Greetings, my dears! We have already prepared naval pasta with minced meat. And they even made incredibly tasty spaghetti with shrimp in a creamy sauce. But few people know how to cook rice so that it does not stick together.
However, the whole paradox lies in the fact that it turns out that not everyone knows how to properly cook pasta not only in a slow cooker or microwave, but also in a regular saucepan. I recently received an email from reader Elena, who complained that her pasta always stuck together and was soggy.
That is why today I will share with you all the secrets of preparing these flour products, so that you can delight your family with them every day. And you don’t have to worry about gaining weight! It turns out that if you slightly undercook the pasta and eat it right away, your figure will remain slim! Can you imagine?! So bon appetit and happy cooking.
Choose the right pasta
Pasta made from durum wheat turns out dense and crumbly (Photo: pixabay.com)
It is impossible to keep pasta made from regular premium flour whole and dense. After cooking they are too soft and stick together. Choose packaging that says: “From durum wheat.”
Pasta made from durum wheat is yellow or beige in color, cooked for 7-12 minutes. They are tastier and healthier than regular pasta, since they contain starch that is resistant to breakdown in the intestines, takes longer to digest and does not contribute to a sharp increase in blood sugar levels.
Selection rules
What we call pasta is called pasta in the rest of the world. In ancient Greek, “paste” is flour mixed with sauce. Around the fourteenth century, this word began to mean a dish, but not yet the familiar pasta. It wasn't until the nineteenth century that pasta became what we know and love.
Good, properly cooked pasta begins its journey to our plate in the store. You need to choose pasta from durum wheat - this is the key to success. It is not at all necessary to understand these same varieties of wheat; it is enough to compare the color of the products. And in a store it is very easy to do this - spaghetti, shells, cones, vermicelli, and spirals laid out in a long row on the shelves are usually packaged in transparent bags, allowing you to see them in all details.
When purchasing, choose pasta made from durum wheat.
If the pasta is initially gray, then there is no way that it will become beautiful and golden after cooking (well, they just can’t!). And no amount of oil or seasoning will help achieve the desired taste. And the fact that they will definitely stick together if you cook them is not even discussed.
The sunny yellow splendor on the plate will be ensured only by the initially beautiful, light golden pasta. It’s a good idea to carefully study the composition of the product before purchasing; as a rule, the manufacturer indicates that the product is made from durum wheat (pasta di semola di grano duro).
In addition to the fact that such pasta is tasty, it contains so-called slow carbohydrates, which give a long-lasting feeling of fullness. Another important note - good pasta that does not stick together cannot be cheap.
Place in salt water
The dough for pasta is unleavened (Photo: pixabay.com)
Italians say that the water for preparing pasta should be as salty as the Mediterranean Sea (by the way, it is one of the saltiest on the planet). The amount of salt should be approximately 10 g per 1 liter of water. This is due to the fact that pasta dough is not salted. And if you then cook it in fresh water, the dish will turn out tasteless.
How to cook nest pasta so that it doesn’t fall apart during cooking?
This hearty, tasty and healthy dish is perfect for both lunch and dinner. To prevent the nests from falling apart during cooking, you need to cook them in a deep frying pan. I am sharing with you a wonderful recipe for quail nests.
Ingredients:
- Pasta in the form of nests – 12 pcs.
- Quail eggs – 12 pcs.
- Minced meat (any)
- Carrots – 1 pc.
- Bulbs – 2 pcs.
- Pepper mixture
- Tomato paste or ketchup – 1 tablespoon
- Mayonnaise – 2 tablespoons
- Garlic – 2 cloves
- Salt
Cooking method in stages:
Cook quail eggs. Fry onions and carrots in vegetable oil.
Cut the onion, chop the garlic and mix them with the minced meat. Add salt and pepper mixture to taste.
Mix mayonnaise and tomato paste with half a glass of water and pour into a deep frying pan.
We install nests. Add boiling water, cover with a lid and simmer over medium heat for 15-20 minutes.
We decorate our nests beautifully. Bon appetit!
Don't overcook
Keep an eye on the cooking time (Photo: pixabay.com)
Check the cooking time of the product on the packaging and follow the manufacturer's recommendations. As a rule, 5-7 minutes are enough for vermicelli to reach readiness, and products of greater thickness will require up to 12 minutes.
If you want a dish with a denser structure, remove the pan from the heat 2-3 minutes before the end of the recommended cooking time.
Video on how to quickly cook pasta in the microwave in 5 minutes
A simple recipe for cooking pasta in the microwave. This method is great for office workers. Can be prepared either in a plate or in a regular mug or cup. Bon appetit!
Do you know how to cook pasta properly? Share your secrets of making these flour products. I will be very glad to see your comments! If you found the article interesting and useful, share it with your friends on social networks. See you again on the blog!
