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13 best fresh pastas for speedy dinners, from shapes to filled
The GHI tested 25 different fresh pastas to find our winner
Tested by Joanna AnastasiouFood and Drinks Tester
There's little better in life than fresh pasta. At this time of year, we're craving bowls of fresh, summery flavours, like ricotta and spinach cappellacci or tomato and burrata ravioli, or a simple fusilli served with pesto, parmesan shavings and pine nuts.
Ideal for busy home cooks, fresh pasta can be ready in under five minutes. It’s also a guaranteed crowd-pleaser at mealtimes, providing a filling meal packed full of delicious, Mediterranean flavours.
To help you find the very fresh pasta shapes and fresh filled pasta to elevate your home cooking, the Good Housekeeping Institute enlisted a panel of testers. They worked their way through 25 different types of filled and non-filled pastas to help bring a taste of la dolce vita to your table.
Best fresh pasta and fresh filled pasta 2024
These are our experts’ top picks at a glance but keep scrolling for our full reviews of the best fresh pasta shapes and filled pasta.
Does fresh pasta taste better than store bought?
Pasta is made from just a few ingredients: flour, egg and water. Dried pasta, however, often uses just semolina flour and water instead of eggs. Semolina flour is coarser and helps the pasta to retain its shape after it's been cooked. Fresh egg pasta will often be richer in flavour; however, the taste of your final dish will ultimately depend on how the pasta is cooked and what sauce you’re serving with it.
Usually, dried pasta is seen as more convenient as it can be stored. It's usually more robust and takes longer to cook, while fresh pasta is more tender and only needs to be boiled for a few minutes.
Is fresh pasta better than dried?
Fresh pasta is not necessarily better than dried; they just have different uses. For example, a traditional lasagne would benefit from hardier, dried pasta sheets, while a slow cooked beef ragu is delicious served with fresh pappardelle.
Dried pasta is the perfect kitchen cupboard staple. The fact that it’s dried and can be stored for a long time means it’s a great ingredient to have on hand for easy, crowd pleasing midweek meals. Fresh pasta cooks faster and can be ready in minutes, so it’s good for grabbing on the way home from work or ordering as part of your weekly online shop for speedy dinners.
What to look for when buying fresh pasta
The first thing to look at is colour. The pasta should be a nice warm yellow shade, which shows it’s been made with good quality eggs.
It should also have an almost gritty texture, and look like it still has flour clinging to it. This can be hard to see with pre-packaged pasta, but most packets will have a window you can look through. This texture will help sauces cling to the pasta better. When you take it out of the packet, it should still smell of the wheat it's made from, and not the packaging.
The other main factors to consider when buying fresh pasta are the shape and, if you’re opting for filled, the flavour combination (you’ll find lots of delicious options on our list below).
Pasta is the vehicle for your sauce, and different shapes work best for different dishes. Long, skinny pasta shapes (e.g. spaghetti) are good for tomato, cream or oil-based sauces, for example, while ribbons (pappardelle, tagliatelle) are good for rich, meaty and creamy sauces, and twists (fusilli) pairs well with lighter, smoother sauces like pesto.
How we test fresh pasta
The GHI team tested 25 fresh pastas, including different shapes and filled options (which we’ve separated out in our list below). They were cooked in salted water, according to packet instructions, and tossed in some olive oil before serving blind to a panel of consumers.
Testers were looking for silky, smooth pasta that had a pleasing chew and bounce to it as well as a deeper yellow colour that suggests high-quality eggs have been used. They also looked for pasta that would be able to withstand a sauce or additional flavours and well-balanced and seasoned fillings.
These are their top picks. And once you've found your perfect pasta, we recommend checking out our top-rated pestos, our cookery team's guide to the perfect tomato sauce, or our review of the Heinz pasta sauce range if you're looking for simple midweek meals.
Score: 84/100
These wide ribbons of pappardelle – from Waitrose’s reliable No.1 range – have a nice light yellow colour, and our testers noted the “rich eggy smell”, which is a sign of quality ingredients.
Testers also praised the smooth pasta’s “buttery richness” and “nutty quality”. It still had a nice bite to it after cooking and retained its thickness, making it a good choice for pairing with heavier pasta sauces.
Score: 83/100
This tagliatelle has a rich egg and nutty flavour, along with a very light sweetness, which our testers enjoyed. It cooked nicely, resulting in a firm (but not hard) texture.
