# dry pasta



## tk59 (Dec 17, 2012)

I went to the supermarket just now to get some cough suppressant and figured I'd grab some dried pasta. I always get Barilla because out of the brands I've tried (not too terribly many) that's what I've liked the best. Anyway, I picked up some mini penne, amongst others and went to check out. The lady looked at my pile of boxes and happily started chanting "mini panini, mini panini, mini panini..." I didn't know what to say, so I just smiled back. She must have seen something in my expression because she apologized saying, "Sorry. I just love the way that sounds! Mini panini! Mini panini! Mini panini!" 

Anyway, what's your favorite, easily obtainable dry pasta brand?


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## sachem allison (Dec 17, 2012)

I'm with you, Barilla for dry pasta. When I went to Rome awhile back a lot of restaurants were using it and it occupies the shelves at the grocery stores there and most of my Italian friends from Italy, will only buy that brand. Obviously it isn't the same as fresh pasta but, they are two different animals, one silky and smooth and the other toothsome and hardy.


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## quantumcloud509 (Dec 17, 2012)

Yeah Im with you guys on this one. I stick with the Barilla.


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## JBroida (Dec 17, 2012)

there are a few obscure ones i like when i can find them, but barilla and di cecco are safe bets


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## cnochef (Dec 17, 2012)

I think that Delverde pasta is the best. I find it absorbs sauce well and stays al dente.


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## mhlee (Dec 17, 2012)

JBroida said:


> there are a few obscure ones i like when i can find them, but barilla and di cecco are safe bets



+1 to De Cecco. I lke Barilla, but personally prefer De Cecco. But De Cecco can be up to 3x more expensive than Barilla. Barilla, on sale, is so inexpensive.


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## ThEoRy (Dec 17, 2012)

Barilla at home and de cecco at work.


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## eaglerock (Dec 17, 2012)

I buy Barilla too


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## Duckfat (Dec 17, 2012)

I'm not sure of the brand but Whole Foods carries a dry pasta that comes in a heavy brown paper package. Very good stuff but pretty darn pricy.

Dave


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## sachem allison (Dec 17, 2012)

ThEoRy said:


> Barilla at home and de cecco at work.



That's how I do it.


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## cnochef (Dec 17, 2012)

Duckfat said:


> I'm not sure of the brand but Whole Foods carries a dry pasta that comes in a heavy brown paper package. Very good stuff but pretty darn pricy.
> 
> Dave



I thlnk you're talking about Rustichella D'Abruzzo, which is amazing stuff. My local Italian grocer sometimes puts it on 2for1


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## SpikeC (Dec 17, 2012)

Lets see, in the drawer right now ere are 2 boxes of Ronzoni, one of De Cecco, and a brown paper deal of Montebello organic.


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## jmforge (Dec 17, 2012)

I don't know jack, but I can kinda tell the difference between Barilla and the other cheaper brands. No real need for me to look any more.


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## Dardeau (Dec 17, 2012)

I have said for years that I want to dry my own pasta a la Marcella Hazan. Due to laziness this has not happened yet. Barilla works well enough for me. Anyone had any lack with drying pasta and having it keep?


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## mr drinky (Dec 17, 2012)

I use Barilla and De Cecco for the regular recipes, and when I want to kick it up a notch I use Rustichella and appropriately for this site Martelli. That last one is pretty expensive, but I use it when I go all out with a new recipe or one that calls for premium ingredients. 

k.

Edit: I also get that Garofalo. In general I get spaghettis in DeCecco and Garofalo; other shapes (elbows, penne, farfalle) in Barilla; buccatini and linguine in Rustichella; and penne in Martelli. It's nice and chewy. 

2nd Edit: I make my own pappardelle and tagliatelle.


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## pumbaa (Dec 17, 2012)

I make my own its easy but if I buy it its barilla.


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## Deckhand (Dec 17, 2012)

Barilla or a few of the Trader Joe's ones. I used to find a good spinach pasta for Alfredo, but haven't done that in a while. I need to do that again. It was good.


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## Eric (Dec 18, 2012)

Latini pasta if you can find it.


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## Dusty (Dec 18, 2012)

+1 for rustichella d'abruzzo.

Great stuff, although some of the shapes are a bit naf. Trenne? Yep triangle penne.


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## pumbaa (Dec 18, 2012)

Dusty its amazing how many shapes they have making all the pasta where I work now I have learned probably 50 shapes of pasta all traditional and have tiny differences


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## cnochef (Dec 18, 2012)

I like Garofalo too, I use their malfalda to make homemade versions of hamburger helper. Not exactly gourmet, I know, but very satisfying.


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## Pachowder (Dec 18, 2012)

Barilla here also but my new years resolution is to make my own much more.


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## quantumcloud509 (Dec 18, 2012)

Pachowder said:


> Barilla here also but my new years resolution is to make my own much more.



Yeah, got the 3 pasta attachments for my kitchen aid earlier this fall, havent used them once yet due to lazyness and space restriction in my tiny tiny kitchen.


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## cnochef (Dec 18, 2012)

quantumcloud509 said:


> Yeah, got the 3 pasta attachments for my kitchen aid earlier this fall, havent used them once yet due to lazyness and space restriction in my tiny tiny kitchen.



