The best pasta shapes for pasta salad

A pasta salad is dressed once and eaten cold, so the shape has to trap the dressing rather than let it drain to the bottom of the bowl. Twists, cups, and ridges do that. A smooth strand does not. Fusilli, cavatappi, and rotini hold vinaigrette in the spiral. Orecchiette and conchiglie cup a chopped vegetable. Farfalle add a pinch of chew at the knot.

Cook the pasta one minute past al dente, rinse it under cold water to stop the cooking, and dress it while it is still a little warm. It drinks the dressing as it cools.

18 shapes, A to Z.

Campanelle, uncooked, on linen

Campanelle

Short shapes · All of Italy

cone rolled from a ruffled sheet, open like a bell. cooks in 9 to 12 min

Casarecce, uncooked, on linen

Casarecce

Short shapes · Sicily

short strip rolled into an S, with a groove down the middle. cooks in 9 to 12 min

Cavatappi, uncooked, on linen

Cavatappi

Tubes · All of Italy

hollow ridged tube wound into a corkscrew. cooks in 8 to 10 min

Chifferi, uncooked, on linen

Chifferi

Tubes · All of Italy

short curved elbow tube, usually ridged. cooks in 8 to 10 min

Conchiglie, uncooked, on linen

Conchiglie

Short shapes · All of Italy

cupped shell with ridges on the outside. cooks in 10 to 13 min

Farfalle, uncooked, on linen

Farfalle

Short shapes · Lombardy

rectangle of pasta pinched in the middle into a bow, with crimped edges. cooks in 10 to 12 min

Fregola, uncooked, on linen

Fregola

Pastina · Sardinia

irregular toasted semolina pearls, like a coarse couscous. cooks in 8 to 12 min

Fusilli, uncooked, on linen

Fusilli

Short shapes · Campania

short solid spiral, three blades twisted around a core. cooks in 9 to 12 min

Gemelli, uncooked, on linen

Gemelli

Short shapes · All of Italy

one strand folded and twisted on itself, like two strands entwined. cooks in 9 to 11 min

Gnocchetti sardi, uncooked, on linen

Gnocchetti sardi

Short shapes · Sardinia

small ridged dried shell, the commercial malloreddus. cooks in 10 to 13 min

Macaroni, uncooked, on linen

Macaroni

Tubes · Campania

short narrow smooth tube, straight or curved into an elbow. cooks in 7 to 10 min

Orzo, uncooked, on linen

Orzo

Pastina · All of Italy

grain-shaped pasta the size of a large rice grain. cooks in 7 to 10 min

Penne, uncooked, on linen

Penne

Tubes · Liguria

medium tube cut on the diagonal, ridged (rigate) or smooth (lisce). cooks in 10 to 12 min

Pennette, uncooked, on linen

Pennette

Tubes · All of Italy

small penne, ridged, about 3.5 cm. cooks in 8 to 11 min

Radiatori, uncooked, on linen

Radiatori

Short shapes · All of Italy

squat cylinder with deep fins, like a car radiator. cooks in 10 to 12 min

Rotelle, uncooked, on linen

Rotelle

Short shapes · All of Italy

wagon wheel with spokes. cooks in 9 to 11 min

Rotini, uncooked, on linen

Rotini

Short shapes · United States

tight short spiral, the American fusilli. cooks in 8 to 10 min

Trottole, uncooked, on linen

Trottole

Short shapes · All of Italy

spinning top, a ribbon wound around a central pin. cooks in 10 to 12 min

Other uses

By trait