Otherwise known as “little waterfalls” in Italian, cascatelli was created to be an accessible pasta option that enhances the eating experience with maximized “forkability,” “sauceability” and “toothsinkability.” Made from high-quality North American wheats and slow-dried for over nine hours, Pashman’s succeeds in hitting all three categories. We love that it has a good toothsomeness and clean pasta flavor, plus there are no eggs in the dough which keeps it from being too rich and tender. The thing that really sets apart this experimental pasta shape though is the texture. Not only do the ruffles, frills, right turns and curved shape keep sauce clinging on, but each bite becomes a sensory experience for your mouth too. This pasta is the perfect form to serve with a chunky sauce, Rather than finding bits of sauce at the bottom of your bowl like you would with other kinds of pasta, cascatelli will hold on effortlessly.

These handmade noodles stand out from the pack. With a versatile thinness unlike traditional udon, yet with the same slurpy, chewy texture that’s distinctive of the noodle, Inaniwa udon has been handmade by artisans for over 300 years. The process takes four whole days: The noodles are kneaded on a starched surface before drying, followed by a series of hand kneading sessions before they’re shaped into their final form and left to sit. The resulting noodles are silky smooth with a mild taste, with a lovely kick of salt that makes the flavor come alive.

Japanese soba noodles are crafted using traditional techniques handed down for centuries to achieve an optimal nodogoshi, or “throat feel”. And while we love the firm, nutty typical soba noodle, this one infused with premium green tea is earthy, fresh and elegant. Don’t be afraid of the flavor, it’s mild and wheatgrass-like, so it plays well with other tastes much like a plain noodle would while adding a little something special. plus, you can’t beat the soft, slippery, slurp-able texture.

Sfoglini’s Rye Trumpet pasta combines rye, a grain rarely found in store-bought noodles, and the hard-to-find trumpet shape for a toothsome, subtle pasta that clings beautifully to sauce (much like Sfoglini’s beloved Cascatelli). Stone-ground organic rye flour—milled in New York’s Hudson Valley—brings a subtly earthy, tangy taste to these flower-shaped trumpets without adding any grittiness. Sfoglini’s high-quality pastas are made traditionally, using just three organic ingredients and traditional bronze dies and plates for extruding, which helps sauce cling to the pasta. If you don’t have a local fresh pasta shop nearby for handmade specialty pasta, cooking with Sfoglini is the closest thing we’ve found to fresh noodles.

Italian artisanal producer Pasta Mancini extrudes its Fusilli Lunghi (“long fusilli”) through unique bronze dies, based on traditional knowledge that bronze equipment yields porous, rough-surfaced pasta that helps sauce cling better to the noodle. We like how this twirly pasta cooks more evenly than grocery-store fusilli and has a tighter spiral for a more satisfying bite. Made from local, freshly milled semolina flour, the pasta is slow-dried over the course of days to better preserve its robust flavor and texture.

Spaccatelli—a scroll-like pasta also known as “priest’s collars”—gets dramatic color from cuttlefish ink, a common addition to pastas in southern and coastal Italy. Pastas infused with cuttlefish or squid ink tend to be paired with seafood in Italian cuisine, and this spaccatelli works beautifully with buttery seafood. We don’t find that the ink imparts an earthy or briny flavor—it tastes fairly neutral—or that it affects the texture of the pasta, which has the signature al dente chew we love in Sfoglini’s other pastas. We like that the pasta retains color after cooking. Sfoglini’s high-quality pastas are made traditionally, using just three organic ingredients (including locally grown and milled grains) and traditional bronze dies and plates for extruding, which helps sauce cling to the pasta. If you don’t have a local fresh pasta shop nearby for handmade specialty pasta, cooking with Sfoglini is the closest thing we’ve found to fresh noodles.

Pleasantly dense with a light chew, this beautiful pasta from Sfoglini elevates every dish we’ve tried it in. Finding saffron-infused pasta—especially in its dry form—is unusual, but it’s still incredibly versatile. This malloreddus, a hard-to-find Sardinian specialty pasta with a shape similar to gnocchi but hollow, has a sweet wheat flavor and the distinctive heady aroma and flavor of saffron. In fact, Sardinia has been known for centuries for its saffron; it was used to add color to pale pasta, so that it looked richer and like it contained eggs. Sfoglini’s high-quality pastas are made traditionally, using just three organic ingredients (including locally grown and milled grains) and traditional bronze dies and plates for extruding. Sfoglini is the closest thing to going to a local pasta shop for fresh, handmade pasta.

These soft, fresh noodles are made from equal parts buckwheat flour and wheat flour, which yield an especially springy, yet tender texture and full flavor compared to other soba we’ve tried. The flour is milled in-house and no preservatives or other binding agents are used in the noodles—just a dash of salt to round out the flavors. We love the subtle nuttiness of buckwheat and how it plays up the overall umami flavor of soba. Plus, the wider surface area of these noodles allows them to sop up even more sauce.

This couscous from Cordero works beautifully in both hot and cold dishes. With its pleasantly wheaty taste and balanced texture—the perfect medium between tender and firm—this couscous is a cut above grocery store versions. It cooks up fluffier in mere minutes, with more separate grains and zero stickiness or mushiness. Pair it with meat, fish or roasted vegetables.

Orecchiette—a small, round, dimpled pasta from Puglia—is one of our favorite pasta shapes because of its unique balancing of chewy and tender textures. The delicate edges cook more thoroughly than the dense, chewy center, providing textural contrast, and the cupped shape holds onto sauce. Rustichella d'Abruzzo's handmade version is made with Senatore Cappelli heirloom wheat, a native Italian varietal. The historic family company traces its roots back to 1924 in Penne, Italy, and still makes its pasta using traditional methods, including slow-drying at low temperatures over the course of days; this dedication and attention to detail result in high-quality, delicious orecchiette. Feel free to use it in any recipe where a chunky pasta is specified. Try one of our Tuesday Night favorites, Orecchiette with Sausage and Chard.

Translucent and slippery with wonderful flavor-absorbing properties, glass noodles (harusame) are a staple on Japanese tables. But many typical brands of these harusame get mushy easily and also have to be soaked or parcooked. Malony’s noodles stand out, since they’re made from a combination of potato and corn starches instead of the conventional mung bean starch. This makes the noodles able to maintain the firm, springy texture glass noodles are known for—so there’s no rushing to finish your bowl before they go soggy. They even keep their shape as reheated leftovers. Plus, there’s no prep required—simply add straight to your soup. Although they don’t have a strong taste themselves, the noodles beautifully absorb the flavors they are cooked in, making for a versatile pantry staple that’s a step up from what you’d find in supermarkets.

Italian artisanal producer Pasta Mancini extrudes its Mezze Maniche through unique bronze dies, based on traditional knowledge that bronze equipment yields porous, rough-surfaced pasta that helps sauce cling better to the noodle. This tube pasta is slightly shorter and wider than rigatoni, which makes for easy sauce distribution; its versatile shape is great for everything from rustic soups and hearty ragu to casseroles and pasta salad. Made from local, freshly milled semolina flour, the pasta is slow-dried over the course of days to better preserve its robust flavor and texture.