UNIQUE SHAPES |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Campanelle |
Flattened bell-shaped pasta with a frilly edge on one end |
Little bells |
Capunti |
Short convex ovals resembling an open empty pea pod |
|
Casarecce |
Short lengths rolled into an S shape |
From casereccio meaning homemade |
Cavatelli |
Short, solid lengths |
From the verb cavare meaning to hollow |
Cencioni |
Petal shaped, slightly curved with rough convex side |
Little rags |
Conchiglie |
Seashell shaped |
Shells |
Conchiglioni |
Large, stuffable seashell-shaped |
Large shells |
Corzetti |
Flat figure-eight stamped |
|
Creste di Galli |
Short, curved and ruffled |
Cocks’ combs |
Croxetti |
Flat coin-shaped discs stamped with coats of arms |
Little crosses |
Fantolioni |
Panda-shaped bow-ties commonly served with boiled olives |
Pre-packaged pandas |
Farfalle |
Bow tie or butterfly shaped |
Butterflies |
Farfallone |
Larger bowties |
Large butterfly |
Fiorentine |
Grooved cut tubes |
Florentine |
Fiori |
Shaped like a flower |
Little flowers |
Foglie d’ulivo |
Shaped like an olive leaf |
Olive leaf |
Fusilli |
Three-edged spiral, usually in mixed colors. Many vendors and brands sold as fusilli are two-edged |
From fusile, archaic/dialect form of fucile, meaning rifle. As the inside barrel of a gun is “rifled” using a similar screw-shaped device |
Fusilli Bucati |
A spring-shaped variety of the above |
Holed rifles |
Gemelli |
A single S-shaped strand of pasta twisted in a loose spiral |
Twins |
Gigli |
Cone or flower shaped |
Lilies |
Gnocchi |
Round in shape and often made with flour plus potatoes |
From the Italian gnocco, meaning “a knot in wood” |
Gramigna |
Short, curled lengths of pasta |
Scutch-grass; more generically, “infesting weed” |
Lanterne |
Curved ridges |
Lantern holders |
Lumache |
Snail-shaped |
From lumaca, meaning snail |
Lumaconi |
Jumbo lumache |
Large snails |
Maltagliati |
Flat roughly cut triangles |
Badly cut |
Mandala |
Designed by Philippe Starck in 1987 for French pasta-maker Panzani |
Design based on compensating for overcooking |
Marille |
Designed by Giorgetto Guigiaro in 1983 – like a rolling ocean wave in cross-section with internal rugosities, but unsuccessful and no longer produced |
From mare, meaning “sea” |
Orecchiette |
Bowl or ear shaped pasta |
Little ears |
Pipe |
Larger version of macaroni |
Smoking pipes |
Quadrefiore |
Square with rippled edges |
Flower quadrants |
Radiatore |
Shaped like radiators |
Radiator |
Ricciolini |
Short wide pasta with a 90-degree twist |
From riccio, curly |
Ricciutelle |
Short spiraled pasta |
From riccio, curly |
Rotelle |
Wagon wheel-shaped pasta |
Little wheels (from ruota-wheel) |
Rotini |
2-edged spiral, tightly wound. Some vendors and brands are 3-edged and sold as rotini |
|
Spirali |
A tube which spirals round |
Spirals |
Spiralini |
More tightly-coiled fusilli |
Little spirals |
Strangolapreti |
Rolled across their width |
Priest-chokers or priest-stranglers |
Torchio |
Torch-shaped |
Winepress |
Trofie |
Thin twisted pasta |
|
|
|
|
TUBULAR PASTA |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Bucatini |
Hollow spaghetti |
Little holes |
Calamarata |
Wide ring shaped pasta |
Squid (also known as “calamari”) |
Calamaretti |
Smaller Calamarata |
|
Cannelloni |
Large stuffable tubes |
Big pipes or reeds |
Cavatappi |
Corkscrew-shaped macaroni |
Corkscrews; also known as Cellentani and Spirali |
Cellentani |
Corkscrew-shaped tube |
|
Chifferi |
Short and wide macaroni |
|
Ditalini |
Short tubes, like elbows but shorter and without a bend |
Small fingers |
Fideua |
