What is Paccheri?
Very large smooth tubes from Campania -- each tube is wide enough to hold a single large shrimp or scallop, making paccheri the definitive pasta for substantial seafood preparations.
Classic pairings: Seafood ragu, Slow-cooked tomato and basil, Stuffed and baked
Paccheri is a very large, smooth, hollow tube from Campania, roughly 4cm long and 3.5cm in diameter — large enough to hold a single prawn, scallop, or substantial piece of seafood or meat inside. Paccheri is made from durum wheat semolina and water, always dried. The name may derive from a Neapolitan dialect word for a slap or a smack — a reference to the shape’s dramatic size.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Region | Campania (Naples) |
| Era | 19th century |
| Diameter | ~3.5cm (very large) |
| Classic sauce | Seafood ragu, slow tomato |
| Cook time | 14-18 min (dried) |
| Key feature | Wide enough to hold whole seafood pieces |
Paccheri’s extraordinary diameter makes it the pasta of abundance: a single tube can contain a whole prawn, a scallop, or a lump of crabmeat, so each forkful is a substantial mouthful with the pasta as a structural container rather than just a surface. Seafood ragus (mussels, clams, shrimp in tomato) pool inside each tube and sit in the hollow until eaten. Slow-cooked tomato-basil sauces work because the thick tube wall absorbs the long-simmered liquid over its extended cooking time. Paccheri’s size also makes it ideal for stuffing (with ricotta, meat, or seafood) and baking — similar to conchiglioni or manicotti.
Paccheri is a Campanian shape tied to Naples, where large-format pasta has been a feature of festive cooking for centuries. A popular legend attributes paccheri’s creation to Neapolitan pasta makers who developed the large tube to circumvent Austrian tariffs on garlic imports — the large tube allegedly hid garlic cloves inside during transport. The story is apocryphal, but paccheri’s association with theatrical Neapolitan cuisine is genuine.
Very large smooth tubes from Campania -- each tube is wide enough to hold a single large shrimp or scallop, making paccheri the definitive pasta for substantial seafood preparations.
Paccheri is traditionally paired with Seafood ragu, Slow-cooked tomato and basil, Stuffed and baked.
Paccheri originates from Campania, Italy, documented from the 19th century.