Three things I would add: (1) The brand of pasta is important. Cheaper brands, even some pricey brands, lower costs by extruding the pasta through silicone, creating a smooth surface that doesn't adhere well to the sauce, and dry pasta quickly under very high heat, which damages texture and taste -- the tell-tale sign is badly-made pasta is a deep yellow color instead of near-white. Badly made brands include some Italian mass-producers too like Barilla. Also, use Kosher salt or sea salt as table salt includes iodine that stops salt from clumping but can add a chemical taste. (2) The amount of water used depends on the sauce being made. Some sauces need a lot of starch, like aglio e olio, where very starchy pasta water emulsifies a sauce that is mainly extra virgin olive oil. For that application, it's best to use very little water and to start cooking he pasta -- traditionally spaghetti -- in cold water. For other sauces, use either four or two quarts of water per package of pasta. Using less water does NOT result in pasta sticking if you start with a quality, dried pasta, and I say that as someone who has tested varied levels of water. Stirring it once near the beginning is sufficient to stop sticking. Here's a great instructional video by America's Test Kitchen based on actual testing: ua-cam.com/video/IANwP8_hwEk/v-deo.html (3) It's usually better to remove the cooked pasta a minute or two BEFORE it is al dente so that it can finish cooking in the sauce and added pasta water -- doing so helps the pasta absorb sauce more effectively so that the flavors of the sauce and pasta marry.
Nice! I want to see this Crab Pasta Salad! We are making Crab Rangoon Dip with Fried wontons as our appetizer tonight! Lynn Bday dinner, main course is Honey Soy Glazed Chicken, streamed white rice and grilled Bok Choy.
Three things I would add:
(1) The brand of pasta is important. Cheaper brands, even some pricey brands, lower costs by extruding the pasta through silicone, creating a smooth surface that doesn't adhere well to the sauce, and dry pasta quickly under very high heat, which damages texture and taste -- the tell-tale sign is badly-made pasta is a deep yellow color instead of near-white. Badly made brands include some Italian mass-producers too like Barilla. Also, use Kosher salt or sea salt as table salt includes iodine that stops salt from clumping but can add a chemical taste.
(2) The amount of water used depends on the sauce being made. Some sauces need a lot of starch, like aglio e olio, where very starchy pasta water emulsifies a sauce that is mainly extra virgin olive oil. For that application, it's best to use very little water and to start cooking he pasta -- traditionally spaghetti -- in cold water. For other sauces, use either four or two quarts of water per package of pasta. Using less water does NOT result in pasta sticking if you start with a quality, dried pasta, and I say that as someone who has tested varied levels of water. Stirring it once near the beginning is sufficient to stop sticking. Here's a great instructional video by America's Test Kitchen based on actual testing: ua-cam.com/video/IANwP8_hwEk/v-deo.html
(3) It's usually better to remove the cooked pasta a minute or two BEFORE it is al dente so that it can finish cooking in the sauce and added pasta water -- doing so helps the pasta absorb sauce more effectively so that the flavors of the sauce and pasta marry.
Great information-and all spot on.
Thank you for watching!
I heard that expression reheating. My question is how long do I let it sit in the boiling water and do I stir the pasta?
Nice! I want to see this Crab Pasta Salad! We are making Crab Rangoon Dip with Fried wontons as our appetizer tonight! Lynn Bday dinner, main course is Honey Soy Glazed Chicken, streamed white rice and grilled Bok Choy.
That sounds delicious!
It’s coming Thursday and thank you for watching!