ever since!

[michaelvaladez]

De Cecco..spaghetti #12 is my favorite..i love everything about it..its versatile and i find this brand is the best foe my needs !

[AnonymousSam]

My personal favorite brand is Rustichella D Abruzzo, not as common as DeCecco but I've found it at more "higher end" grocery stores like Fresh Market and Whole Foods.

[promx]

slow dried helps with gluten and digestion

[joelnelson]

I really like making macaroni and cheese with cavatappi instead of macaroni. The shape is more whimsical and my favorite macaroni and cheese recipe calls for vegetables that make it look amazing with that shape.

[davidfoxrn]

If you want to use the starchy water to emulsify your sauce, then you should use less water. I use just barely enough water to cook the spaghetti.

[Jana-ojzq]

Since the shortage of De Cecco bucatini in the US in 2020, I have come to covet and hoard it. It’s just the best shape for any kind of red sauce.