COOKING TIP: Pasta                                      

For your information: Fresh pasta is No better than dried pasta. Each is used with different sauces. Fresh pasta is best served with creamy, butter- based sauces which allows the texture of the pasta to shine and be the star of the dish. Dried pasta is more versatile using a wider variety of saucing to be used depending on the shape of the pasta. See table below.

Never add oil to the water in which you are cooking pasta. Adding it does not prevent sticking. However, it coats the pasta not allowing sauce to cling to it and just wastes the oil. Pasta does not have to be cooked in huge volumes of water. Enough water to cover the amount of pasta you are cooking by an inch or two is enough. This plus a few stirs during cooking time will prevent sticking. Do, however, add salt (Kosher, not iodized) in the ratio; 1 tsp of Morton or ½ tbsp Diamond per quart of water. The salted water is absorbed by the pasta and flavors it while cooking.

Do not break long pasta into strands. There are numerous short pasta shapes to use if your dish calls for short pasta. Each pasta shape is made for a specific type of saucing. Use the appropriate sauce for the type you are using.

Never overcook pasta. Nobody likes mushy pasta.  Prepare each to its al dente (Italian - to the tooth) consistency; it should have a little “resistance” to your teeth when you bite into it. Cook according to the directions on the box. Taste frequently while cooking.  When it is cooked about two or three minutes from   the recommended cooking time or from the time your tasting tells you the texture is almost at the point you would like it to be, drain the pasta and put it into the sauce to finish cooking. This will allow the sauce to be absorbed into the pasta in the last phase of cooking. Further, the addition of a few tablespoons of the starchy pasta cooking water to the sauce will help bind the sauce to the pasta.

RMEMBER, sauce judiciously, NEVER overpower the pasta with sauce. The pasta should be the star of the dish, not the sauce. Use just enough to fully coat all the pasta without leaving a pool of sauce under it on the plate.

 SOME PASTA SHAPES AND RECOMMENDED SAUCES

    PASTA                                                                           SAUCE

Long and Thin                                                        olive oil, herbs and spices, tomato,                                                              

Capellini, Vermicelli, Angel Hair

Long and Flat                                                           cheese or cream based     

Fettuccine, Linguini, Pappardelle

Tubular                                                 robust tomato, frequently with minced meat                                        

Penne, Cappelletti, Ziti

Large and Flat                             baked in sauce with meat, cheese. and/or vegetables             

 Lasagna      

Pasta with filling               olive oil or butter sauces, thin soups, broth, light tomato       

Ravioli, Tortellini, Cappelletti