Among many of my friends, homemade pasta is all the rage. It has been for quite some time. I received yet another pasta maker for Christmas this year and between talk of cutting gnocchi and achieving the thinnest possible lasagne noodles, I'm plum pasta'd out.
Luckily, there are so many great super-market brand pastas to get excited about. Growing up, my mom always bought the blue box of Barilla (and still does, in fact). And so that's what I was naturally attracted to all through college and most of my twenties. My mom eventually started buying De Cecco pasta while I've fallen in love with Garofalo spaghetti for its almost lustrous flavor.
In the most recent issue of Cook's Illustrated (February 2012), writer Amy Garvis reports that "Last year, Americans spent $1.5 billion on these strands, using them as a quick base for everything from hearty ragu, to grassy pesto, to plain old butter and cheese." So why buy it rather than make it? Well the first and most obvious answer is time. And the second answer would be money: buying packaged pasta at the store is generally far cheaper than making it homemade (this depends on what kind of pasta you're buying, obviously).
What factors do you consider when buying pasta? Flavor? Texture? How well it cooks? We'd love to hear about what brands you're drawn to and why.
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I also adore the Garofalo spaghetti--my perfect lunch is spaghetti with chiles and shredded cheese. Yum.
I really like the Bertolli refrigerated pastas...especially the tortellini. Tastes so fresh and flavorful.
My favorite dry pasta is from Giuseppe Cocco that's from Abruzzi, and the very second one if from Garofalo (from Napoli). Both without doubt are the best dry pasta one can buy, however, I believe the Garofalo pasta is easier to find than Cocco's.
Barilla, of course! You can never go wrong. Especially loving their piccolini pastas - little tiny baby farfalle, penne, and more.
Barilla Plus for normal noodles (I splurge on stuff like spinach noodles).
I just got some pasta making attachments for my mixer for Christmas. I'm a little intimidated but hopeful the end result will be worth the effort :)
Barilla is good. Montebello is really good too.
Oh I'm loving those little Barilla Picollini pastas too! Just the cutest. I also love Bob's Red Mill Israeli Cous Cous.
De Cecco has been a standard for a long time.
I also really like the private label Whole Foods whole wheat elbows for the kids. That, and De Cecco spirals are the whole edible whole wheat pasta.
Every time I've tried a handmade or artisinal brand I am dissapointed with the results. I assume I am cooking them wrong but I have no idea how.
Being a student, I usually buy the cheapest pasta I can find, which usually tastes quite ok. I've never found the difference between Barilla and the cheapest pasta. Probably I'll change to organic pasta as soon as I earn enough to live completely organic.
But sometimes I like to buy "fresh pasta", when I need some luxury.
I tried De Cecco but I honestly didn't notice anything special about it. Barilla always works well for me and it seems to be a little more forgiving if I get distracted and it's the water a little too long. Surprisingly, my local supermarket's premium brand, Safeway Selects, is a fantastic pasta.
Ancient Harvest organic gluten free pasta! No one can tell it's no wheat and it's al dente and tasty!
Bionaturae for whole wheat pasta - the first whole wheat pasta I was able to tolerate. Plus, it's available at most supermarkets in my area!
I get Garofalo at Costco. I think it ranges from $1- $1.5 a pound in my area (depending on whole wheat or regular)
I generally buy the cheapest whole-grain pasta available. I like Barilla's line, and my grocery regularly has 10/$10 sales, so I can stock up.
Rigorosa di Gragnano (red packages)
http://thebigfood.net/2009/11/27/pasta-di-gragnano/
and Afeltra --
http://www.atasteofitalybypompeo.co.uk/afeltra-pasta.html
Basically, they are both from Gragnano, the home of pasta. Located between Naples and the Amalfi coast, this is where pasta was born (Arab traders brought it -- not Marco Polo from the Chinese).
Just make sure that the pasta you buy from Gragnano comes from the coop (there are multiple brands, the two I listed being a couple of the best), because other Gragnano pastas are not made to the same standards.
It's hard to find though, and so if I am out, I use Garofalo or DeCecco.
I generally buy the Trader Joe's brand pasta, but if I want whole wheat I go for the Whole Foods store brand.
I second the Bionaturae brand of whole wheat pasta. Texturewise, it is the closest to white pasta that I've tried, and I've tried many whole wheat brands. It is a little more expensive than the Whole Foods or Trader Joe's brands, so I try to buy it on sale or or at Amazon.
Great favorites, everyone! Thank you for sharing...definitely a few new brands I'm looking forward to trying.
Barilla Plus! Has lots of protein for us vegetarians and doesn't taste as strong as whole wheat pastas.
When I lived in Italy in college, my house-mother bought Barilla pasta (when she didn't get fresh from the market). If the old Italian woman buys it, I'll buy it!
You have to all remember that today's Barilla is not the Barilla from a few years ago, today Barilla sold in the US is made in the US and is not imported anymore. There is a world of difference between the imported and the US mfgr'd version. You may be able to find the imported version at a specialty store.
I really like Trader Joe's and it is very inexpensive.