In this article
- High fiber pasta brands side by side
- Fiber per calorie tells the same story
- Bean pastas: the fiber and protein heavyweights
- Whole grain and fiber added wheat pastas
- How to read a pasta box for fiber
- The veggie pasta surprise
- Hearts of palm and other pasta alternatives
- A pasta night that keeps everyone happy
- Which high fiber pasta should you buy?
- High fiber pasta: questions people ask
- Sources
The pasta with the most fiber on the shelf isn’t made from wheat. Explore Cuisine’s Organic Edamame Spaghetti lists 13 grams of fiber per 2 ounce serving, compared with 3 grams in classic Barilla spaghetti, so if you want high fiber pasta, the bean aisle beats the wheat aisle.
Whole grain wheat and lentil pastas sit in between, mostly at 5 to 8 grams. Every one of them is a clear step up from the white box most of us grew up with.
High fiber pasta brands side by side
All numbers come from USDA FoodData Central, using the label data each brand submitted. Servings are 56 grams of dry pasta, the standard 2 ounce portion, unless noted.
| Pasta | Main ingredient | Calories | Fiber (% DV) | Protein | Carbs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Explore Cuisine Organic Edamame Spaghetti | Edamame flour | 180 | 13 g (46%) | 24 g | 20 g |
| Explore Cuisine Organic Black Bean Spaghetti | Black soybean flour | 180 | 11 g (39%) | 25 g | 19 g |
| Tolerant Organic Red Lentil Penne* | Red lentils | about 204 | about 8.6 g (31%) | about 14 g | about 37 g |
| Barilla Chickpea Spaghetti | Chickpea flour | 190 | 8 g (29%) | 12 g | 34 g |
| Barilla Red Lentil Penne | Red lentil flour | 190 | 6 g (21%) | 14 g | 34 g |
| Barilla Whole Grain Spaghetti | Whole grain durum wheat flour | 180 | 6 g (21%) | 8 g | 39 g |
| Barilla White Fiber Thin Spaghetti | Semolina, durum and whole durum flour, corn starch | 180 | 6 g (21%) | 6 g | 43 g |
| Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Whole Wheat Spaghetti | Durum whole wheat flour | 180 | 5 g (18%) | 9 g | 39 g |
| Barilla Protein+ Thin Spaghetti | Semolina plus lentil, chickpea, pea protein, barley, spelt | 190 | 5 g (18%) | 10 g | 38 g |
| Barilla Classic Spaghetti | Semolina | 200 | 3 g (11%) | 8 g | 41 g |
| Barilla Veggie Spaghetti | Semolina with tomato and carrot puree | 200 | 2 g (7%) | 8 g | 41 g |
*Tolerant’s USDA record lists 13 grams of fiber in an 85 gram serving and dates from 2017, so we scaled it to 56 grams for comparison.
The FDA’s Daily Value for fiber is 28 grams, and 20% DV or more per serving qualifies as high. Seven of the eleven pastas clear that line, and the two bean pastas nearly double it.
Fiber per calorie tells the same story
Because nearly every box uses the same 56 gram serving, the calories barely move, ranging from 180 to about 204. So the fiber differences come almost entirely from the flour.
Explore Cuisine Edamame works out to about 7.2 grams of fiber per 100 calories, and Barilla Chickpea to about 4.2. Barilla Whole Grain gives 3.3, while Barilla Classic gives 1.5 and Barilla Veggie just 1.0.
That means you can get four times the fiber or more from a bowl without adding calories, simply by switching from classic semolina spaghetti to an edamame box.
Bean pastas: the fiber and protein heavyweights
Explore Cuisine Edamame and Black Bean
Both are single ingredient pastas made from soybean flour, green for edamame and black for the black bean version. They carry 24 to 25 grams of protein with just 19 to 20 grams of total carbohydrate per serving.
Subtract the fiber and you’re left with about 7 to 8 grams of net carbs, the lowest of any dry pasta here. That makes them a natural fit for low carb and high protein plans.
Best for: anyone who wants the most fiber and protein per bowl. Drawback: they cook and taste differently from wheat pasta, so try a small box first and pair it with a bold sauce like pesto, peanut or curry.
Barilla Chickpea Spaghetti
Chickpea flour is the only ingredient, and it delivers 8 grams of fiber and 12 grams of protein. The carb count, 34 grams, sits closer to wheat pasta than the soybean options do.
Best for: a wheat free swap that still looks and twirls like spaghetti. Drawback: 34 grams of carbohydrate, so it isn’t a low carb pick.
Red lentil pastas
Barilla Red Lentil Penne and Tolerant Organic Red Lentil Penne are both made from red lentils and nothing else. Yet their USDA records differ: Barilla lists 6 grams per 56 grams, while Tolerant’s older record works out to about 8.6 grams.
Records submitted six years apart can differ like this. Treat lentil pasta as roughly 6 to 9 grams per serving and check the box you buy.
Choosing between bean pasta, whole wheat pasta and other high fiber staples? Our comparison charts line up the popular options so you can compare fiber and protein quickly.
Whole grain and fiber added wheat pastas
If you prefer the taste of wheat, three boxes deliver 5 to 6 grams. Barilla Whole Grain uses whole grain durum wheat flour as its only ingredient, and Ronzoni Healthy Harvest does the same with durum whole wheat flour.
Harvard’s Nutrition Source lists whole grains among the great sources of fiber. That’s why these pastas have about twice the fiber of the classic semolina box.
