Use it up · Grains, rice and pasta

Pasta

Have extra pasta? Here’s how to choose, store and prep pasta, plus 19 family recipes to use it all up, best matches first.

🍽 See the recipes 🧺 Pick a few things you have

🛒 Choosing it

Dried pasta keeps a long time. Pick shapes to match the sauce: long for smooth sauces, short tubes for chunky ones.

🧊 Storing it

Pantry: 1 to 2 years dry
Fridge: Cooked: 3 to 4 days, like other leftovers
Freezer: Cooked, in sauce: 1 to 2 months

Keep the fridge at 40°F or below and the freezer at 0°F. Freezer times are for best quality; food kept frozen at 0°F stays safe. When in doubt, throw it out. Times from Texas Agricultural Extension Service, Texas A&M University System and FoodSafety.gov.

🔪 Prepping it

Boil in plenty of salted water, stirring at first. Save a cup of pasta water to loosen the sauce.

🥣 Make it from scratch

Fresh egg pasta

📊 Nutrition per 100 g

Spaghetti. 100 g is about 3 1/2 ounces.

Calories	371 kcal	19%
Protein	13 g	26%
Total fat	1.5 g	2%
Saturated fat	0.3 g	1%
Total carbohydrate	75 g	27%
Dietary fiber	3.2 g	11%
Total sugars	2.7 g
Sodium	6.0 mg	0%
Calcium	21 mg	2%
Iron	3.3 mg	18%
Potassium	223 mg	5%

% Daily Value for adults (FDA). From USDA FoodData Central 169736 (SR Legacy).

🍽 Recipes that use it up

19 recipes, the ones that use the most pasta first.

Plan them into your week in the meal planner, or find recipes for two or three things at once with the “What can I make?” picker.

More grains, rice and pasta

White rice Brown rice Egg noodles Oats Quinoa Couscous Barley Cornmeal and grits Flour Bread Tortillas All ingredients →

Storage times and buying tips are general guides from the sources below; follow any date or instructions on the package. Cook meat, poultry, fish and eggs to the USDA safe temperatures in each recipe.