Angel hair pasta is back

August 23, 2023 by
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I was puzzled when I saw the tweet from Eater stating that angel hair pasta was making a comeback. “Had it ever really left?” I wondered. As I discovered, this is only because I live with an angel hair fanatic: every time I ask what pasta he would like to accompany the sauce I plan to make, the answer is the same – angel hair. But for the rest of the world, angel hair had its heyday in the 90s and had mostly been pushed aside in favor of thicker or wider pasta shapes. But at Jaya Saxena notes, angel hair is back in the spotlight and thriving on TikTok.

Green angel hair with garlic butter from Smitten Kitchen by Deb Perelman

Chefs are rediscovering the positive attributes of angel hair pasta, which at its best is the perfect foil for delicate sauces and fresh produce. The reason most home cooks didn’t like the thin strands is because it was easy to overcook, says Saxena. “The shape’s microscopic cooking times mean if you don’t get it exactly right you’ll be left with a goopy, congealed mess instead of feeling like you’re biting through the finest filigree,” she notes.

If the EYB Library is an accurate reflection of the lack of love for angel hair pasta, I think Saxena is on the mark. There are only 359 online recipes specifically for angel hair or capellini pasta. Compare that to spaghetti, which has more than 10 times as many recipes, or linguine, which has 1,221 recipes. As to my partner, we have found a compromise pasta shape: fedelini, which is thinner than spaghetti but thicker than angel hair.

Category: Food Online

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7 Comments

  • Rinshin  on  August 24, 2023

    I like capellini as chilled dishes and two of my favorites are from japanese chefs cooking Italian foods. One is Summer vegetable chilled capellini (much like gazpacho sauce) with lots of ripe garden tomatoes, basil, garlic and extra virgin olive oil and another with avocado and sashimi grade salmon. Japanese have always liked capellini because it has similar thinness as somen noodle.

  • LeilaD  on  August 24, 2023

    I adore angel hair; my favorite is with whipped heavy cream and mushrooms. Divine.

  • KarenGlad  on  August 25, 2023

    Is fedelini the same as spaghettini ?? In my house the expectation is the same; no matter the sauce it’s served on spaghettini. When I stop and think about it that’s almost 50 years of spaghettini! What can I say ….you gotta pick your battles ??‍♀️

    • Darcie  on  August 25, 2023

      I believe fedelini is between angel hair and thin spaghetti/spaghettini, but that distinction is like splitting hairs. And I agree, it’s not a hill to die on!

  • sayeater  on  August 25, 2023

    I never liked angel hair. I like thick spaghetti or, as I’ve discovered in recent years, bucatini! Maybe I’ll revisit it with one of the mentioned light sauces and see if I can change my own mind.

  • cpandrew  on  August 27, 2023

    Every time I fix angel hair pasta, I’m transported back to our newly wed days. Celebrating 30 years this year.

  • trudys_person  on  August 27, 2023

    I’ve always liked angel hair pasta … It cooks up quickly, and has more surface area to weight than thicker pastas–therefore can hold more sauce!

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