Pasta is a wheat-based food that can take on many shapes and sizes. When people hear the word "pasta" they tend to think of Italian food, and in fact the name bucatini is derived from the Italian "buco," meaning "hole."
Features
Bucatini is shaped in hollow tubular lengths. The pasta may be ridged or not; ridges will help sauce adhere to each piece.
Size
Although hollow, bucatini is thick and cut long, like spaghetti. There is a pinhole running through the pasta, so be careful not to overcook it or it will be mushy and unpleasant to eat.
Substitutions
If your recipe requires bucatini and you have trouble locating it at your market, you may substitute with another long pasta (hollow or not) such as perciatelli.
Types
Hollow pasta is also available in different shapes such as rigatoni (short and wide), penne (narrow and diagonally cut), and ziti (short thick tubes).
Fun Fact
The most well-known bucatini dish is the classic "Bucatini alla Matriciana," in which the pasta is tossed with a spicy tomato-based sauce with pancetta.
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