FAQs

3. What kinds of pasta are there?

Pasta can be divided into dried and fresh according to whether or not it has undergone heat treatment (drying).

Fresh pasta can be kept in the fridge for a few days while dried pasta can be kept at room temperature for 2 years or more, as after drying it has low humidity content and so is not at risk of spoilage.

Pasta can also be divided into three categories according to its shape.

i. Long-cut pasta: This includes hollow pasta (Spaghetti Espressi, Νο 2, Νο 3, Νο 5 etc) and solid pasta (Νο 6, Νο 7, Νο 10 etc)

ii. Short-cut pasta: This category includes pasta such as orzo, penne, rigatoni, cut macaroni medium, etc. 

iii. Nests: This includes pasta whose shape is reminiscent of nests, such as tagliatelle and vermicelli.

Pasta can also be divided according to its ingredients into plain and special.

Plain pasta is produced from durum wheat semolina and water.       
Special pasta apart from the semolina and water also contains natural ingredients such as egg, milk, spinach, tomato, carrot, etc. The special pasta category also includes «whole wheat» pasta, pasta with soya, with soya and added gluten (dietetic pasta) etc.

On the market you can also find special dietary pasta mainly produced from corn meal or rice flour (without gluten).
There are also other kinds of pasta such as stuffed pasta (tortellini, ravioli, etc) and pasta made from dough sheets (lasagne).
Yet another distinction can be made on the basis of their boiling time. There is quick-cook pasta (Spaghetti Espressi, quick-cook penne) which boils very quickly due to its walls being thin.
Particular reference must also be made to organic pasta. Its difference from conventional pasta is due to the fact that the semolina used in production comes from 100% organically grown durum wheat, in other words at no stage in its production are chemicals or pesticides used and cultivation methods are mild and environmentally friendly.

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