Endlessly versatile, easy to prepare and an excellent showcase for peak season ingredients, pasta just might be the perfect summer dish. With fresh herbs, produce and fruit filling farmer’s markets with colorful abundance, it’s never been easier to build flavorful, seasonal dinners in just a few minutes. Want to level up your pasta game this summer? We developed a handy guide to pairing pasta shapes with different sauces, along with a few winning flavor combinations. Next time you come home from the farmer’s market, you’ll be ready to freestyle your own pasta using any ingredients that inspire you.
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Start with Your Shape
Although all pasta is made from the same ingredients (durum wheat flour, water and occasionally egg), its shape makes a big impact on how it tastes in the final dish. Here’s an easy rule of thumb to remember: long, thin noodles pair best with light, creamy sauces, while thicker, larger pasta shapes can handle robust, meaty sauces. Of course, this formula is not always followed (looking at you, American spaghetti and meatballs), but generally, aligning your pasta shape to a sauce that suits it will create the best flavor and texture experience. We recommend keeping your pantry stocked with a variety of pasta shapes so you can whip up a delicious dish customized to whatever fresh ingredients you find at the market or have on hand.
Pairing Pasta Shapes & Sauces
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Tube pasta
Sturdier pasta shapes like penne, rigatoni and macaroni work nicely with hearty sauces, in baked cheese pastas and with classic Bolognese or ragu. -
Long & thin pasta
Pair spaghetti, linguine, vermicelli and angel hair with light, delicate sauces and seafood. -
Filled pasta
Ravioli, tortellini and cappelletti typically pair best with a simple sauce such as butter and lemon or olive oil to let the rich flavor of the filling shine. -
Long ribbon-style pasta
Long enough to twirl on a fork, but sturdy enough to hold their own, tagliatelle, pappardelle and fettuccine work beautifully with rich meat sauces. -
Shell pasta
Seashell-inspired shapes like conchiglie or lumaconi are often served with heavier sauces featuring meat, vegetables or cream. Large shell shapes can be stuffed with cheese and baked. -
Mini pasta
Small and delicate, mini pasta like orzo, ditalini and stellini make excellent additions to soups or can be used as the base for a summer pasta salad. -
Twist pasta
The winding, textured spirals of fusilli, farfalle and campanelle grab light, smooth sauces so they cling to every bite. Try this shape with a fresh summer pesto.
Consider Your Vegetables
Summer vegetables and herbs add color, flavor and bulk to pasta. Your only challenge is deciding how to pair and prepare them. Some vegetables – like tomatoes, herbs, sweet corn and peas – don't even require cooking to bring wonderful flavor to pasta. A simple marinade in olive oil and vinegar or even just a toss in the hot, sauced pasta can be all they need to taste delicious. Other seasonal stars such as squash, zucchini, eggplant and onion need to be sautéed or roasted first to coax out the natural caramelization and achieve the right tenderness. However you choose to highlight vegetables, be sure to cut them into similar shapes and sizes of the pasta you’re pairing them with for the most satisfying results.
Get the Recipe: Summer Pasta with Charred Corn and Cherry Tomatoes Get the Recipe: Broccoli and Pistachio Pasta with Basil Oil
Let Protein Play Sidekick
Vegetables are the true star of summer, even in pasta. However, if you do want to include a protein in your pasta, treat it as an accent or sidekick. A little goes a long way! A bit of sausage browned in a Dutch oven and then set aside to incorporate at the finish can make a deep flavor base for sautéing hearty summer squash or peppers. Grilled chicken can be folded into a number of summer pastas, including chilled pasta salads designed for easy packing along to summer adventures. The subtle sweetness of shrimp and scallops pairs beautifully with sweet summer corn or cherry tomatoes. Cannellini beans or chickpeas add vegetarian-friendly protein and shine alongside Mediterranean ingredients such as olives, capers, lemon, tomatoes and herbs.
Get the Recipe: Shallot Shrimp Scampi Get the Recipe: Antipasto Pasta Salad
Finish with A Flourish
Think back to the memorable pastas you’ve enjoyed at a restaurant: often what elevates them from good to amazing is the final touch. First, be sure to reserve your pasta water when draining your noodles. A splash of the starchy water as you toss your cooked pasta and sauce brings the elements together and creates a lovely, glossy finish. Serve on warmed plates or bowls, if possible. Finally, give each serving a last touch to brighten and harmonize the flavors: a grating of fresh Parmesan, a sprinkle of chopped basil or parsley, freshly-ground pepper, pine nuts, toasted breadcrumbs or even a simple squeeze of lemon.
Get the Recipe: Lemon Spinach Fettucine Alfredo with Fried Sage Get the Recipe: Baked Rigatoni with Ricotta and Herbs
Make a Provençal Pasta
The ingredients of sun-drenched Provence are so iconic they’ve come to define a whole sub-cuisine. Summer is a particularly lovely season to enjoy the combination of tomatoes, olives, garlic and herbs the region is known for. We created a simple recipe for a Farmer’s Market Pasta Provençal designed to be customized with whatever you find at the market and shared around a table with good company. First, you’ll sauté seasonal vegetables with olive oil and garlic and then cook thick fettuccine or tagliatelle in the same Signature Oval Casserole with a bright lemon white wine sauce. Toss it all together and finish with fresh basil. Use our recipe as a launch pad to create your own pasta and enjoy the taste of summer in every bite.
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