First things first: pasta with different structure will give you different results. If you use smooth pasta it will cook uniformly, non smooth pasta like rigatoni, don't have that quality, but they make the sauce stick.
Pasta needs boiling water and a saucepan, even the worst cook in the world knows that. But how much water? Well, a lot, consider 1 liter for every 100g. That would be 4 liters for 400g. Pasta needs to swim.
Salt has to be added before adding the pasta, but after the water has started to boil, otherwise it will take longer to reach boiling point. 10 to 1 is the rule here: for every liter of water, 10g of salt. If the sauce contains ingredients with lot of salt, add less.
Unlike what many people think, there's no need to add oil to the water. If the pasta turns out sticky, it means that the its quality was bad, or you used too little water.
The salt will take a few seconds to disappear in the water. Then you can pour the pasta. Long pasta will stick out of the pan, but there's no need to break it, use a spoon to push it down. Remember: boiling water hurts, so be careful!
Pasta will make water temperature go down, so try to bring back the boil quickly: increase the heat and put a lid on the pan. When water has reached the temperature again, take off the lid, and bring back the level of heat you had before. Turn it up a little bit is fine, as long as the water doesn't pass the brim of the pan.
Stir the pasta every 2-3 minutes, keep it moving to make sure it won't stick. The cooking times in the packet usually are for pasta al dente. This means that it will be cooked but it won't melt in your mouth, you'll still have to bite it.
Al dente is how pasta should be in the end. Don't overdo, for at least three reasons: pasta won't stop cooking until it's cold, and long before you've finished eating it, it will be like chewing gum; if it's too cooked your stomach will take longer to process it. And finally: this is the way the do it in Italy. Once you become an al dente expert, you can taste it to know when it's time to drain it, using the packet as general guide.
Pour the content of the pan over the colander, and shake it vigorously, unless you need a little bit of cooking water (for example in pasta carbonara, or with ricotta cheese). If you have prepared the sauce in another pan, add the pasta and stir at low heat for 2-3 minutes before serving.
However, if you're preparing a pasta salad, or your lunchbox for tomorrow, you'll need to stop the cooking process by pouring cold water on the colander after the pasta is drained.
Pasta needs boiling water and a saucepan, even the worst cook in the world knows that. But how much water? Well, a lot, consider 1 liter for every 100g. That would be 4 liters for 400g. Pasta needs to swim.
Salt has to be added before adding the pasta, but after the water has started to boil, otherwise it will take longer to reach boiling point. 10 to 1 is the rule here: for every liter of water, 10g of salt. If the sauce contains ingredients with lot of salt, add less.
Unlike what many people think, there's no need to add oil to the water. If the pasta turns out sticky, it means that the its quality was bad, or you used too little water.
The salt will take a few seconds to disappear in the water. Then you can pour the pasta. Long pasta will stick out of the pan, but there's no need to break it, use a spoon to push it down. Remember: boiling water hurts, so be careful!
Pasta will make water temperature go down, so try to bring back the boil quickly: increase the heat and put a lid on the pan. When water has reached the temperature again, take off the lid, and bring back the level of heat you had before. Turn it up a little bit is fine, as long as the water doesn't pass the brim of the pan.
Stir the pasta every 2-3 minutes, keep it moving to make sure it won't stick. The cooking times in the packet usually are for pasta al dente. This means that it will be cooked but it won't melt in your mouth, you'll still have to bite it.
Al dente is how pasta should be in the end. Don't overdo, for at least three reasons: pasta won't stop cooking until it's cold, and long before you've finished eating it, it will be like chewing gum; if it's too cooked your stomach will take longer to process it. And finally: this is the way the do it in Italy. Once you become an al dente expert, you can taste it to know when it's time to drain it, using the packet as general guide.
Pour the content of the pan over the colander, and shake it vigorously, unless you need a little bit of cooking water (for example in pasta carbonara, or with ricotta cheese). If you have prepared the sauce in another pan, add the pasta and stir at low heat for 2-3 minutes before serving.
However, if you're preparing a pasta salad, or your lunchbox for tomorrow, you'll need to stop the cooking process by pouring cold water on the colander after the pasta is drained.
About the Author:
Andrea is passionate about cooking. Cheese and Pears is his blog about Italian food. If you think you know more about pasta after reading this article, start with an easy pasta recipe.
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