"elaine" <elaineg@ca.inter.net> wrote in message
news:13er9r5n42bc0d6@corp.supernews.com...
> I'd been saving this stuff, 'cause it looked pretty and was in the shape
> of shells.
>
> Not just that, it was way more expensive than other pasta I had bought.
>
> So I cooked it. Guess what, it tastes like all the other dried pasta I
> have. I'm guessing that all the dried stuff, regardless of the shape
> probably tastes exactly the same. e.

Well, yeah. Pasta is pretty much made of the same ingredients unless you
buy one of the gluten free ones like rice, corn, potato or quinoa based.
Most of the rest is made of wheat, or whole wheat, with or without eggs.
Some has a bit of spinach, tomato or other foods added, mostly for color.
So little is added that it doesn't affect the flavor much. You can get
pasta with garlic. I suppose that would taste different.

Mainly the reason for the different shapes of pasta is the feeling on the
teeth and the way it holds the sauce. For really robust or thick sauces you
want a pasta that is fairly thick with a large shape. Pasta with lots of
nooks and crannies allow the sauce to seep in.

Thinner pastas such as angel hair are best with lighter sauces.

Tiny shapes are best for things like soup or mixing into other things. For
example, my husband's family makes an Easter Pie that calls for ditallini.
It's a very tiny pasta shape and it blends in easily with the eggs, meats
and cheeses in the pie. Once baked, you don't realize there is pasta in
there.

Macaroni is probably one of the most versatile shapes. It's hollow so it
allows sauce to seep through it. It's small enough to be used in soup, but
large enough to be used in pasta salads.

Some people just prefer certain shapes. I happen to like Farfalle (bowties)
because they are thick and if not overcooked can be nicely chewy. I hate
overcooked pasta.