After Trying 7 Protein Pastas, I Found One That Could Pass for Regular Pasta

As a kid who was deeply obsessed with the Food Network, I thought I’d grow into the kind of adult who effortlessly cooks delicious, multi-component meals on a nightly basis. But despite a certain TV chef’s claims that a three-course dinner is doable in 30 minutes, the truth is that oftentimes all I can manage after getting home from work is boiling a pot of water for pasta.

That said, I refuse to let my post-work fatigue dictate my protein intake—which is why I’ve long leaned on protein pasta as an easy way to get my nutrients in when searing off a piece of chicken simply isn’t in the cards. While traditional pasta is made from wheat flour and contains a modest amount of protein (typically 7–8 grams per serving), protein pastas rely on the addition of various legumes to boost that protein content up to anywhere from 10–20 grams.

Our top picks

• The best protein pasta overall: Banza Wheat Protein Pasta
• The protein pasta that’s most like regular pasta: Barilla Protein+
• The editors’ pick: Brami

After many years of buying whichever brand was on sale at my local grocery store, I can tell you that while most widely available protein pastas taste fine, they often fail to satisfy my cravings for the real deal. Determined to find out if the perfect protein pasta exists, I tasted my way through seven popular brands that ranged from semolina-legume blends to fully bean-based. Many noodles later, I’ve found three brands I’d gladly buy with my own money.

• The best protein pasta overall: Banza Wheat Protein Pasta
• The protein pasta that’s most like regular pasta: Barilla Protein+
• The editors’ pick: Brami
• How I tested protein pasta
• Other protein pastas I tried

The best protein pasta overall: Banza Wheat Protein Pasta

Banza

Wheat Protein Pasta

Amazon

Banza

Target

Specs

Calories: 190
Nutrition: 1.5 g fat, 38 g carb (4 g fiber), 13 g protein
Ingredients: Semolina (Wheat), Chickpeas, Wheat Protein, Pea Protein

Before you scroll away: this is not the same Banza you may be familiar with. After over a decade of selling gluten-free chickpea pasta, the brand recently released a line of protein pasta that blends its signature legume with semolina flour (so it is not gluten-free like its original line)—and the result blew me away.

What I love: Banza’s been in the chickpea pasta game since it launched in 2014, but the brand’s newest product line boasts semolina (wheat) flour as its first ingredient. This makes a world of difference when it comes to flavor and texture—where the original Banza has a sort of inescapable bean-y aftertaste and brittle texture, the addition of wheat flour here helps the noodles retain a pleasantly chewy, elastic bite and neutral taste. The other three ingredients—chickpeas, wheat protein, and pea protein—help the pasta clock in at 13 grams of protein per two-ounce serving, which is two grams more than OG Banza (and five grams more than most regular pasta brands).

What I’d leave: There’s not much to complain about here, besides the fact that Banza’s Wheat Protein Pasta is slightly more expensive than some other options on this list. It’s also worth noting that this option won’t work for those with gluten or pea protein sensitivities, as it contains both.

The protein pasta that’s most like regular pasta: Barilla Protein+

Barilla

Protein+

Amazon

Target

Specs

Calories: 190
Nutrition: 1 g fat, 38 g carb (5 g fiber), 10 g protein
Ingredients: Semolina (wheat), durum wheat flour, lentil flour, pea protein, chickpea flour, barley flour, spelt flour, vitamin/minerals: vitamin b3 (niacin), iron (ferrous sulfate), vitamin b1 (thiamine mononitrate), vitamin b2 (riboflavin), folic acid

If Barilla’s Protein+ sounds familiar, that’s because it’s been around for over 20 years. I grew up eating this pasta, but had all but forgotten about it until it came time to write this article. After tasting it for the first time in well over a decade, I’m not sure why I ever stopped buying it.

