White bean pasta e fagiole, the classic Italian soup, uses ditalini pasta. Photo courtesy of Barilla.us (the recipe is on the website).
Updated September 2009 |
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Pasta Glossary
Page 2: Pasta Types With C & D
If you enjoy this Pasta Glossary, we have a food glossary for almost every category of food, including Italian favorites like cheese, espresso and olive oil. Plus, find reviews of our favorite brands of pasta and sauces, pasta recipes and informative articles about pasta in our Pasta Section.
Click on letters other than C & D
to go to the appropriate page of the glossary.
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
CALABRIA
A region in southern Italy that occupies the “toe” of the Italian peninsula south of Naples—you can see it in the map below, beneath the highlighted region of Campania. To the northeast is the region of Basilicata, to the west is Sicily. The capital is Catanzaro.
CALAMARI or CALAMARETTI
Thick pasta rings cut and dyed with squid ink to  look like sliced calamari (squid). An unusual cut, it is typically made only in the area around Naples, in the region of Campania (see below). It’s pronounced cah-lah-MAHR-ee, but everyone knows that.
CAMPANELLE
Literally, “bellblowers,” this delicate-looking but sturdy shape has fluted, petal-like edges and a hollow center for capturing sauce. Pronounced cahm-pah-NELL-lay. |
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Campanelle pasta from Italen-Pasta.com. |
CAMPANIA
Campania (cahm-PAHN-yah) is a region of southern Italy, whose capital is the famous city of Naples, where pizza is said to have originated. It is surrounded by lesser-known regions: Lazio to the northwest, Molise to the north, Basilicata to the southeast, and the better-known Puglia to the northeast.
CANDELE
Literally, “candles,” candele (con-DAY-lay) are very long, hollow pasta tubes, dramatically, the length of candles.
Candele pasta from PastaGarofolo.it
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Map of Campania courtesy of Wikimedia. |
CANNELLONI
Cannelloni (cah-neh-LOE-nee) are often confused with manicotti. Both are stuffed, baked pasta dishes. The difference is that manicotti are stuffed, pre-formed tubes, while cannelloni are rectangular sheets of pasta dough that are filled and rolled into tube shapes. Both are filled with a savory stuffing, which can be cheese, spinach and cheese, or various meats, seafood or vegetables. The tubes are then covered with a sauce, typically tomato or béchamel, and baked. Cannelloni is Italian for “large reeds.”
CANNEROZZETTI
Ridged, tubed pasta. Pronounced cahn-nay-roe-TSET-tee.
DO YOU KNOW HOW TO PAIR PASTA WITH SAUCE?
YOU CAN’T TOP DELICATE CAPELLI D’ANGELO WITH
A HEAVY MARINARA SAUCE.
HERE’S THE SCOOP!
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CAPELLI D’ANGELO
Literally, “angel’s hair.” The finest strands of pasta. See angel hair pasta. Pronounced cah-PELL-lee DON-jel-loe.
CAPELLINI
Literally, “fine hairs,” capellini (cah-peh-LEE-nee) are long, thin strands of round pasta only slightly thicker than angel hair (capelli d’angelo). Like angel hair, they are used in entrées and side dishes, or broken and cooked in soups. Capellini can take cream sauces, but avoid thick sauces—the strands are too delicate.
 CAPUNTI
A charming shape, capunti (cah-POON-tee) is a rolled pasta shaped like open pea pods.
CARBONARA
Pasta alla carbonara (cahr-boe-NAH-rah) is a recipe that evolved after World War II. Carbonara is the Italian word for charcoal. While the name’s origin can’t be traced, some believe that the dish was first made for Italian charcoal workers. The dish requires a long form of pasta—usually spaghetti, but also linguine or bucatini. A mixture of eggs and Parmigiano-Reggiano is combined with butter or olive oil to make a sauce; pancetta or guanciale (cured fatty pork) is added, along with and black pepper. In the U.S., heavy cream is added to the recipe as well.
 CASARECCI
A typical pasta of Puglia, the name, meaning “home style,” refers to two-inch-long thin twists. See orecchiette maritate. Pronounced cah-sah-RECH-ee.
CASTELLANE
Castellane (cah-steh-LAH-nay), which means “castle dwellers,” is a charming ridged shell shape, originally called paguri because it resembles the shell of a tiny crab found in the waters along the coast of Italy.
 CASSULI
Curved pasta with horizontal raised ridges. Pronounced cas-SOO-lee.
CAVATAPPI
Short (1-inch) tubular corkscrew or spiral-shaped pasta, native to southern Italy. Cavatappi are used in entrées, side dishes, baked dishes and pasta salads. They work with just about any type of sauce.
 CAVATELLI
Cavatelli (cah-vah-TELL-lee) are small folded pasta shapes that along with orecchiette and cavaturi (below), small rolled shapes, are the three traditional shapes of the Puglia region of Italy. Some think they resemble tiny hot dog buns.
CAVATURI
These small, rolled pasta pieces (cah-va-TOO-ree) are one of the three traditional pasta cuts from Puglia, along with cavatelli (above) and orecchiette. They pair well with vegetable-based sauces and are good in pasta salads.
