Fun Pasta Shapes You Can Make
Today, I thought I’d do something fun and show you a few different fresh pasta shapes that you can easily make at home, pasta shapes that are nice to give you a little project during the weekends or something that you can get your kids or your family to help you with and have a little bit of fun while doing so.
One thing that I love about these shapes is that you do not need a pasta machine or any special equipment to make them, you just need a bit of knowledge and knowhow. I will also give you a few ideas for sauces and things that you can pair these pasta shapes with, but the beauty of pasta is how incredibly versatile it is.
Let’s do this!
(By the way, if you need a crash course on how to make excellent fresh pasta dough, then you can head on over to my article about making fresh pasta with the link below.
Also, don’t worry too much if your pasta shapes don’t come out with factory perfection, what matters is that it tastes great.)
Orecchiette
Orecchiette is a pasta shape that means “little ears” in Italian and gets the name because they somewhat look like someone’s inner ear…sounds tasty doesn’t it? Well, despite the…unique name, this pasta shape is very easy to make.
Start by taking a few chunks of your rested pasta dough and rolling it out into thick, even logs, it should be about 1/2 inch thick, then cut the logs into 1/2 inch pieces.
Place either a butter knife or a small offset spatula at the end of each piece furthest away from you then, while applying even pressure, push the dough down and pull the knife towards you until the dough curls around the knife. Pull the dough piece away from the knife, then push your thumb into the bulged side to turn the piece inside out, using your fingers to thin out the dough on the edges a bit.
And that, there is your Orecchiette, a pasta shape that is both fun and easy to make. The classic way to serve Orecchiette is with some Italian sausage and broccoli rabe/broccolini, but it is also good friends with shellfish.
Gnocchetti
I’m sure you’re familiar with gnocchi, the classic light and fluffy potato pasta, but I bet that fewer of you are aware of its firmer cousin, Gnocchetti. Gnocchetti take on a very similar shape to Gnocchi, but are a bit smaller, and arguably are easier to make because you don’t have to wait for potatoes to cook.
The process of making Gnocchetti starts out very similar as to how we made the Orecchiette, by rolling out chunks of dough into 1/2-inch thick logs, but this time we are cutting the dough into much smaller pieces, almost the size of an uncooked cannellini bean (about 1/4 inch thick).
If you have a Gnocchi paddle, perfect, if not then you can get a long fork with the tines pointing down, then take each piece of dough and use your thumb to push and roll the dough pieces along the fork. Doing this will create ridges on one side of the pasta, allowing whatever sauce you’re making to grab onto it a lot easier.
And there you have your perfect Gnocchetti. I like using these little guys in soups, pairing them with hearty meat sauces such as a ragu or bolognese, and they are also perfect for pasta salads.
Pici
If you love long, thin pasta such as spaghetti, then I think Pici or the ‘wiggly worms’, will be right up your alley. Born in the village of Celle sul Rigo and beloved in a festival known as Pici Sagra, Pici, like many pasta varieties, was born as a way for the less fortunate to get a decent meal in with what little they might have. While it may seem unusual to celebrate such a poor man’s dish, now the festival is so popular that locals need roughly 1,800 pounds of flour to make enough Pici for the crowds.
And that tradition can live on in your home.
To make Pici, you’ll want to fill a shallow bowl with semolina flour, which you will keep any finished Pici in to keep it from sticking to itself, something fresh pasta loves to do. Roll pieces of the dough into 1/4-inch thick ropes, then cut each rope into 5-inch batons.
Take each baton and place it onto your work surface. Keeping your fingers straight, put your hands together and begin rolling each baton, slowly moving your hands apart, until you you have a very long and thin length of dough, it should be a little over a foot long. Drop any finished Pici into the bowl of semolina, and if the bowl is getting a bit crowded, transfer to a sheet pan.
And that is your Pici, a pasta shape that takes a bit of time to make but is well worth it. Because of it’s thin nature, Pici is ideally served with lighter sauces such as a tomato sauce or folded into Cacio e Pepe.
Give any of these unique pasta shapes a roll, and I believe you’ll find yourself falling in love with the art of making fresh pasta. And keep in mind that these are just three of dozens, if not hundreds, of different pasta shapes that exist in Italy, so what are you waiting for? Get some flour and eggs and see how fun making these pasta shapes truly is.