Short and thin tubes |
|
Gomito Maccheroni |
Bent tubes |
Elbow macaroni |
Elicoidali |
Slightly ribbed tube pasta; the ribs are corked as opposed to those on rigatoni |
Helicoidal |
Fagioloni |
Short narrow tube |
Little beans |
Garganelli |
Square egg noodle rolled into a tube |
|
Maccheroni |
As long as a little finger, usually striped |
|
Maccheroncelli |
Hollow pencil-shaped pasta |
|
Maltagliati |
Short wide pasta with diagonally cut ends |
Roughly cut |
Manicotti |
Large ridged tubes that are stuffed |
Sleeves, from the Italian word manica |
Mezzani Pasta |
Short curved tube |
From Mezzo meaning half-size |
Mezze Penne |
Short version of penne |
Half-pens |
Mezze Bombardoni |
Short, wide tubes |
Half bombards |
Mostaccioli |
Sometimes mistakenly used as another name for Penne, Mostaccioli differ in that they do not have ridges. Mostaccioli are also called Penne Lisce or “smooth penne” |
Mustaches |
Paccheri |
Large tube |
|
Pasta al Ceppo |
Shaped like a cinnamon stick |
|
Penne |
Medium length tubes with ridges, cut diagonally at both ends |
Literally “pens” because the tip is similar to that of a quill, or fountain pen |
Penne Rigate |
Penne with ridged sides |
|
Penne Lisce |
Penne with smooth sides |
|
Penne Zita |
Wider version of penne |
|
Pennette |
Short thin version of penne |
|
Pennoni |
Wider version of penne |
|
Perciatelli |
Thicker bucatini |
From the verb Perciare meaning “Hollow inside” |
Rigatoncini |
Smaller version of rigatoni |
|
Rigatoni |
Large and slightly curved tube |
From riga, meaning line: rigatoni is pasta with lines (large). Rigato or rigate, when added to another pasta name means lined, or, with ridges added, as in “spaghetti rigati” |
Sagne Incannulate |
Long tube formed of twisted ribbon |
|
Trenne |
Penne shaped as a triangle |
|
Trennette |
Smaller version of trenne |
|
Tortiglioni |
Narrower rigatoni |
From the verb Torcere meaning “to twist.” Twisted, wringed |
Tuffoli |
Ridged rigatoni |
|
Ziti |
Long, narrow hose-like tubes |
|
Zitoni |
Wider version of Ziti |
|
STRAND PASTA |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Spaghettoni |
Thick spaghetti |
Thick little twine |
Spaghetti |
Most common round-rod pasta |
Spago means twine, spaghetto means little twine, spaghetti is plural |
Spaghettini |
Thin spaghetti |
Thin little twine |
Fedelini |
Between spaghetti and vermicelli in size |
Little faithful ones |
Vermicelloni |
Thick vermicelli |
Thick little worms |
Vermicelli |
Thicker than capellini, thinner than fedelini |
Little worms |
Capellini |
Thinner than vermicelli, thicker than angel hair |
Fine hair |
Capellini d’angelo |
Thinnest round-rod pasta |
Angel hair |
In order of thickest to thinnest. |
VARIOUS STRAND PASTA |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Barbina |
Thin strands often coiled into nests |
Little beards |
Spaghetti alla Chitarra |
Similar to spaghetti, except square rather than round, and made of egg in addition to flour |
Named after the device used to cut the pasta, which has a wooden frame strung with metal wires. Sheets of pasta are pressed down onto the device, and then the wires are “strummed” so that the slivers of pasta fall through |
Ciriole |
Thicker version of chitarra |
|
Fusilli Lunghi |
Very long coiled rods (like a thin telephone cord) |
Long rifles |
Pici |
Very thick, long, hand rolled |
|
RIBBON PASTA |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Bavette |
Narrower version of tagliatelle |
Little thread |
Bavettine |
Narrower version of bavette |
|
Fettuce |
Wider version of fettuccine |
Ribbons |
Fettuccine |
