In this atypical post, we will go over some of the most common pasta cuts and describe the origins of their names. We will use the following template:
| Italian Name (Literal Translation) |
| Photograph* (photos are at scale) |
| [sounds like, the accent goes on the syllable in bold]
The root word that inspires the shape, to which a modifier is usually applied:
-ini/-ine – small;
-oni/-one – large;
-etti/-ette – little & cute.
Main use, e.g.:
dry – boiled in salty water, drained, and served with a sauce;
baked – (often) blanched, then baked in the oven;
broth – added to a soup or broth. |
|
| Bucatini (Little Hollowed Ones) |
Cannelloni (Big Cute Hoses) |
 |
[boo-ca-tee-nee]
from ‘bucato’ = holed, hollowed
– dry – |
|
 |
[can-nel-low-nee]
from ‘canna’ = hose
– baked – |
|
|
|
| Conchiglie (Shells) |
Farfalle (Butterflies) |
 |
[con-keel-yay]
from ‘conchiglia’ = shell
– dry, broth – |
|
 |
[far-fal-lay]
from ‘farfalla’ = butterfly
– dry – |
|
|
|
| Fettuccine (Small Ribbons) |
Filini (Little Threads) |
 |
[fay-too-chee-nay]
from ‘fettuccia’ = ribbon, tape
– dry – |
|
 |
[fee-lee-nee]
from ‘filo’ = thread, wire
– broth – |
|
|
|
| Fusilli (Little Spindles) |
Linguine (Small Tongues) |
 |
[foo-sil-lee]
from ‘fuso’ = spindle
– dry – |
|
 |
[ling-win-aye]
from ‘lingua’ = tongue
– dry – |
|
|
|
| Mezze Penne Rigate (Striped Half Quills) |
Orecchiette (Cute Little Ears) |
 |
[met-zay pen-aye ree-gah-tay]
from ‘penna’ = quill
– dry – |
|
 |
[o-ray-kee-ette-aye]
from ‘orecchio’ = ear
– dry – |
|
|
|
| Pennette Integrali (Small Whole-Wheat Quills) |
Rigatoni (Large Striped Ones) |
 |
[pen-ette-aye in-tay-gral-ee]
from ‘penna’ = quill
– dry – |
|
 |
[ree-gah-tow-nee]
from ‘rigato’ = ridged
– dry – |
|
|
|
| Rotini (Small Twirled Ones) |
Spaghettoni (Big Cute Twines) |
 |
[ro-tee-nee]
from ‘roteare’ = to twirl
– dry – |
|
 |
[spah-get-tow-nee]
from ‘spago’ = twine, string
– dry, broth (cut) – |
|
|
|
| Tortiglioni (Big Twisted Ones) |
Tubetti (Cute Little Tubes) |
 |
[tor-til-yo-nee]
from ‘ritorto’ = twisted
– dry – |
|
 |
[too-bet-tee]
from ‘tubo’ = tube
– broth – |
|
* All photos © Quatro Fromaggio. All rights reserved.
Another very useful post Paolo! I am sharing it on Twitter! 🙂
Thanks Manu, always very generous 🙂
I'm glad you find it useful, as it's definitely one of my goals 🙂
It was for me a lot of fun (and a bit of a learning experience) photographing pasta for the last couple of months. Now I own a lot of different pasta types!
That's so handy. Thanks for the explanation.
Hi Paolo, come check out my blog: there is something waiting for you!
http://cookingitalianinthemidwest.blogspot.com/2011/06/best-potato-salad-and-awards.html
Thanks! I'm very happy – I'm looking forward to updating my "Thanks" page with it 🙂
Oh, how I LOVE this post! It's SUPER informative. Thanks!
Thanks Tiffany! Much appreciated.
Hi, Paolo! I'm popping over from Manu's blog…and I love your place. Such an informative post…had to laugh at big cute hoses 🙂
Thanks Lizzy for stopping by and for your kind comment 🙂
Hi Paolo! I came here from Manu's site. This is a very informative post! I LOVE your blog! It's kind of funny how we take Italian food and transform to something different. I wish you do the same thing for Italian restaurants in Japan. Italian restaurants everywhere in the city and we LOVE Italian food (I should say Japanized Italian food?). Though I have to say Italian restaurants in my neighborhood in Japan serves pretty good quality Italian food (in another word, close to authentic) than local Italian places in my US neighborhood… I am following you via facebook!
Nami, thank you for your feedback! I'm very interested in knowing how Italian food is represented in the rest of the world. From what it seems, North America might have the worst 🙂
From a Foodie point of view, this is excellent.
From a wordsmithing point of view, this is…welll…Excellent!
Hi Paolo, come check out my blog: there is something waiting for you!
http://cookingitalianinthemidwest.blogspot.com/2011/06/best-potato-salad-and-awards.html