Why Bucatini Is The Pasta Shape You Should Be Using More Often

If spaghetti has rightfully found its place in your weekly menu lineup, we have a simple substitute that might improve Monday night's default dinner: Try swapping in a fun pasta shape like bucatini. These two types of pasta do have some similarities; like spaghetti, bucatini is made with durum wheat semolina, the ingredient that helps pasta keep its shape and end up al dente on your plate. Bucatini, too, is a thin, long noodle that can be piled beautifully into a bowl and twisted with a fork once it's topped with any type of sauce or accoutrements you prefer alongside your pasta. But unlike dense bites of spaghetti, bucatini hides a secret sauce container inside. 

"Buco" means hole in Italian, and each noodle has just that running through its core. This narrow crevice spanning the length of each noodle not only helps each piece cook more evenly, but it is also a magnet for the buttery, oily sauces that you enjoy dousing your pasta dishes in. When eating forkfuls of bucatini, you'll find that both the inside and outside of each noodle will become coated with sauce. Which is why these chewy vessels are ideal to show off dishes made with delicious ingredients, like our oven-roasted tomato bucatini recipe.

In Rome, bucatini is used to make alla gricia, cacio e pepe, and carbonara recipes, and bucatini all'amatriciana has remained a local favorite for centuries. Pair bucatini with your favorite creamy sauce, serve the noodles with tomato sauce, or layer bucatini up in a casserole to bake. Don't hesitate to think outside of the pasta box when using this holey noodle at home. Plop pieces into a stew or consider upgrading your next stir fry with this texturally satisfying alternative. Even a classic dish of mac and cheese can come to life with the quick pasta shape swap, and you might find that some of your favorite meals take a deliciously unexpected turn.

If you're looking to make this pasta for yourself, good luck. This specific shape is made with a machine, as the dough is pushed through a form that cuts out the hole. So we recommend leaving this pasta shape to the pros. Luckily for you, the pasta can be found sold dried or freshly made.