What Italian pasta shape is named after the Italian word for 'shells'?

What Italian pasta shape is named after the Italian word for “shells”? The answer is conchiglie. These curved, shell-shaped pasta pieces are named after the Italian word conchiglia, meaning “seashell.”

Conchiglie are usually made from durum wheat semolina and water. Their hollow, ridged form is more than decorative: the inner cavity and folds catch sauce, vegetables, cheese, and small pieces of meat. That makes the shape especially useful in baked pasta dishes, chunky sauces, and cold pasta salads.

The name is related to the English word “conch,” with both ultimately connected to an ancient Greek root meaning shell. Conchiglie are available in several sizes. Conchigliette are miniature shells, while conchiglioni are large shells often stuffed with ricotta, spinach, or meat and baked with sauce.

A common mix-up is to treat every small curved pasta as conchiglie. Shapes such as lumache resemble snails, while stelline are tiny stars and ditalini are short tubes. The defining clue for conchiglie is the seashell-like bowl shape.