Bucatini
Learn how hollow bucatini carries Amatriciana and other robust sauces, with substitutes and advice for eating and cooking it.
- Format
- Thick spaghetti-like strands with a narrow hole through the centre.
- Surface and bite
- Firm, springy and more substantial than spaghetti.
How to recognise bucatini.
Bucatini looks like thick spaghetti but has a narrow hole running through every strand. The hollow cross-section is easiest to see at a clean-cut end.
It is a dried, extruded durum-wheat semolina pasta whose thick wall gives it a firm, springy bite.
Bucatini is closely connected with Lazio and Roman cooking.
Firm, springy and more substantial than spaghetti.
Use a large pot and stir early. The strands are lively on a fork, so a wide bowl helps at the table.
Why the geometry matters.
The substantial strand stands up to tomato, guanciale and Pecorino, while sauce coats the outside and can enter the central channel.
- Amatriciana
- Rich tomato sauces
- Cheese and cured-pork sauces
Do not confuse it with…
Bucatini vs Spaghetti
Spaghetti is thinner and solid, so it feels lighter and more flexible.
See the spaghetti guide →Bucatini vs Rigatoni
Rigatoni is a short, wide ridged tube rather than a long strand.
See the rigatoni guide →Famous dishes
- Bucatini all’Amatriciana