I hope you got the pasta rollers for your Kitchen Aid not the extruder kit as it sucks!


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## mr drinky (Dec 18, 2012)

cnochef said:


> I hope you got the pasta rollers for your Kitchen Aid not the extruder kit as it sucks!



That's good to know. I just looked at that extruder last night. I guess I will have to get the Torchio sometime in the future then.

k.


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## bieniek (Dec 18, 2012)

I like Agnesi.

De Cecco is also good, from Barilla I like fullkorn pastaas.


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## Paradox (Dec 18, 2012)

Kitchen Aid rollers rock, they do a super job. I wish I would use mine more often. 

Dry Pasta? Barilla or Ronzoni here, whichever is the cheaper when I am buying it. They are very comparable. Di Cecco also but it's not often run on sale like the others are. There are some pretty nice boutique type products that I will splurge for now and then. "Al Dente" brand Roasted Garlic Linguine is really nice for a treat with some home made pesto.


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## K-Fed (Dec 19, 2012)

The best I've tried so far is "Flora" imported by some company here in FL. It's got a very home made texture and flavor that I really enjoy.


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## jmforge (Dec 19, 2012)

cnochef said:


> I like Garofalo


 Is that the short, angry pasta that used to be on Air America? :tease:


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## stphntrjllo (Feb 25, 2013)

Make ur own fresh is best


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## bieniek (Feb 26, 2013)

Yeah. 

The pasta producers that are using metal [copper] riddle to press pasta through to shape, and theres few of them, will make very good dried pasta, even better of what you can do at home. 

This is because the surface of the pasta is more porous after shapin through plastic cheaper riddles/or a rollig pin. And will absorb more sauce. 
More than home made with just a rolling pin. 
Plus if I was about to serve ten people alone I wouldnt go for a home made.


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## longhorn (Mar 3, 2013)

I'd say I buy Barilla most of the time as well, the dry stuff we have at work just comes in an unmarked plastic bag so I have no idea what brand it is, but then again we are a steakhouse so we have one linguini dish on our menu and thats it.

I've been doing a good amount of experimenting lately with fresh pasta for specials as soon as I discovered that the bakery that serves all the venues at our location was not at all opposed to lending us their "dough/fondant sheeter" for days at a time.

It's an enormous somerset dough sheeter, I am not sure how old it is or the model number but the one in this photo is a fairly accurate representation.








Also to go a little off topic from dry pasta...to those of you with more experience in fresh pasta making, what kind of flour are you using? I have gotten a good feel for the egg to yolk ratios and how wet the dough needs to be, etc. But the little bit of flour experimentation I have done has not seemed to produce any results. I have read that one should incorporate some amount of semolina/ Italian tipo 00, which has lower gluten for a softer pasta. When I checked with our suppliers the only thing I could get was something like a 50 pound bag. Chef said we could go for it, but I really want to know an expert's opinion first.


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## Mike9 (Mar 3, 2013)

It used to be Barilla, but I use "Dreamfields" for the past few years. The low digestible carb count has worked in our favor + I always finish pasta in sauce so . . . . .

I am however taking a class in pasta making from scratch - something I've never done and being through the college it costs me nothing so I might as well. I see pasta machines for $20 $25 all over so what the hell. Might get a sharpening customer out of the deal -


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## franzb69 (Mar 4, 2013)

> I am however taking a class in pasta making from scratch - something I've never done and being through the college it costs me nothing so I might as well. I see pasta machines for $20 $25 all over so what the hell. Might get a sharpening customer out of the deal -



fresh pasta is easily done. no problems. even without a pasta machine, practice is all that's needed and a good deal of elbow grease. =D

the italians have been making theirs by hand for hundreds of years.


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## Dardeau (Mar 4, 2013)

Clarification: by making it myself, I meant making pasta intended to be dried and drying it myself in nests. Has anyone done this? A double decker version of that sheeter is what I use to make pasta at work, when it is on the menu. As far as semolina, I think you can get it at whole foods, and I know you can get it at health food stores. It takes forever to kill a #50 bag if you aren't using it every day.


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## franzb69 (Mar 4, 2013)

> Clarification: by making it myself, I meant making pasta intended to be dried and drying it myself in nests. Has anyone done this?



the italians do it. so it's possible. no eggs, water and flour.


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## pumbaa (Mar 6, 2013)

the dry pasta i make at work is all egg yolks, flour, and salt thats it. there is no water or any other liquid just yolks, flour, and salt. and it dries very well and works well.


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## jayhay (Mar 6, 2013)

longhorn said:


> I'd say I buy Barilla most of the time as well, the dry stuff we have at work just comes in an unmarked plastic bag so I have no idea what brand it is, but then again we are a steakhouse so we have one linguini dish on our menu and thats it.
> 
> I've been doing a good amount of experimenting lately with fresh pasta for specials as soon as I discovered that the bakery that serves all the venues at our location was not at all opposed to lending us their "dough/fondant sheeter" for days at a time.
> 
> ...



I make pasta for a living and for the sheeted type pasta I use Caputo 00 pasta and gnocchi flour. I get it by the 55lb a bag, but I think it also comes in smaller commercial sizes.


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