What Pasta to Buy?

We are lucky to have so many shops now that sell fresh pasta, which can be very tempting, but a lot of commercially produced fresh pasta is really quite different from the hand-made fresh stuffed pastas the northern Italians enjoy.

The great thing about dried pasta is that it doesn’t deteriorate with age and the quality can be high. The Italians eat bought dried pasta pretty much every day and I always use dry pasta at home.

How much? In Italy, pasta is generally served as a starter and the portions tend to stay quite small, which means about 75g (3oz) per portion for dried pasta and 100g (4oz) per portion for fresh. Do increase these quantities if the pasta is going to be your main meal, but take a tip from the Italians and don’t swamp your pasta in sauce; you should be able to taste the pasta itself. If in doubt, follow the guidelines on the packet.