Pasta shapes have differnet names in different parts of Italy.
Dry pasta predominates southern Italian dishes. It usually made with semolina flour, though it is sometimes made with spelt or whole wheat flour. Artisan producers, mostly from italy, continue to produce great dry pastas using copper dies that give the finished noodles a rough texture that helps capture the sauce.
A good idea is to cook dry pasta in heavily salted boiling water (plenty of it) until it is about a minute or so from the "al dente" edible stage. The best description of "al dente" is where the pasta gives slowly under the pressure of your tooth, doesn't crunch, but also doesn't squish. Anyway, cook the pasta for the last minute or two in the sauce you are preparing so you can flavor the noodles themselves..
The Top Choices:
1. Rustichella d'Abruzzo
2. Martelli
3. Latini
4. Cavatelli
Best Pasta:
SF: Restorante Milano
NY: Gusto
NY: Esca (w/Sardines)
LA: Valentino
LV: Bartolotta (ravs)
REMEMBER, you are eating, pasta, not sauce. The sauce is a condiment; like mustaard on a hot dog or dressing on a salad. A little goes a long way.
Pasta