What I love: Of all of the protein pastas I tried, Barilla Protein+ tasted the most like “regular” pasta by far, with that classic al dente bite and no weird aftertaste to speak of. That’s because it’s made primarily from semolina and durum wheat flour. The extra nutrients come from a mixture of lentil flour, pea protein, chickpea flour, barley flour, and spelt flour, plus some added vitamins and minerals like B3 and iron.

This pasta behaved just like the regular stuff, just as tasty on its own as it was coated in tomato sauce. It’s also the cheapest option on this list, and widely available at grocery stores nationwide.

What I’d leave: At 10 grams per two-ounce serving, Protein+ has the lowest protein content of all the pastas I tried.

The editors’ pick: Brami

Brami

Penne 10-Pack

Brami

Specs

Calories: 200
Nutrition: 2 g fat, 36 g carb (5 g fiber), 12 g protein
Ingredients: Semolina durum wheat, lupini beans

I’ve waxed poetic about my love for Brami before, and I’m here to do it again: This pasta has become a staple in my household because of its simple ingredient list and top-notch taste and texture.

What I love: While many protein pastas on the market include pea protein, Brami is made from a simple combination of semolina durum wheat and lupini beans, an ancient legume that’s sustainable to grow, easy to digest, and rich in both protein and fiber. Like my favorite all-wheat pastas, it’s made in Italy and bronze-cut, which means each noodle is extruded through a bronze mold to create a textured, porous surface that’s especially great at clinging onto sauce. But unlike typical bronze-cut wheat pasta, Brami packs 12 grams of protein and five grams of fiber into every two-ounce serving. This is a great pick for anyone who likes their pasta al dente—the combination of semolina and lupini means each noodle retains a satisfying amount of bite after boiling.

I also love the variety of shapes Brami comes in. There are short extruded varieties like radiatori and penne, a long spaghetti, and a new ditalini-like shape called cubetti that’s great in soups or tossed with parm and butter.

What I’d leave: Brami has a very slight earthy aftertaste when eaten alone, but it’s not something you’ll notice once the pasta is sauced.

How I tested protein pasta

To decide which protein pastas to test, I consulted peers and scoured grocery aisles for both longstanding and new-to-market options. I specifically sought brands that were marketed as “protein pastas.” Then I got to tasting: I cooked each pasta according to the package instructions in water salted with the same amount of Diamond Crystal kosher salt. I then drained the pastas and set aside a small portion of each to taste on its own; then I cooked the remaining noodles in Rao’s tomato sauce, using a splash of the cooking water.

I gathered colleagues to taste through all seven pastas. We tasted each pasta both plain and coated in tomato sauce, and gave notes based on taste, texture, and how well the sauce clung to the noodles.

Other protein pastas I tried

Chickapea

Chickapea

Organic Chickpea Pasta

Amazon

Chickapea is made from a mixture of yellow pea flour and chickpea flour. It smelled very chickpea-forward as it boiled, but I was pleasantly surprised by its taste and texture. While there’s no chance you’d confuse it for regular wheat pasta, it had a pleasant flavor (especially when sauced). I’d happily buy it again if one of the winning options weren’t available—and unlike those, Chickapea happens to be gluten-free.

Rummo Maxima

Rummo

Maxima

Amazon

Like the three winning pastas, Rummo Maxima is made from a mixture of wheat flour and a legume—in this case, peas. It had a stronger earthy aftertaste than the other wheat-based pastas I tried, and is comparatively expensive, hence why it didn’t earn my recommendation. That said, I’ve bought and eaten this pasta before and would do so again.

Kaizen

Kaizen

Fusilli Protein Pasta

Amazon

Kaizen packs a whopping 20 grams of protein and 15 grams of fiber into each two-ounce serving. Unfortunately, those great macros mean tradeoffs when it comes to flavor and texture. The cooked noodles are almost hard at first, and then disintegrate into your mouth as you eat them. They also had such a strong, unpleasant taste that even my favorite tomato sauce couldn’t cover up.