Fettuccine is a popular Italian pasta that can be purchased dried or fresh, or made from scratch. Considerations include flour type and colored varieties. Homemade pasta offers the freshest flavor, but requires a pasta machine and drying time. Whole-wheat and colored versions are also available.
Fettuccine is a long, flat pasta that is popular in Italian cuisine. Cooks often use it in conjunction with various types of tomato or cheese based sauces. Choosing the best for your particular needs likely involves deciding whether you want fresh or dried fettuccine, both available at many grocery stores, or whether you’d rather make your pasta from scratch. Other considerations include the type of flour used in the noodles, as whole-wheat noodles are available, as well as a variety of colored pastas that can add color and flavor to the meal.
The easiest way to make fettuccine is to purchase the dried version from a grocery store and cook it according to package instructions. Dried pasta has a long shelf life, and any uncooked pasta can be saved for another meal. Dried noodles are generally more readily available than the fresh varieties.
In some areas, fresh fettuccine pasta is available at grocery or specialty stores. While this product has a much shorter shelf life, it offers much of the same flavor and texture as fresh pasta made at home or in a restaurant. Fresh fettuccine is usually found in the refrigerated section of the store along with other types of fresh pasta and various sauces.
Using homemade noodles is the most difficult method of making a pasta dish, but it offers the freshest flavor and gives the cook total control over the ingredients that go into the noodles. Some people with gluten allergies prefer to make their noodles using buckwheat flour. Cooks interested in making homemade fettuccine will generally need to have their own pasta machine, which compresses and cuts the noodles into their signature flat shape. Homemade pasta will also need to be dried for three to four hours before cooking. While the preparation is much longer and more involved, the cooking time for fresh pasta is generally shorter than the cooking time for dried pasta.
In addition to fresh and dried versions, fettuccine pasta is also available as a whole-wheat product and in a variety of colors, many of which are derived from the vegetables used in the recipe. Whole wheat varieties can be enriched with vitamins and minerals and typically have more fiber than pasta containing regular flour. Colored varieties of fettuccine may contain tomato paste or spinach to develop a red or green hue. These colorful pastas can add help to brighten a dish and add a little extra flavor to a special meal.
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