Barilla White Fiber
This one aims at people who like the look of white pasta. Its ingredient list adds whole durum wheat flour and corn starch to regular semolina, and the label shows 6 grams of fiber, matching Barilla’s whole grain spaghetti.
Protein is lower, at 6 grams, and carbohydrate is the highest on our list at 43 grams. It’s a reasonable compromise if your household won’t eat brown pasta.
Barilla Protein+
Protein+ blends semolina with lentil, chickpea, barley and spelt flours and pea protein. The result is 10 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber, a modest gain on both fronts.
How to read a pasta box for fiber
Start with the ingredient list, which is often a single line. If it says semolina or enriched durum wheat flour alone, expect about 3 grams of fiber or less.
If the first word is whole grain, whole wheat, chickpea, lentil, edamame or black bean, you’re likely looking at 5 grams or more. Blended boxes like Protein+ sit in between.
Then check the serving size. Nearly every brand here uses 56 grams, but Tolerant’s older record used 85, which makes its numbers look bigger at a glance.
Sodium is rarely a worry with dry pasta itself. Every box on our list lists 10 mg or less per serving, so the salt in your cooking water and sauce matters far more.
The veggie pasta surprise
Pasta tinted with vegetables sounds like an upgrade, but the numbers say otherwise. Barilla Veggie Spaghetti, made with tomato and carrot puree, lists 2 grams of fiber, a gram less than Barilla’s classic spaghetti.
The vegetables show up mostly as color. The base is still semolina and durum wheat flour, refined flours that have lost most of their bran.
Hearts of palm and other pasta alternatives
Palmini Hearts of Palm Linguine is a different kind of product. A 75 gram serving has just 20 calories and 2 grams of fiber, because its first listed ingredient is water, followed by sea salt and hearts of palm.
Per calorie that’s impressive, but per bowl it gives far less fiber than any bean or whole grain pasta. It works best mixed with another pasta or loaded with vegetables and beans.
Compared with other grains, high fiber pasta holds up well. The edamame spaghetti’s 13 grams in a 2 ounce serving is close to half the Daily Value on its own.
A pasta night that keeps everyone happy
Say your family loves classic spaghetti and won’t touch bean pasta. Cook one serving of Barilla Classic and one of Barilla Chickpea in the same pot, since both are spaghetti shaped.
Toss them together with sauce and each plate averages about 5.5 grams of fiber from the pasta, almost double the classic box alone. Because both are spaghetti, the mix looks like one pasta on the plate.
Over a few weeks, you can shift the ratio toward the chickpea pasta. Harvard recommends adding fiber gradually and drinking more fluids, since a sudden jump can cause bloating.
Want sauces, bakes and pasta salads built around high fiber noodles? Our recipe eBooks have plenty of weeknight ideas.
Which high fiber pasta should you buy?
If you want the most fiber and protein, pick Explore Cuisine Edamame or Black Bean spaghetti. If you want a wheat free pasta in a familiar spaghetti shape, Barilla Chickpea is the best balance.
If your family insists on wheat, Barilla Whole Grain or Ronzoni Healthy Harvest give 5 to 6 grams with a familiar taste. And if brown pasta is a hard sell, Barilla White Fiber gets you the same 6 grams in a lighter color.
Not sure how a bowl of pasta fits into your daily fiber? Our fiber calculator can give you a personal target to plan your meals around.
For this week’s pasta night, try the half and half pot with chickpea and classic spaghetti. It’s the easiest way to nearly double the fiber while keeping familiar spaghetti on the table.
High fiber pasta: questions people ask
Which pasta has the most fiber?
Bean pastas lead. Explore Cuisine Organic Edamame Spaghetti has 13 grams of fiber per 2 ounce serving, and its black bean spaghetti has 11 grams.
Is whole wheat pasta high in fiber?
Yes. Barilla Whole Grain Spaghetti lists 6 grams per serving, or 21% of the Daily Value, and Ronzoni Healthy Harvest lists 5 grams.
Does chickpea pasta have more fiber than regular pasta?
Yes, more than double. Barilla Chickpea Spaghetti has 8 grams per serving, compared with 3 grams in Barilla Classic.
Is veggie pasta high in fiber?
No. Barilla Veggie Spaghetti, made with tomato and carrot puree, has 2 grams per serving, less than classic spaghetti.
Which pasta is best for low carb diets?
Soybean pastas are the lowest in net carbs. Explore Cuisine’s edamame and black bean spaghetti each have about 7 to 8 grams of net carbs per serving.
Is red lentil pasta high in fiber?
Usually, yes. Barilla Red Lentil Penne lists 6 grams per serving, and Tolerant’s red lentil penne record works out to about 8.6 grams per 2 ounces.
Is Barilla White Fiber pasta healthy?
It’s a good middle ground. It has 6 grams of fiber per serving, the same as Barilla Whole Grain, but less protein and slightly more carbs.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. “Branded Foods: Explore Cuisine Organic Edamame Pasta, Spaghetti (2609055), Organic Black Bean Pasta, Spaghetti (2609053); Tolerant Organic Red Lentil Penne (1902268); Barilla Chickpea Spaghetti (2598847), Red Lentil Penne (2598839), Spaghetti Whole Grain (2549623), White Fiber Thin Spaghetti (2634355), Protein+ Thin Spaghetti (2631734), Spaghetti (2570691), Veggie Spaghetti (2623895); Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Whole Wheat Spaghetti (2618487); Palmini Hearts of Palm Linguine (2664708).” FoodData Central. 2017 to 2023. fdc.nal.usda.gov
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels.” 2024. www.fda.gov
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “Fiber.” The Nutrition Source. 2022. nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu
