How to Cook Perfect Pasta Like a Professional Chef
20 Recipes to Perfect Your Pasta Cooking Skills
Pasta is one of the most versatile meals to cook and the easiest to perfect. In most cases, it requires a handful of ingredients and minimal time to make, while the result is always delicious!
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The Italians brought pasta to the world millennia ago, yet they keep to the traditional way of cooking it, making pasta a worldwide favourite food! We all love it, ask for it whenever we visit amazing Italy and strive to perfect it while trying endless variations in our kitchen.
Here are a few tried and tested recipes that should help anyone become a pasta pro in no time!
Of course, a good meal goes down way better with good wine. Check this easy pasta post to see how to best pair wine with each type of pasta.
Get cooking and enjoy your creations!
Recipe provided by theworldisanoyster.com
The Italians would eat pasta every day, mainly for lunch. In a typical Italian household, cannelloni would be a Sunday lunch special. This ricotta and spinach cannelloni is a lighter, healthier version to the meaty one anyone can cook successfully, even on the first try!
Recipe provided by aussiehomecook.com
A ragù is a hearty, rich, slow-cooked Italian sauce made of meat and vegetables. The length of cooking will ensure its wonderful flavours. Lamb ragù is typically served with pappardelle – a large, flat pasta, like supersized fettuccini.
Recipe provided by thecoppertable.com
Certain dishes take a little more time and are a labour of love worth the extra effort. This dish is one of those, but also therapy for the soul. It is an excellent opportunity to check out, zone out, and get your hands dirty.
4. Easy Creamy Pasta Carbonara
Recipe provided by coupleinthekitchen.com
Carbonara is the best type of pasta for cold winter months that gives you the feeling of a warm comfy home. This dish is all about the cheese, so make sure to get the best Parmigiano Reggiano for it!
Recipe provided by cookingwithcarbs.com
If you thought ravioli to be an elaborated pasta made by professional chefs only, you might be surprised how easy it is to make it at home! Once you nail the technicality of it, you can experiment with various fillings.
Recipe provided by cookedbyjulie.com
All the classic flavours of pizza combined with your favourite Italian dish for one successful dinner! What can be better than this?
7. Cheesy Bolognese Pasta Bake
Recipe provided by flawlessfood.co.uk
An easy weeknight dinner recipe, this dish is a twist on a classic Italian Spaghetti Bolognese. But a delicious one!
Recipe provided by thedaringkitchen.com
This feta pasta recipe had major hype on Tiktok for good reasons: simple and easy to make. In under an hour, you can have a yummy Greek-inspired pasta feast.
Recipe provided by foodmeanderings.com
If meat is your thing, replace ricotta with a mixture of beef, onions and carrots for a distinct taste and texture. The result will surely satisfy the meat lover in you!
Recipe provided by fluxingwell.com
Lasagna is one of the easiest, most delicious pasta recipes. This dish also makes a great freezer meal if you do a lot of cooking for the month.
11. Vegan Pumpkin Gnocchi made from scratch!
Recipe provided by thishealthykitchen.com
All you need for this excellent dish is just two ingredients: whole wheat flour and pumpkin puree—the result: a delicious, healthier version than traditional potato gnocchi.
12. How To Make The Best Homemade Vegan Spinach Ravioli
Recipe provided by sugarspiceneverythingnice.com
This is an excellent option for someone who misses having a cheesy ravioli pasta but has an allergy to dairy, eggs and nuts.
13. Instant Pot Vegan Pasta Soup
Recipe provided by culinaryshades.com
Soup is comfort food in the cold months or if you are under the weather. This vegan orzo pasta soup loaded with vegetables makes a hearty meal ready in a matter of minutes.
14. Pasta With Potatoes & Bacon
Recipe provided by the-bella-vita.com
Pasta and potatoes are beautifully combined in this traditional Sicilian dish, a speciality of the ever-inventive cooks of Southern Italy.
Recipe provided by tikkido.com
These are fresh pasta noodles made with actual pumpkins. Fresh pasta only takes a minute or two to cook, so taste often to determine if it is done to your preference, then drain and add your sauce of choice.
16. Mom’s Best Classic Gluten-Free Vegan Baked Ziti (Soy-Free)
Recipe provided by strengthandsunshine.com
This make-ahead “cheesy” pasta dinner casserole is soy-free, delicious, and ready in minutes! Great as a freezer meal or having leftovers throughout the week!
17. Instant Pot Short Rib Ragù
Recipe provided by coupleinthekitchen.com
A ragù is a traditional Italian sauce made of meat, onions, tomato, and red wine. This recipe uses braised short ribs instead of the more traditional ground beef.
