Skinny Pasta is a unique product sold by the It's Skinny brand. It's pasta with only 9 calories per serving, and the brand describes their product line as "Pasta Reimagined."
But what's actually in Skinny Pasta and how is it possible for pasta to only provide 9 calories per serving? Are there any unhealthy additive ingredients? How do real users rate and describe the taste and effects of Skinny Pasta? And is this brand a good option for weight loss?
In this article we'll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Skinny Pasta based on clinical studies to give our take on whether or not it's a healthy option, and whether or not it can support sustainable, long-term weight loss.
We'll feature unsponsored customer reviews of the brand, and provide a cost comparison to show which retailer sells Skinny Pasta for the best price.
Ingredient Analysis
There are only four ingredients in Skinny Pasta Spaghetti: konjac powder, oat powder, calcium hydroxide and sorbic acid.
Konjac powder is an excellent, natural ingredient base for a low-calorie pasta in our opinion.
This ingredient is rich in dietary fiber which can support gut health, and has even been studied for its effects on weight loss.
A 2019 medical review analyzed clinical trial data on konjac supplementation, and concluded that the plant "can reduce the levels of glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure and can enable weight loss."
Oat powder is rich in minerals like phosphorous and magnesium according to the USDA.
Calcium hydroxide is a pH adjuster and we can't find any evidence of its toxicity.
Sorbic acid is a preservative shown to cause negative effects to cholesterol metabolism in a clinical trial on mice published in the Journal of Food and Drug Analysis.
However, those effects don't appear to be replicated in humans based on results from a 1990 medical review.
We actually consider the original Skinny Pasta to be a slightly healthier formulation than the Organic Skinny Pasta, whose ingredients are shown below:
Citric acid is the key differentiator here, as this preservative is clinically shown to cause whole-body inflammation in some individuals, as we documented in our article on which bread at Subway is the healthiest.
Overall, we consider Skinny Pasta to be a healthier option than traditional, "enriched" pasta, and we consider this product likely to support weight loss.
Fiber creates the sense of fullness without any calories, and this can delay hunger cravings and reduce overall calorie intake.
We Tried Skinny Pasta Ourselves
One of our product testers named Jodie Steinberg tried Skinny Pasta. Here's her experience:
The package is easily opened. Once opened, you pull the pasta out of the inside bag, rinse it and cook it in your favorite sauce for 2-10 minutes.
I tried the pasta variety pack, which comes with spaghetti, fettuccine, angel hair and rice.
The bags only contain nine calories.
As a substitute for pasta, as someone who does not eat carbs with dinner usually for health and weight maintenance reasons, I found this to be a great substitute when combined with ingredients like meatballs.
The pasta itself does not really taste like anything so it will taste like whatever sauce you cook it in.
I don’t usually cook rice in sauce, which made it a bit more difficult to figure out how to make the rice work.
The product is very chewy and hard to bite through to cut it with your teeth so you end up swallowing a lot of it whole.
I had zero stomach issues or other concerns when trying this product line.
I would repurchase Skinny Pasta, but not the rice product from the brand.
Overall, I'd rate the regular Skinny Pasta 7/10, and the Skinny Rice Pasta 2/10.
Where to Get the Best Price
Skinny Pasta is sold at a variety of online retailers. Here's a price breakdown for a one-time purchase at the time of publishing this article:
Skinny Pasta Original (24-pack)
Walmart: $109.39 (third-party seller, link)
Brand website: $72.98 (free shipping, link)
Amazon: $72.98 (free shipping, link to official Amazon listing)
Skinny Pasta Organic
Target: $87.57 (free shipping, link)
Brand website: $81.99 (free shipping, link)
Amazon: $81.99 (free shipping, link to official Amazon listing)
Amazon and the brand's website currently have the best deals on Skinny Pasta for both one-time purchases and subscription orders (both platforms offer 10% maximum discount on subscriptions currently).
Real People Try Skinny Pasta
A YouTube creator named "Hangry Half Asian" has a video reviewing Skinny Pasta:
A TikTok creator named Madilyn MacLellan didn't have as good of an experience with Skinny Pasta:
@mrsmaddiemac Skinny pasta review 👀🤨 #skinnypasta #fitnesssjourney #healthyalternatives #goodfoodgoodmood ♬ original sound - Madilyn MacLellan
Are Shiritaki Noodles Even Healthier?
A YouTube creator named "Felu - Fit by cooking" has a video on shiritaki noodles which are zero-calorie. The video has over 700,000 views:
Real Customers Review Skinny Pasta
Amazon is a better resource for unbiased customer reviews than a brand's website in our opinion.
It's Skinny Variety Pack (that contains different types of Skinny Pasta) is the brand's most-reviewed Amazon product currently, with over 5,000 total reviews and an average review rating of 4 out of 5 stars.
The top positive review from a verified purchaser is written by a user named "Lifezabeach" who gives the product a 5/5 star rating and likes its texture:
"Although I have never tried other brands, I can tell you that these noodles are truly amazing. They are a tad bit chewy but not in a bad way. We made shrimp fettucine alfredo and it turned out wonderful!"
The top negative review written by a verified purchaser comes from a user named "Kinman" who gives the product a 1/5 star rating, and claims to have experienced digestive distress:
"What it seems is that indigestible substances responsible for making it low-calorie and low-carb are VERY digestible by bacteria in the gut. They go to town and everything in your gut microbiome changes. Apparently, not everyone has a problem with this but my stomach is generally ok with whatever and NOT this! If you get it, start slow."
Skinny Pasta currently has an average review rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars on Facebook.
Skinny Pasta currently has an average review rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars on Google.
Our Clean Weight Loss Picks
Ceylon cinnamon was described as "an effective anti-obesity agent" in a 2022 meta-analysis. The study authors concluded that effects were greater at doses at or over 3 grams daily.
Illuminate Labs Ceylon Cinnamon Extract is our standardized Ceylon cinnamon supplement which is third-party tested to ensure purity and potency.
Dietary fiber was shown in a medical review published in The Journal of Nutrition to cause 16 pounds of weight loss in 6 months when combined with moderate caloric restriction (750 calories per day below baseline).
MBG Organic Fiber Potency+ is our top fiber pick because it's certified organic, provides 7 g of fiber per serving and costs under $1.85 per serving at the time of updating this article.
Both of the products mentioned in this section are entirely free of additive ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
Skinny Pasta Pros and Cons
Here are the pros and cons of Skinny Pasta in our opinion:
Pros:
- Healthier than "enriched" pasta
- Can support weight loss
- Relatively unprocessed
- Decently positive online customer reviews
- Free shipping from brand's website
- Cheaper version has better formulation
Cons:
- Organic version contains citric acid
- Some online customer reviews complain about texture
- More expensive than traditional pasta