Ribbon of pasta approximately 6.5 millimeters wide |
Little ribbons |
Fettucelle |
Narrower version of fettuccine |
|
Lagane |
Wide noodles |
|
Lasagne |
Very wide noodles that often have fluted edges |
Cooking pot |
Lasagnette |
Narrower version of lasagne |
|
Lasagnotte |
Longer version of lasagna |
|
Linguettine |
Narrower version of linguine |
|
Linguine |
Flattened spaghetti |
Little tongues |
Mafalde |
Short rectangular ribbons |
|
Mafaldine |
Long ribbons with ruffled sides |
|
Pappardelle |
Thick flat ribbon |
|
Pillus |
Very thin ribbons |
|
Pizzoccheri |
Ribbon pasta made from buckwheat |
|
Reginette |
Wide ribbon with rippled edges |
Little queens |
Sagnarelli |
Rectangular ribbons with fluted edges |
|
Sciatelli of Sciatelli |
Home-made long spaghetti with a twisted long spiral |
|
Stringozzi |
Similar to shoelaces |
From stringhe, meaning shoestrings |
Tagliatelle |
Ribbon fairly thinner than fettucine |
From “tagliare” – to cut |
Taglierini |
Thinner version of Tagliatelle |
|
Trenette |
Thin ribbon ridged on one side |
|
Tripoline |
Thick ribbon ridged on one side |
|
MICRO PASTA |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Acini di Pepe |
Bead-like pasta |
Peppercorns |
Anelli |
Small rings of pasta |
Rings |
Anellini |
Smaller version of Anelli |
Little rings |
Conchigliette |
Small shell shaped pasta |
Little shells |
Corallini |
Small short tubes of pasta |
Little corals |
Ditali |
Small short tubes |
Thimbles |
Ditalini |
Smaller version of Ditali |
Little thimbles |
Farfalline |
Small bow tie shaped pasta |
Either bowties or little butterflies |
Fideos |
Short thin pasta |
|
Filini |
Smaller version of Fideos |
Thin threads; (from filo, meaning thread) |
Fregula |
Bead-like pasta from Sardinia |
|
Funghini |
Small mushroom shaped pasta |
Little mushrooms |
Ochi di Pernice |
Very small rings of pasta |
Partridge’s eyes |
Orzo |
Rice shaped pasta, also “Risoni” |
Barley |
Pastina |
Small spheres about the same size or smaller than Acini di Pepe |
Little pasta |
Pearl Pasta |
Spheres slightly larger than Acini di Pepe |
|
Quadrettini |
Small flat squares of pasta |
Little squares |
Risi |
Smaller version of Orzo |
Little rice |
Seme di Melone |
Small seed shaped pasta |
Melon seeds |
Stelle |
Small star-shaped pasta |
Stars |
Stelline |
Smaller version of Stelle |
Little stars |
Stortini |
Smaller version of elbow macaroni |
Little crooked ones |
Trachana |
Granular, irregular shaped pasta of Greek origin |
|
STUFFED PASTA |
NAME |
DESCRIPTION |
TRANSLATION |
Agnolotti |
Semi-circular pockets; can be stuffed with ricotta or mix of cheese and meats or pureed vegetables |
Lambs’ ears |
Cannelloni |
Oven cooked, stuffed rolls of pasta |
Big tubes |
Casoncelli |
A semi-circular stuffed pasta, specifically associated with the style alla bergamasca, which is stuffed with a mixture of bread crumbs, egg, cheese, ground beef, salami, raisins, Amaretti biscuits, pear, and garlic |
|
Fagottini |
A ‘purse’ or bundle of pasta, made from a round of dough gathered into a ball-shaped bundle, often stuffed with ricotta and fresh pear |
Little purses |
Mezzelune |
Semi-circular pockets; about 2.5 in. diameter |
Half-moons |
Occhi di Lupo |
A large, penne shaped pasta that is stuffed |
Eyes of the Wolf |
Panzerotti |
Pasta made from eggs cheese and flour |
|
Pelmeni |
Meat-filled dumplings, usually served in broth |
|
Pierogi |
Dumplings filled with meat, vegetables, cheese or fruit |
|
Ravioli |
Square. About 3x3cm. Stuffed with cheese, ground meat, pureed vegetables, or mixtures thereof |
Possibly from rapa, “turnip” |