18. Homemade Spaghetti and Meat Sauce
Recipe provided by bakerstable.net
Topped with cheese and fresh parsley, this dish is an absolute favourite for cold days or when we need a nice and homey plate. There is nothing better than a meal packed full of aromatic veggies, fresh herbs, and spices!
19. Taco Spaghetti
Recipe provided by modernmealmakeover.com
Taco Spaghetti is all the yummy taco flavours you love in a Mexican casserole. Best of all, it is all put together in one pot for easy cleanup and ready in just 30 minutes.
20. Pasta Al Forno
Recipe provided by bakingbeauty.net
Perfectly cooked pasta in a tangy tomato cream sauce. Topped off with more cheese and crunchy bread crumbs, this will become a new family favourite.
Which one of these perfect pasta recipes is your favourite? Do you have a special recipe that is your signature pasta? Or one you cook more often? I’d love to hear about it if you care to leave a comment!
What a collection. I’m a huge pasta fan. Can’t wait to start cooking some of these recipes.
Oh my goodness, you’ve covered everything about pasta here! Thank you for the inspiration. Beautifully done!
Thank you! Now you too can cook pasta like a professional chef:)
OMG…so many great choices. I love all the tips you give to make the perfect pasta…going to start with the Cannelloni and work my way through.
Cannelloni is a great way to start because it is easy to make, but you will cook pasta like a professional chef in no time, you’ll see!
Pasta in EVERY way shape and form is a hit in this house. What a great collection of recipes and tips to try. I know we will enjoy working our way through this list.
Pasta is my favourite food, what a fantastic selection of recipes. I can’t wait to try them all!
This is really helpful!! Saving this as my guide! Thank you!
I absolutely adore pasta and am always looking for good recipes! This is an excellent collection. I particularly love the Baked Feta Pasta – having it for dinner tonight!
So many amazing-looking pasta dishes here. Thanks for rounding ’em up and including them in this post. I’m so busy with work and kids etc. that I don’t have much time to search for new recipes these days. This is very helpful.
I am a pasta fanatic. I will be giving a few of these a try for sure. My family will enjoy them for sure.
Thank you for sharing these recipes; they all look so delicious! I recently got a pasta maker, so I can’t wait to try some of these recipes out! But I don’t know which one to start with first!
Such a fab selection! I’m particularly loving the taco spaghetti (although I’d make it vegan), so much choice!
This is such an informative post! Thanks for sharing all these tips!
Glad you found it useful!:)
I love pasta and am always looking for new recipes! I’ve especially got my eye in that pesto ravioli.
I just had pasta for dinner and yet…here I am perusing all these recipes for more inspo. This is an amazing list!
They all look amazing! Not sure which to try first!
love this roundup post! sometimes when Im in the kitchen I also act like some chef😂 I can learn with pasta more with this.
Pasta is one of my favorite food! So many great recipes in just one post. Thank you so much for putting them together!
Oh wow…where to begin. So many awesome choices here.
For me pasta is life! Great selection of pasta recipes. I see some that I really like to try. Thanks for sharing this.
OMG this made me so hungry, lol! Thanks for sharing, these look awesome!
I could live on pasta, I want to try the baked feta it looks amazing as well as all the other recipes!
Making your own food is a great way to save money. And pasta is sooooo delicious!
Yummy. will try these on weekend. Thanks for sharing
So many variations this post is great for a Sunday evening after church meal. It is comfort food at its finest.
When I had a lot of time I use to make my own pasta noodles, it was so simple back then. These recipes make me want a big bowl of fettuccini right now, haha.
These look delicious! That short rib ragu is something I need to try for sure. Thanks for putting this list together and sharing.
YUM! I love pasta so much! I love how many different varieties and ways to make it there are. Can’t wait to try some of these recipes on your list.
Thanks for sharing. I’m hungry just looking at it. Making my own pasta is something I’ve always wanted to try.
Yum! So far I’ve tried the TikTok pasta – amazing, can’t wait to try the others. Pasta is the best!
What an amazing collection! I love pasta so much! Now I have a huge selection of ideas! Thanks for sharing!
I love the diverse range of different pastas you’ve included in this list! Can’t wait to try some of these out. Also thanks for including us in this great list!
Okay, I love love love pasta and this post about pasta! My mouth is watering. 🙂
Great list! There are a few here that I must try very soon!!
Hey! On my to-do list is to try my hand at making pasta. And these recipes are perfect!
Happy cooking!:))
All of these look great! Thank you for adding our recipe to this amazing list! Xo