# Linguine vs Spaghetti



## otuatail (Apr 17, 2021)

Can someone tell me what the difrence is in these? I go to suopermarkets in the UK Tesco and Morrisons. All  see is Spaghetti.


Confused!


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## WhateverYouWant (Apr 17, 2021)

The cross section of spaghetti is of course circular. Linguine, while similar in mass, has a rectangular cross section. Think of it like really narrow, thin fettuccine.


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## otuatail (Apr 17, 2021)

Ok so...
Pasta comes in difrent shapes and colours. Spaghetti and Linguine are just another pasta then.


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## WhateverYouWant (Apr 17, 2021)

Yup.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Apr 17, 2021)

Linguine is oval in cross-section, and is wider than spaghetti, but not as wide as is fettuccini. It's shape gives it a richer pastas flavor that stands up to hearty sauces such as Bechemel, Moroney, Alfredo, Bolognaise, Volute etc.  It is used in pasta dishes such as:
Linguine with Garlic Sauce
Linguine with Shrimp Scampi 
Linguini with Italian Chicken and Volute

Linguini is the pasta shape that pairs well with, scallops, crawfish, crab, lobster, and chicken, clam, nd other such proteins.  It can also be used in place of spaghetti in carbonara, with pesto, and other herbal recipes.

Spaghetti comes in different thickness for different recipes.  
Angel hair, also called Capellini,  is the thinnest and works in
Angel Hair pasta with Grape Tomatoes, Garlic & Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
With Olives, Bell Peppers, Olive Oil, and Sweet onion
With a light Marinara Sauce
With Prmesan and Artichoke Hearts
More Like this

Spaghetti is most often used in:
Spaghetti with Marinara and Meatballs
Spaghetti with Meat Sauce (Ragu)
Spaghetti Bolognaise,
Spaghetti Carbonara
Spaghetti with pesto

You can, of course, be used in a variety of  recipes.  In the North American versions, it is usually serve without the sauce cooked into the noodles.  The eater places the sauce over the plate of noodles.  

In Italy, from what I've read, the sauce is mixed into the noodles, and often baked.  The noodles are the focus of the dish, with the sauce adding flavor, almost like a seasoning.

Hope tis helps.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Roll_Bones (Apr 17, 2021)

I never buy spaghetti.  We prefer linguine or fettuccine.


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## Rocklobster (Apr 17, 2021)

Linguine originated from hand made pasta which is why it is flat..almost like really thin fettuccine..they would roll the sheet up and slice it thinly before unraveling it and cooking it..Spagghetti came after they invented a plate for pressing it through...or..maybe it was a Chinese thing, as they invented the hand pulled noodles..interesting..
We prefer the larger spaghetti, as it holds up better and absorbs more of the sauce when I finish it in the pan..


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## expatgirl (Apr 18, 2021)

we splurged on some fresh fettucine yesterday to go with my spicy meat sauce and it was delicious!  What I liked about it was that it didn't take as long as the packaged kind of noodles.  Next we're going  try are the fresh stuffed pasta with a meat sauce.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Apr 18, 2021)

A little off topic here; my new favorite noodle to go with a rich Sunday grave with meatballs, or a great Ragu/Ragout is Cavatapi.  It's a corkscrew shaped macaroni and pairs with rich tomato-based sauces.  I love it with a chunky Ragu that has mushrooms, diced onion, Lots of basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme, with a bit of black pepper, chopped, ripe red, and yellow bell pepper, and of course, garlic, and grated hard, Italian cheese.  I like to put the uncooked noodles right into the sauce with an extra cup of water.  The extra water rehydrates the noodles to al dente, and brings all the flavors together.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## GotGarlic (Apr 18, 2021)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> A little off topic here; my new favorite noodle to go with a rich Sunday grave with meatballs, or a great Ragu/Ragout is Cavatapi.  It's a corkscrew shaped macaroni and pairs with rich tomato-based sauces.  I love it with a chunky Ragu that has mushrooms, diced onion, Lots of basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme, with a bit of black pepper, chopped, ripe red, and yellow bell pepper, and of course, garlic, and grated hard, Italian cheese.  I like to put the uncooked noodles right into the sauce with an extra cup of water.  The extra water rehydrates the noodles to al dente, and brings all the flavors together.
> 
> Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


I love cavatappi! [emoji39] It's like a turbo corkscrew - different from rotini. I also like gemelli a lot, but it's not always easy to find.


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## dragnlaw (Apr 18, 2021)

Me too!  Cavatappi is also great in a Mac and Cheese!  But I had to buy some regular elbow for the spoiled grandkids who looked at the corkskrews and said...  WHA!  THAT'S NOT MACARONI!  (this was my face(s) ....... )

When I first bought some it was called "ScoobyDoo"  only saw it about twice so I guess they weren't licensed and had to change.  Too bad, kids might have eaten it then!


