The Best Gluten Free Pastas
This is probably a category I wouldn’t have been able to write about back when I first went gluten free in 2018. Thankfully, gluten free products have come a long way since then! And now there is such a wide variety of excellent gluten free pastas available. It’s been wonderful (for everything but my waistline 😆) to be able to enjoy amazing pasta dishes again!
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Jovial gluten free pastas are probably my favorite and the closest to the real thing in my opinion. I first got hooked on their tagliatelle, but any form is delicious. These are a brown rice pasta, made in Italy as the best pastas always are!
Jovial pasta does not need excessive sauce to drown out odd flavors. Sure, you can load it up with a meaty marinara, but it does equally well dressed in olive oil or butter and parmesan to serve up with some shrimp or scallops.
Banza Chickpea Pasta
I only discovered Banza around 2 years ago. As I’m sure any of you that have been gluten free for a while can understand, often when you find a good gluten free substitute, you stick with it for years instead of risking trying something new, and being disappointed again.
The packaging caught my attention at Whole Foods and given this pasta is made with high protein chickpeas, I had to give this a try. I bought the penne to start. I sliced up and browned some pieces of sausage in olive oil while simmering my Banza penne on the other burner. Added some Rao’s Arrabbiata sauce, splash of vodka, heavy cream, and fresh grated parmesan to the sausage before stirring in the drained Banza penne. This quickly became my new favorite dish!
The instructions for Banza say to rinse it after draining. I haven’t really been able to tell the difference though when I’ve rinsed or not rinsed it. I tend to cook this one a minute or so longer than the directions advise since it typically is a bit firmer in texture compared to other gluten free pastas.
Overall, the flavor isn’t quite like traditional pasta, but when you’re going to load up your plate with a heavy, spicy meat sauce, who cares? It gets the job done and adds a great kick of protein!
Barilla Gluten Free Pasta (corn & Rice)
Barilla is a pretty widely available, staple brand for affordable, quality dry pastas that also has a good-sized gluten free line of products now.
Barilla’s gluten free pasta is made with corn and rice and honestly tastes great for the price point. I have noticed that you have to be a bit more careful with cooking times and temperatures with any rice based pastas. They quickly turn to mush if you accidentally overcook them, so keep your eye on the cooking time, check the pasta regularly and be ready to submerge in cold water after draining to halt the cooking faster if needed.
Do note, this pasta is not made in Italy - nor are most of their products that are distributed in the U.S. I guess this is good for them from a tariffs perspective, but as with many other things, the quality is definitely not quite the same for the products made here in the U.S.
Barilla Red Lentil Pasta
This was one of the earlier gluten free pastas I tried as, like Banza, it promised a good kick of protein - 25 grams per serving! It cooks up nicely, though like with Banza, I recommend cooking a little longer than the instructions say as it can tend to be a bit firm otherwise.
The red lentil pasta does have a stronger flavor that could be overpowering unless you are pairing it with more overpowering sauces and/or spicy meats, etc. It’s not a bad flavor by any means, I actually really like it for certain dishes, but I wouldn’t use this one for shrimp scampi or scallops in beurre blanc for example. I don’t purchase this as often as Banza offers a good high protein pasta that is a bit more versatile to have on hand. But now that I’m writing about it, I’m sort of craving it. Time to add it to the grocery list for the next trip!
Do you have a favorite gluten free pasta not on the list? Or a favorite dish you’ve made with one? Let me know in the comments below!