The wide ribbons were another highlight, making it easy to twirl and able to hold up against rich sauces, like a ragu.
Score: 83/100
Rigatoni can be an underrated shape, but this scored well with our testers. The thickness of this pasta shape particularly impressed the panel, and they liked that it cooked very al dente.
It's made with free-range eggs and 100% durum wheat semolina, which testers said “was very present in the flavour”. They also liked how well it absorbed the salt from the cooking.
Score: 78/100
This pasta's “brilliant orange colour” comes from the Clarence Court eggs it's made with, and marks this out as a quality product. The addition of Italian 00 wheat flour helps to create a rich, creamy flavour, which testers said intensified as they ate the pasta.
They also liked the pasta shape's firm yet springy texture, which helps it capture the sauce and hold onto it.
Score: 76/100
As the most affordable on the list, this pasta shape still has a lot to offer. The classic spiral shape is packed with tight coils that are great “for picking up and holding sauce”.
It cooked to a nice al dente texture, and our panel thought it would definitely stand up well against a heavy sauce. They also praised its creamy aroma and savoury taste.
Score: 74/100
For anyone who likes fresh pasta but isn’t a fan of strong flavours, this simple, well made tagliatelle is the answer. Our testers thought it would be a good option for children, as it’s light and easy to chew.
It was one of the thinnest pastas we tried, but if you’re looking for an easy family meal, it shouldn’t disappoint.
Score: 72/100
Pasta Evangelists made a name for itself after appearing on Dragon's Den. Originally only available for delivery, you can now buy its products in supermarkets too.
Testers found the pasta had floury and slightly nutty notes, as well as a grassy element to it. With its frilled edges, the reginette shape was very popular with the panel as it’s great for holding onto sauce.
Best filled pastas
Score: 89/100
Filled with sweet, earthy butternut squash, our testers liked this ”well balanced and well made” ravioli. They praised the ”fresh buttery aromas”, along with the hint of savoury sage.
The pasta is thin, silky and smooth with a slight chew and can be served simply with a sage butter or a light basil and pine nut pesto.
Score: 89/100
These little soft, silky, buttery pasta parcels are filled with slow-cooked beef ragu that's made with a DOP chianti, which gives it a light oakiness. Our testers praised the ”meaty and earthy aromas” of the ragu and the meat's deep umami notes.
Score: 89/100
Another quality pasta from Waitrose, this crimped fiorelli pasta is packed with pumpkin, mozzarella and pine nuts, creating a creamy and nutty crunch.
Our testers liked the texture and the peppery notes, which helped to offset the pumpkin's sweetness. Serve it simply with a little buttle and a generous shaving of parmesan.
Score: 78/100
These discs of carby goodness are filled with butternut squash and ricotta cheese, which give them a sour creaminess.
The pasta is thin, silky and fairly small in size, but has a pleasing pasta-to-filing ratio. It's another one that would work perfectly with a sage butter or a simple drizzle of olive oil.
Score: 76/100
Nothing says summer more than sun-dried tomatoes served with the kings of Italian cheese, mozzarella and burrata. The ravioli has a strong flavour of garlic, with a smooth, creamy filling.
Testers thought it could be a nice option for children as the pasta comes in a mix of yellow and orange colours, adding a little fun to dinnertime.
Score: 72/100
Perfect for a quick summer dinner, these little scalloped-edged parcels are packed with creamy hot smoked salmon and lemony dill. Testers said the flavours paired very well, and it tasted really fresh.
To avoid competing with the big flavours, this pasta would be best served with a simple chilli oil drizzled over the top.
These also passed...
- La Tua Ravioli Braised Beef & Black Truffle; £5.40; Score: 71/100
- Rana Aubergine Parmigiana Fresh Tortelloni; £3; Score: 70/100
- Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Parmigiano Reggiano Mezzelune; £3.25; Score 70/100
Joanna Anastasiou is our Food and Drinks Tester, and has completed certifications in Sensory Foundation and WSET Wine Level 2 training. Prior to this she studied geography with conservation biology at the University of Exeter and trained at Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland. Through this she has developed a passion for sustainability within the food and agricultural sectors. Joanna also volunteers in kitchens with FoodCycle, as well as on multiple wildlife conservation projects, where she formed a particular love for bees!
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