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## jennyema (Apr 18, 2021)

Linguine is flat
Sgahetti is round


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## Katie H (Apr 18, 2021)

If you want to get really really crazy, there are about 300 different types of pasta.  Love 'em all.  Some of the pastas are useful to "hold" sauces, which is a yummy way to enjoy pasta.


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## larry_stewart (Apr 19, 2021)

Theres a simple dish I make , linguini with Garlic, oil, fresh uncooked tomato and basil and Mozzarella cheese ( sometimes).   I usually make garlic croutons to help scoop up the tomatoes that sit at the bottom of the bowl when your finished, kinda like a bruschetta.  My family loves it too, and it's often requested when I am invited to family gatherings.

Anyway, first time I had this was at my professors beach house about 30 years ago, after we graduated.  I fell in love with the dish ever since, and make I a lo during tomato season, as the quality of the tomatoes is what really drives the dish.

Getting to the point of this thread, occasionally one oof my family members will take it upon themselves to make it on their own for family gatherings, and they often ( if not always ) use regular spaghetti instead of linguini.  Im not going to say that its bad, but its is amazing to me how the simple change in pasta shape for the same dish and make such a difference.  Maybe its cause I can sense something is different after having it the same way for decades, or maybe its the way the flavors adhere (or don't) to the pasta, or the absorption rate of the sauce, the physical difference of the pasta and how it feels in the mouth....  It just tastes better with the linguini.  Maybe Im just a food snob (which I'm not doubting), and being too critical of someone else's attempt to make what I always make.  

Theres another dish that I also , Farfalle  with garlic, oil spinach and feta cheese.  Simple but really good.  Another requested dish.   I find I can make it with a fusilli type pasta and it works well.

I guess ( at least to me), the bottom line is that you can use pasta's interchangeably with out making a dramatic difference, but some will pick up on it.   My family just doesn't get it, so I guess its a ' me thing' .


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## Roll_Bones (Apr 20, 2021)

Costco sells a 6 pack of (3 types) dried pasta. Imported from Italy is what it says.  I tried it once when on sale and really liked them.
I am now on my second purchase.  I can't recall the style/type they are, but one sounds like  Cavatappi mentioned above?
Its a tight corkscrew.  Looks like to strands twisted together.  Perfect for a Italian style pasta salad.
The one style I will always pass on is the angel hair.  I don't like how it boils up and I don't like how it wants to become a solid mass no matter how much butter, oil or sauce you toss it with.
Did I mention I love pasta!

My mother always told me that Mario Lanza died because he ate to much pasta. lol
I assume he was a large man.


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## salt and pepper (Apr 20, 2021)

https://thosefoods.com/linguine-vs-spaghetti/


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## GotGarlic (Apr 20, 2021)

Cavatappi.


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## salt and pepper (Apr 21, 2021)

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## Lee Vining (Apr 23, 2021)

Katie H said:


> If you want to get really really crazy, there are about 300 different types of pasta.  Love 'em all.  Some of the pastas are useful to "hold" sauces, which is a yummy way to enjoy pasta.








An Italian deli near us sells imported dry pasta. I can't find anything in the US grocery chains out here that comes anywhere near it in flavor. Has that cool file type texture on it too.
Takes our pasta dishes over the top.


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## taxlady (Apr 23, 2021)

Lee Vining said:


> An Italian deli near us sells imported dry pasta. I can't find anything in the US grocery chains out here that comes anywhere near it in flavor. Has that cool file type texture on it too.
> Takes our pasta dishes over the top.



My two favourite brands of pasta are made in Italy. I get their whole wheat pasta. It's really good stuff.


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## WhateverYouWant (Apr 23, 2021)

I've been making my own pasta for darn near 40 years. I have both an extruder (which I rarely use now a days) and a roller. For those of you that love pasta I really recommend you give it a try. It is easy and fun, and the results are so much better than any dried pasta, in both flavor and texture.

For rolled pasta I use a combo of semolina and all purpose flours (but use mostly semolina in the extruder). In addition to salt and olive oil, I'll sometimes add spinach, sun dried tomato, and even chimichurri purees. It always comes out great as it is really pretty hard to screw up.

For me, fresh pasta was a game changer, especially for lasagne and ravioli (which is my all time fav), but any fresh pasta is just so much more decadent than dried.


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## msmofet (Apr 24, 2021)

I like thin linguine when cooking long pasta.


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## Just Cooking (Apr 25, 2021)

msmofet said:


> I like thin linguine when cooking long pasta.



I agree.  

Ross


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