The best gluten-free pastas

Gluten-free pasta doesn’t have to feel like a sacrifice. To prove it, we procured 35 types (in five different shapes) from over a dozen producers: Ancient Harvest, Andean Dream, Bionaturae, Jovial, DeBoles, DeLallo, Le Veneziane, Lundberg, Riso Bello, Rizopia, Rustichella D’Abruzzo, Sam Mills, Tinkyada, Trader Joe’s and Tru Roots.

Over two days, our Test Kitchen’s Brad Leone cooked all the pastas according to package instructions, adding equal amounts of olive oil and salt to each one.

A panel of Bon Appétit editors gathered in the Test Kitchen for a blind taste test in five categories—spaghetti, elbows, penne, fusilli, and fettuccine—and debated the flavors and textures of each until consensus was reached on the winners. There were a lot of gluten-free pastas out there that tasted, well, as though some key component were missing. But there were some producers whose products not only tasted great but also managed to achieve just the right texture.

These are our winners, the pastas even the gluten-indulgent would be hard-pressed to pass up.

1. Spaghetti Winner (Tie)

(Bon Appetit)

Andean Dream Quinoa Spaghetti

The highest compliment we could pay to this rice flour and quinoa–based noodle: This could be real pasta.

2. Spaghetti Winner (Tie)

(Bon Appetit)

Ancient Harvest Spaghetti 

Corn flour lends this corn-quinoa pasta a bright yellow color, corny flavor, and impressive structural integrity.

3. Penne Pasta Winner (Tie)

(Bon Appetit)

Jovial Penne Rigate 

Not only was this rice-flour penne texturally impressive, the pasta absorbed the flavor of the olive oil nicely.

4. Penne Pasta Winner (Tie)

(Bon Appetit)

Le Veneziane Penne 

Once again, Italy proves it knows a thing or two about pasta. These imported penne had a firm bite and a mildly corny taste.

5. Elbow Macaroni Winner

(Bon Appetit)

Bionaturae Elbows 

Elbows were not the strongest category for gluten-free pastas, but this rice-flour version stood out with a neutral, agreeable flavor.

6. Fusilli Winner

(Bon Appetit)

Delallo Whole Grain Rice Fusilli 

This brown rice flour pasta had a springy bite.

For more of the best tasting gluten-free pastas, check out the full list.

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