Pasta is a staple food made from wheat flour and water, shaped into hundreds of different forms and boiled until tender. You probably know spaghetti, the long thin strands, or macaroni, the small curved tubes. But pasta comes in spirals (fusilli), bow ties (farfalle), tubes (penne), flat ribbons (fettuccine), tiny stars for soup, and countless other shapes. Each shape serves a purpose: ridged rigatoni catches chunky sauces, while delicate angel hair works better with light olive oil.

Pasta originated in Italy, where different regions developed their own special shapes and sauce pairings over centuries. Italians take pasta seriously: they might serve orecchiette (little ear-shaped pasta) in the south with broccoli, while northern Italians prefer tagliatelle with rich meat sauce. Italian immigrants brought pasta to America, where it became so popular that now almost everyone eats it regularly.

Making fresh pasta takes skill. You mix flour and eggs (or just water) into dough, knead it until smooth and elastic, then roll it thin and cut it into shapes. Most pasta you buy at the store is dried, which lets it last for months in your pantry. When you boil dried pasta, it absorbs water and softens, transforming from hard and brittle to tender and chewy in about ten minutes.