Add cheese or sugar
Sprinkle cheese only on hot pasta (Photo: pixabay.com)
Macaroni with cheese or sugar is a quick and delicious breakfast dish. But in order for the additional ingredients to melt, you need to hurry. Boil the spaghetti until tender, place on plates, sprinkle with cheese or sugar and stir immediately. While the mixture is hot, the ingredients will be evenly distributed. You should eat this sweet-cheese pasta right away, otherwise it will turn into a lump.
The secret to cooking soft wheat pasta without sticking
If for some reason you prefer to buy cheaper varieties of pasta made from soft wheat varieties, you can also insure yourself against their sticking by using the following method:
- Take a suitable sized frying pan. It should be dry.
- Place the pasta on it and fry it for one minute. This will allow the starch in the product to crystallize, causing the pasta to become more crumbly.
Frying pasta before cooking
- Then pour boiling water over the fried pasta so that the water completely covers it. Cook the pasta for 3–5 minutes until the liquid has evaporated completely.
- After the cooking process is complete, drain the pasta in a colander and add a knob of butter.
How to cook pasta from soft wheat varieties - video
Season with vegetable oil
If you did not prepare the sauce, you can serve the dish with a drizzle of olive oil. By the way, vegetable fat forms a film on the surface of the pasta, which prevents sticking. You can also put them in the refrigerator to reheat the next day. But only vegetable oil “works” this way. If you add cream, you shouldn’t leave the dish for tomorrow. After cooling and reheating, butter will make the pasta taste unpalatable.
See our recipe with photos: Navy-style pasta.
Pan, water, salt and high heat
Actually, these are the basic rules for cooking pasta - a large pan, a lot of water, don’t forget the salt and use only high heat. There are exotic cooking options in a microwave, multi- or double boiler, even in an electric kettle (well, people didn’t have a saucepan, but they wanted to eat!). But it is better to master such unusual methods only after you have learned how to properly cook pasta in a regular pan so that it does not stick together even the next day.
You need a large saucepan to cook pasta.
Now, first things first:
- The pan should be large. You can take an enameled, aluminum or metal container. It really doesn't matter what the pan is made of, as long as it's big enough. To prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom during cooking, it is enough to stir it from time to time.
- According to the rules, to cook 100 g of pasta you need one liter of water (100 g of pasta is enough for one serving). But if there is more water, it’s okay, as long as it’s not less, otherwise the pasta will definitely stick together after cooking. Fill the pan about two-thirds full. If you add more water, it may splash out when boiling strongly. At best, there will be a stain on the stove, but what if the fire starts or boiling water gets on your hands?
- Salt is added to taste, but you need to remember that some of the salt will remain in the water and will not get into the pasta. You need about 1 tablespoon of salt per 3 liters of water.
- If you add vegetable oil (olive or sunflower) to the water, it will help cook the pasta so that it doesn't stick together. It is better to take refined oil so that unnecessary tastes and smells do not interfere. It is important to add the oil before immersing the pasta in the water, then it will pass through a thin layer of oil on the surface of the water, completely becoming covered with an oil film. By the way, extra virgin olive oil with a bitter aftertaste can be added afterwards to the finished dish.
In addition to all of the above, to properly cook pasta, you may need a colander, kitchen tongs or a large spoon.
How long should you cook pasta?
There is no clear answer to this. Ideally, the package will indicate the time for which the pasta should be cooked. In practice, a lot depends on your preferences.
As a rule, regular cones are ready in 5-10 minutes of boiling. It depends on the type of flour from which they are made.
Also, there are people who like their pasta slightly undercooked. There are also those who, on the contrary, digest them.
In my practice, I pay attention to the manufacturer's instructions, which are printed on the packaging. And, of course, during the cooking process you need to taste the pasta, taking into account consistency, hardness and other characteristics.
When the pasta is ready, drain all the contents into a colander. Then place under running cold water for about 1-2 minutes.
Let me note that some cooks do not wash pasta after cooking.
Then you need to heat the frying pan (warm it slightly), put butter or vegetable oil in it, put the pasta in it and lightly fry. This item is not mandatory, but desirable.
And the last stage is to serve the pasta to the table, garnished with various dishes and dishes.
I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the general principle of how to cook pasta correctly is described above. In reality, there are, of course, much more of these techniques and methods. Experiment.
Key points - how to cook pasta correctly
Where should I start? First of all, carefully study the packaging. Basically, the manufacturer indicates on the packaging the key points on how to cook pasta correctly. And thanks to the inscriptions on the package, any of us can prepare this dish ourselves.
I will say more, often the instructions on the packaging are written step by step. And some manufacturers even tell the consumer which vegetables, meat and other products this type of pasta will harmonize with five out of five.
In principle, we could stop there, but we admit to ourselves that we don’t study the information on the packaging very often. That is why the general principle of boiling pasta will come in handy for any of us. More on this later.
