I’m an Italian chef — here’s the telltale signs of quality pasta

An Italian chef has revealed the telltale markers of a good quality pasta.

Francesco Mattana said he is constantly asked the question and while he cannot share a brand, he can share what people should look for.

The chef, who boasts more than 326,000 followers on TikTok, showed two different penne pastas.

“They both use the exact same ingredients — durum wheat semolina and water,” he said.

But there was a key difference. One was a light yellow color — almost an ivory.

“This means the pasta has been dried slowly and all of the nutrients haven’t been burned,” he said.

Mr. Mattana said the surface should also be rough and opaque. He suggested people look for bronze drawn extruded. This is because it soaks up the water and allows for a creamy sauce.

He said it was bright yellow pasta you need to be wary of, which means the pasta has been put through a “violent” drying process. Mr. Mattana said this meant a very high temperature for a short amount of time.

Many social media users were stunned.

“I thought the pasta was yellow because of the eggs,” one social media user commented.

Another asked: “When should you use egg pasta vs. semolina pasta?”

“Not sure how I ended on Pasta TikTok but this was a fantastic explanation,” another person added.

One commented: “Honestly I live for these Italian food lessons.”

“I always tell people in the supermarket in Ireland, where I was born. Look at the colour not the price,” one social media user wrote.

It comes after leading dietitian Shyla Cadogan said how you eat your pasta may be what’s causing weight gain.

In a piece she penned for research hub StudyFinds she explained the recommended serving size for pasta is two ounces (56.7g) of uncooked pasta, which is equivalent to approximately one cup of cooked pasta.

One general serving has about 200 calories, 40 grams of carbohydrates, six grams of protein, and one to two grams of fibre, according to Barilla, the world’s largest pasta producer.

Since pasta is mainly comprised of carbs, people tend to look at it as “empty calories,” Ms. Cadogan wrote, but carbs are the “preferred energy source” for the human body, so it actually provides nutrition.

Whole-grain pasta specifically contains more fibre and protein, two things that will keep you fuller for longer and decrease the likelihood of overeating.

But things get nutritionally tricky when it comes to how the pasta is prepared.

Adding sauces, butters, creams, meats and cheeses can add up the calories and inevitably end up making the complete dish have no balance of beneficial nutrients.

People also choose to eat pasta as their main dish rather than a side, so they’re most likely going to eat more than the recommended serving size, Ms. Cadogan said.