How Do You Like Your Pasta?
I know there will be a few pasta-haters (baffling) but most people love it, so I'm curious, what's your favorite pasta dish? If you HAD to choose. Rigatoni with red sauce? Seafood linguine? Carbonara? Lasagne? Alla vodka? (a la vodka? whatever.)
The possibilities are really endless, but I'd have to say for me it's a 3-way tie between orecchette w/a cheesy garlic sauce, rigatoni with red sauce, meatballs, and lots of pecorino, and capellini carbonara with peas. What's your favorite?
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36 Comments:
angel hair, shrimp and a little butter and lemon juice but the kids and grands would have me make my grandmothers Swedish lasagna every time .. it would be my second choice.
NanaJoie at 10:01AM on 07/29/08
The easiest and my favorite is Shrimp Scampi.
PerkyMac at 10:15AM on 07/29/08
Rotini with my mother's spaghetti sauce which is a red sauce with garlic sausage, ground chuck, small link sausage, lots of tomatoes, tomato sauce, paste garlic, basil, s&p. It is delicious. She is Irish, but makes a mean spaghetti sauce.
Although there are only a few pasta dishes I don't love.
lakeloverhh at 10:22AM on 07/29/08
Type of pasta I enjoy most now is linguine al dente with a very distinct bite.
My favorite sauce is one that I, and now my husband, makes that we scoop on top of it. It's very thick so it doesn't drain through the noodles at all. I've mentioned it several times in other posts over the past few months. It's made with yellow squash, zucchini, ground beef, orange bell peppers, tomatoes, fresh mushrooms, fresh basil, bay leaves, oregano, thyme, miniscule amt of minced garlic, and added at the end, asparagus and spinach.
I like mussels and squid, but my husband doesn't care for them, so rarely, I'll make a small dish of mussels and squid to add to my bowl.
Cassaendra at 10:24AM on 07/29/08
My quick comfort pasta is linguine tossed with olive oil, red pepper flakes, and parmesan. It's so satisfying when you have a pasta craving.
If I'm ordering from my favorite Italian place, I get their pepperoni chicken and sub the marinara for alfredo. It's so good - penne tossed with pepperoni, chicken, black olives, onions and peppers, then topped with their super rich alfredo sauce. Yum!
Tara Tot at 10:34AM on 07/29/08
My pasta has to be al dente, and I've always been fond of small shapes: small shells (cocciolette), orzo, macaroni, tubettini, pennine, quadrucci rigati, etc., although I do enjoy bucatini as well.
Now, I'm not too fond of sauces. My favourite way of eating pasta is Aglio e Olio - olive oil, plenty of garlic, sometimes fresh herbs (basil or parsley), sea salt and freshly grated Parmesan (although I can honestly enjoy a bowl of pasta even without Parm).
I like creamy sauces on ravioli and tortellini, but I eat them very seldom. I may occasionally fancy a sauce made of sausage with peppers and onions or just caramelised onions and ground meat/sausage (makes me think fondly of my Mum:-)), but really, I just love good old Aglio e Olio most of all.
Oh, and I never order pasta when eating out.
brooke29 at 11:08AM on 07/29/08
pasta alla norma
ceforrester at 11:27AM on 07/29/08
I hate to say this, but I am probably one of the few people in the world that does not like pasta. I once worked at an Italian restuarant and would eat the pasta there every day, since we didn't have the time (or the money) to get something from outside, and i was too lazy at the time to make my own food and bring it in. To this day, I cannot eat pasta. I will happily cook it for others, but it will be a *long* time before I voluntarily eat it again.
Traveller at 11:42AM on 07/29/08
Of all the glorious combinations of types and shapes of pasta with the countless sauces, my pick would be al dente angel hair with my mom's pasta sauce, topped with parmesan cheese. Nothing like it!
savecara at 11:44AM on 07/29/08
I love pasta in just about any shape or preparation, with the exception of cold American style pasta salads. The kind drenched in cheap mayo and random shards of suspicious looking vegetables.
simon at 12:24PM on 07/29/08
I love most pasta. I do not care for lasagna noodles though. My first choice would be shrimp fra diavlo with al dente linguine. Yum!!!!
izatryt at 12:44PM on 07/29/08
@simon, I agree! I actually think in 99% of cases pasta and mayonnaise should never EVER be mixed.
embolini9 at 12:46PM on 07/29/08
I agree with embolini and simon on the mayo--waaay to heavy together.
Does gnocci count? I LOVE it with a simple cheese sauce.
But if I can't have Seafood linguine,
I'm perfectly content with a classic spaghetti and bolognaise!
(hold the garlic bread or I'll burst!)
hungrychristel at 1:57PM on 07/29/08
While in Italy I loved the specialty from a fresh pasta shop across the street from my apartment in Genoa, sugo di noce con pansotti. I have not yet been able to recreate it, but I am still trying. Anyone ever had it or better yet, anyone know how to make it? The nut sause is thick and creamy, and you melt it with the pasta juice. The filled pasta is made with chard, I think! Being genovese, my great standby is a good basil pesto with farfalle or gemelli. Those pasta shapes seem to hold the pesto the best, in my opinion.
cucinacecilia at 2:28PM on 07/29/08
Fresh tagliatelle with ragu Bolognese. Nothing beats it.
SqueezeBottle at 2:41PM on 07/29/08
@cucinacelia, that sounds incredible. I should've added tortellini and pesto to my list of faves, my mom and I make pesto every year and freeze it, I won't use anything else!
embolini9 at 2:47PM on 07/29/08
I love puttanesca sauce. I was just discussing this with my mom last night. I make it and give it as gifts - the capers, anchovies, and kalamatas make me happy!
