Pasta Pairings

Since the average American eats about 14 pounds of pasta each year, here are some tips on pairing pasta with sauce:
 

Flat Long Shapes (fettuccine, rigate, linguine): Pair with robust sauces (dairy-, oil- or tomato-based plus sauces combined with meat, veggies, seafood or cheese)

Round Long Shapes (angel hair, different types of spaghetti): Pair with simple tomato sauces (with or without meat or veggies), fish-based sauces, olive oil with garlic & fresh herbs

Oven Shapes (lasagna, manicotti, jumbo shells): Pair with robust sauces and fillings; chunky and moist sauces such as b?chamel and Bolognese work best

Soup Shapes (pastina, orzo, ditalini): Pair pastina with light vegetable, meat or fish-based broth soups; pair the others with heartier soups

Specialty Shapes (gemelli, large shells): Pair with vegetable and hearty dairy-based (cheese or bechamel) sauces

Tube Shapes (penne, mostaccioli, rigatoni): Pair with full-flavored, chunky meat and veggie sauces

Versatile Shapes (farfalle, elbows, rotini): Pair with light sauces with vegetables or fish, simple oil-based and dairy-based sauces; and use in pasta salads

I like to celebrate pasta all year long, with every pairing ending with a saucy..."OOH IT'S SO GOOD!!"

Pasta information courtesy of Barilla