Food Spotlight: Pasta, and How to Cook It

At first glance, cooking pasta may seem like an easy endeavor, but there are things to consider when cooking to impress. The window for success is quite small, so to get the perfect pasta, follow these tips:

 

1 ) Use a large pot so the pasta has enough room to move around. An 8 or 12-quart stockpot is a good option. Put about 5 to 6 quarts of water in the pot for a 16 oz package of pasta. It may be tempting to use less water in the hopes of making the boiling process faster, but the proper amount of water is required for every bit of pasta to be submerged. If time is a concern, put a lid on the water while heating so that it will retain the heat and come to a boil quicker.

2 ) Add some salt. Use at least a tablespoon for 6 quarts of water. This will help boost the pasta’s flavor.

3 ) Allow the water to come into a full, rolling boil before adding the pasta. Adding the pasta will slow the boiling, so if needed, put the lid back on initially. Once boiling resumes, take off the lid and begin stirring. Stir at least 2 or 3 times during cooking to prevent sticking and clumping. The pasta package should list a cooking time range.

4 ) Begin testing the pasta when you reach the earlier time on the time range (e.g. for a 5 to 7 minute cook time, begin checking after 5 minutes.) Do this by taking out one strand of pasta and taking a bite. The pasta should have a springy, bouncy feel to it.

5 ) Before draining the water, scoop out 1 or 2 cups into a heat-safe container. This water can be used later in the sauce to help bind the sauce and pasta together. It can also thin down thick sauces to better coat the pasta.

6 ) Put a colander in the sink and drain the pasta. Put the pasta back in the pot and add in the sauce and saved pasta water. Toss it to help coat the pasta evenly. Serve while hot.

 

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Originally posted at http://jasonsheasby.net 

Useful Tips For Those Trying To Cook More In 2018

It is 2018, and if there is one thing that memes have taught society, it is that it is time for us all to learn how to cook better. Along with our need for paved streets, honest politicians, and forward progress, as a society, we need to feed ourselves better. Let fast food live in the past and embrace a new way of health: cooking more nutritional meals this year. Practicing healthy living is a gradual process, but we’ve got to begin somewhere. Leave the stress and start here with four useful tips for cooking more in 2018.

Cutting Boards

Out of all the useful tips on this list, this one matters most when it comes to your health. If you do not have two cutting boards, or even two knives (and don’t want to wash it in between cuts), prioritize your chopping. Choose to dice up any fruits or veggies before moving on to the meats. This will prevent any bacteria from your raw meat from contaminating your fruit or vegetables. If you forget to prioritize cutting, wash both your knife and cutting board before continuing to cut and cook.

Refrigerated Food

One of the first things we should learn when it comes to cooking is how to handle stored food. We know that before we can cook something, it should be defrosted first. For example, if you take a pork chop out of the freezer and throw it on a flame, the outside will be seared and browned, but once you cut it open, the inside will be far undercooked. But did you know that even if you have defrosted that frozen pork chop in the fridge, you should still take it out and let it reach room temperature before cooking? The reason being is the same as with frozen: the outside will overcook by the time the internal temperature rises.

The same goes for frozen vegetables. Let them defrost before placing them in a greased and hot pan. If not, the steam that is created from the “frost” could very well burn you as you cook it.

Pasta Water

The #1 rule of pasta making: salt the water when boiling. This gives your food flavor before any sauce is added to the noodles. And if it helps, most of the salt goes down the drain with the water, so no reason to be wary of consuming too much.

The #2 rule of pasta making: DO NOT RINSE the pasta. The water that boiled the pasta contained starches that make the pasta more flavorful and helps the sauce stick to the pasta.

The #3 rule of pasta making: DO NOT ADD oil to the boiling water. This will make your pasta slick which leads to the sauce not sticking. The only time to consider adding oil to pasta is after cooking. Adding a small amount of oil to sitting pasta allows it to cool without sticking together.

Let It Sit

There is a common tendency to move to food around while it is cooking. We think that this keeps the food from burning, so we continually move it, even though it actually can take away from the finished product. Instead, allow the food to sit until it is golden brown. This helps the juices to stay within the food and keeps the cook time to a minimum.