I'm not a huge fan of the "string" pastas - spaghetti, angel hair, fettucine, etc. I like rotini, penne, and farfalle best.
Oh, and I would eat alfredo a lot more often if it wasn't about the worst thing in the world for my heart (and ass)!
lo82070 at 2:56PM on 07/29/08
Chewy. Honestly, pasta is just a delicious, delicious carb vehicle to me, and as long as the honest flavor and texture of the pasta itself shines through...dress it up almost any way you want! :) Though cream/butter sauces are on the lower side of the scale, and I like soups and tomato-based.
Pammeh at 3:02PM on 07/29/08
Good old Ragu alla Nonna (red with meat) with number 8 and meatballs. It is my best memory from childhood. I still make it her way whenever I can.
Also cauliflower, garlic and white wine with whatever I have on hand.
Lots of grated Locatelli brand Pecarino Romano.
I also love mac and beef. Some red sauce with ground up three meats (pork veal and beef) and elbow macaroni. It's good stuff!
JerzeeTomato at 3:38PM on 07/29/08
@Jerzee, you're speaking my language!
embolini9 at 4:02PM on 07/29/08
The answer to all the world's problems: Spaghetti & Meatballs
bessfour at 4:13PM on 07/29/08
Our fave way to eat pasta is with olive oil, crushed garlic, chopped basil and fresh parm. Simple but oh so yummy. Our oldest son loves leftover pasta with leftover salad heated in the microwave and sprinkled with parm!
finsbigfan at 4:23PM on 07/29/08
Mmmm...pesto. Scampi too is a fave, even without shrimp/chicken.
Fresh pasta is best. I think I need to eat pasta in more ways before I can pick an all-out favorite. :)
sadiepix at 4:23PM on 07/29/08
My most favorite is angel hair topped with sauteed cabbage carrots and sundried tomatoes... add a little parmagiano and a dash of balsamic vinegar and it's heaven in a bowl.
avryan at 4:35PM on 07/29/08
Pasta in every way and shape is my favorite. The only shape I don't enjoy eating is radiatore. I love all the Italian style sauces - red, white, putenesca, bolonaise, etc. But, being Jewish, I must mention lukshon kugel (noodle pudding) made basically with egg noodles, eggs, butter, cottage cheese, sour cream, vanilla, sugar, and topped with corn flake crumbs -- baked in a pyrex pan until the bottom is crisp. Of course, for those watching their cholestral intake, it's a no no.
SavtaShayna at 4:40PM on 07/29/08
How do I like my pasta? DAILY!
Kerosena at 4:43PM on 07/29/08
Don't like long noodles, too messy. The best is cheese ravioli with a sun dried tomato cream sauce. YUM MO (Can I say that, or is it a copyright infringement?)
kcogswell at 5:00PM on 07/29/08
never would be okay with me.
ChelleyD01 at 5:09PM on 07/29/08
When I was a kid, my mom would make angel hair pasta with shrimp and mushrooms in a slightly buttery garlic sauce (similar to, but not exactly scampi).
I would remake this often if it weren't for my mushroom-hating boyfriend. What's turned into a favorite for us is spaghetti with turkey meatballs and vodka sauce, plus some zucchini if it's around (always dressing up the sauce with extra onions/garlic/etc).
I'm also a fan of stuffed pasta though - my mom's tortellini soup (red wine/tomato/beef broth base + lots of veggies + hot and mild sausage + cheese tortellini + freshly grated parm on top=heaven). I've also really enjoyed stuffed shells lately.
joyyy at 5:55PM on 07/29/08
linguine alla amatriciana (pomodoro sauce w pancetta and pecorino) is my all-time fave. i love every kind of pasta though. carbonara, pomodoro, alla salsiccia, just plain aglio e olio, etc etc etc.
megannesta at 7:03PM on 07/29/08
Just about any pasta served with browned butter and cheese: A few of my favorites are gnocchi browned in butter and then liberally dusted with asiago, anything spaghetti-like with butter and mizithra, or even just pasta shells or rigatoni tossed with butter and parmesan. YUM.
... I sometimes use olive oil instead of butter, because I really do fear for the state of my arteries, but. I still love the combination.
bansidhe at 7:44PM on 07/29/08
Angel hair al dente in my own marinara sauce.
buffy at 12:44AM on 07/30/08
I think the only sauce I'm not a major fan of would be vodka sauce...perhaps because the ex who introduced me to it had no clue and put way too much vodka in it.
Perhaps my favorite to cook and goes with absolutely anything we are having would be angel hair with a sauce of EVOO, butter and lotsa garlic, a few herbs if I'm feeling "saucy". If I want it to be the main dish, we throw in shrimp or scallops.
thewrighttaste at 1:12AM on 07/30/08
a small sized pasta tossed with brown butter and roasted garlic, with a crumble of good ricatta salada on top.
huneybumper at 7:42AM on 07/30/08
I'll echo Kerosina's reply - "daily!" With the exception of those mayo-type salads, I've never met a pasta I didn't like. I remember my first taste of pesto like it was a religious awakening. I've been known to eat enough to make myself sick, and my secret shame in college was that I actually liked the dining hall pasta slop. Aaaaah, pasta!
mwheeler at 12:41PM on 07/30/08
Wellll I was JUST thinking about this. How did you know?! My favorite pasta would have to be rigatoni. It's outer ridges and larger inner tubes pick up the sauce so well. And speaking of sauce...I adore spicy tomato or vodka sauces. Rigatoni a la vodka is a personal favorite!
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 4:47PM on 07/30/08