The difference
Pici vs Bucatini
Both are thick round strands, but pici is hand rolled from flour and water with no hole, the rustic Tuscan one, while bucatini is a smooth extruded strand pierced down the center. Pici's rough surface grabs garlicky tomato, bucatini's hollow pulls sauce inside for amatriciana.

Pici
- Family
- Hand-formed regional
- Size
- 200 to 500 mm long
- Surface
- Textured
- Cook
- 5 to 8 min
Wants: Aglione, Cacio e pepe, Wild boar ragu

Bucatini
- Family
- Long strands
- Size
- 250 to 300 mm long
- Surface
- Smooth
- Cook
- 7 to 11 min
Wants: Amatriciana, Gricia, Cacio e pepe
Compare more shapes, or look up Pici and Bucatini in full.