CELLENTANI
A small tubular pasta with a ridged surface, cellentani (chay-len-TAH-nee) is sturdy enough to partner with cream sauces and chunky vegetable sauces, as well as tomato sauces. The name means “whirls,” and it is poetically seen as locks of hair. It is very popular in pasta salads.
CELLOPHANE NOODLES or THREADS
These are mung bean threads, translucent, gelatin-like noodles cooked in the same manner as rice noodles. While the Asian word translates as threads, note that the translation of spaghetti is similar: cords or strings.
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Cellentani pasta photo courtesy SXC. |
CHESTNUT PASTA
For fall and winter, northern Italians enjoy pasta made from chestnut flour, an ingredient that is more costly than semolina or other wheat. Use it with duck, game and in preparations with squash, leeks, portobellos and other mushrooms.
CHITARRA
Literally, “guitar strings,” a rectangular strand pasta that is thinner than spaghetti (kee-TAR-rah).
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Chestnut tagliatelle made by Rustichella d’Abruzzo, shown in the photo, is available form Salumeria Italiana.com. |
CHOCOLATE PASTA or COCOA PASTA
Savory chocolate pasta is an old tradition in Tuscany, where it is served with game as well as in a light cream sauce with walnuts. It can also be served as a dessert, either topped with whipped cream, ice cream and dessert sauces. We have served it in a dessert pasta Mont Blanc, with chestnut purée and whipped cream. While the latter is best done with a long cut of pasta swirled into a nest and filled with the chestnut purée, we have not seen chocolate fettuccine in the U.S. in many years. However, the Tuscan pastificio (pasta-maker) Morelli makes a small penne rigate that is 9.25% cocoa powder. It has a deep brown chocolate color and a lightly bitter cocoa flavor. You can find it at iGourmet.com.
CONCHIGLIE
Italian for “conch shells,” conchiglie (con-CHEE-lee) are a popular shape of pasta that come in a regular size that is sauced and a large size that is stuffed (then sauced). Jumbo stuffed shells are traditionally found in the south of Italy, where stuffed pasta dishes are popular. A rich ragù (meat sauce), a cream sauce or a cheese sauce is perfect with this pasta, as the shell serves as a “scoop” for the sauce. See photo at right.
CORALLINI
Tiny tubed pasta used in soups and casseroles (coh-rah-LEE-nee). |
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 Photo of shell pasta, or conchiglie, courtesy of Pastazanini.it. |
 CORZETTI
A specialty of Liguria, these pasta shapes pressed to look like stamped coins from ancient times. Some have family crests, some have other designs. The shapes are cut out of rolled-out dough with a round stamp cutter. Pronounced cor-ZEH-tee.
Corzetti pasta is available from PestoGenovese.com.
COUSCOUS
Couscous is spherical granules of pasta, made by rolling moistened semolina wheat and then coating the granules with finely ground wheat flour. The finished grains are about 1mm in diameter before cooking. Couscous is usually steamed rather than boiled. It is traditionally served under a meat or vegetable stew, but is also eaten plain, as a side, and flavored as a dessert. Couscous is a staple throughout Northern Africa and parts of the Middle East. Israeli, or pearl, couscous is larger and served in different ways.
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Couscous available on Amazon.com. |
DITALI
Large pasta tubes, also used for soups (dee-TAH-lee).
DITALINI
Ditalini (dee-tah-LEE-nee), or “little thimbles,” are tiny, very short tubes of pasta. From the Campania region of Italy, they are typically used in the classic bean and pasta soup, pasta e fagioli, and in minestrone and plain broth.
DUMPLING
Small balls of dough boiled in soup, or separately steamed and served with soup. The word is a diminutive of the German dump, a badly-shaped piece, and dompelen, to plunge. Savory dumplings exist in Western and Eastern cultures. They are traditional in the southern United States, British cuisine, Central and Eastern Europe (pierogies); Chinese jiaozi, potstickers and wontons; Japanese gyoza and shumai; and Korean mandu. Adding to the confusion, there is also a dessert pastry dumpling, made by frying a sweet dough ball or baking fruit wrapped in pastry—for example, apple dumplings. |
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Photo of ditalini pasta courtesy of Pastazanini.it. |
DURUM WHEAT
Triticum durum is the hardest wheat grown today, and the wheat from which Italian pasta and the majority of American dry pastas are made. Durum is the hardest wheat known to man—the name durum comes from the Latin word for hard. “Durum semolina” will appear on most pasta labels. Some labels also may state “durum flour,” which is a finer granulation produced in the milling process and is primarily used in noodle products. Durum gives pasta its yellow-amber color, and nutty flavor. The hardness of the wheat imparts the ability to retain both shape and firmness when cooked. Durum wheat is high in gluten and is used only for pasta, never for baking, cereal or other purposes. See also semolina. |
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Photo of durum wheat courtesy of SXC. |
Continue To The Next Page: Pasta Terms With E & F
Go To The Glossary Alphabet Index, Above
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