The word pasta itself has Latin and Greek origins, meaning paste, of flour and water. This simple combination is then pressed, rolled, extruded, curled, and pushed into an array of shapes and styles – sometimes filled. While the combinations are endless, each town, chef and family will have a preferred style, so pasta is about getting to know the nuances of each.
This is by no means an exhaustive guide but instead a cheat sheet to get you thinking about, cooking and discussing the array of pasta available. “There’s a match-making element to putting pastas and sauces together,” says Diana Desensi of Byron Bay’s Pixie Food & Wine. “Pasta is meditative for all of us. I don’t know whether it’s a chef thing or an
