Best pasta form

Copy-

I’m gonna say it generally works best when a particular shape is matched to the right sauce. But overall – it is Rigatone and Spaghetti.

When I was younger (like 8), my favourite foods were macaroni cheese and spaghetti bolognaise. I announced weeks in advance that I wanted to cook macaroni cheese but with spaghetti instead, and figured this was a masterstroke. Spent weeks thinking about it. When the time finally came and my Mum got all the stuff ready or me, we cooked it together and it was not the championship meeting of two worlds I was expecting.

Tagiatelli is y go-to for creamy/chese sauces, but I find the stuff that I can get easily here lumps together to much on day 2 (aka box-meal use) and you end up with this kind of firm, slightly cheesy lump of carbs. Eating it at the time of cooking is good though and it is the only pasta I have made myself that has actually worked well.

Ruote or Rotelle?

I think quality is more important than type.

I’m glad to read this. I only recently tried “premium” pasta types – actually Sainsbury’s TTD which was on offer. I’d always winced at the price but was looking at the difference between bog standard (~75p packet) and premium (~£2 packet). But, stock up on whichever premium is on offer and it’s only ~£1.40. Yes its twice the price, but it’s still only one-and-a-half quid for anything up to 8 (sensible) portions depending on your audience.

My only thought on type is when making a squidgy pasta bake (aka cheat’s lasagne). You want something hollow or cavernous that will fill up with whatever sauce of choice, plus melty cheese and a grilled bit to chew / crunch on. Conchigili springs to mind, or Rigatini.

Or spaghetti bolognese, just for the nostalgia of the strands whipping bright red sauce all over your face as you suck it in.