Just to add to Kathy's instructiohns, if you cook too much pasta and have it left-over the next day or the day after, just hjeat some olive oil in a 10-12--inch skillet, add a couple cloves of garlic, minced, and the pasta. Cook until heated through, serve with lots of grated parmesan and other sauce or toppings that you have on hand. It's a great lunch! Penny
On 1/26/15, Kathy Brandt via Cookinginthedark <cookinginthedark@acbradio.org> wrote: > I hope your spaghetti turned out well, Holly. You got good advice here. > > To add to the mix: I've gotten away with not salting my water; I like the > flavor of pasta. I know they say to use a lot of water, but I've gotten > away with doing a whole box of spaghetti in my four to five quart pot with > locking lid. It's definitely important to get the water to a rolling boil > before putting the pasta in. I break the spaghetti in half, standing it in > a mug or glass, add it gradually to the water, and give it a brief stir to > disperse some before putting on the lid. After I taste with a fork after > ten minutes cooking for the regular spaghetti, I drain it, cover with cold > water, and drain, repeating two or three times. I don't like my spaghetti > drowning in sauce, but like some. I doctor up Prego if not making anything > that would have been part of the recipe for a sauce. I haven't tried this > yet, but on her show Rachael Ray says she saves a cup of the starchy water > from when the pasta was cooking, and adds to the noodles, as she claims the > starchy water helps the noodles hold on to the sauce better. At different > times to each serving of spaghetti, I mix on the plate with a little olive > oil, garlic powder, and parmesan cheese; if kept in the fridge, I add just a > little bit of water to my serving and microwave with a cover on, adding the > water so that spaghetti won't dry out. Other times I might just drain the > pasta once, and add minced garlic, olive oil, and parmesan cheese and stir > in so that the hot pasta absorbs everything, like how you add the fixings > right away to potatoes when making potato salad. > > I don't know if they still have it, but Tupperware used to make a spaghetti > keeper that had cut-outs specifically for one or two servings; this was for > uncooked spaghetti; it held a box worth. > Kathy. > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Nicole Massey via Cookinginthedark > Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2015 10:09 AM > To: cookinginthedark@acbradio.org ; 'Holly Anderson' > Subject: Re: [CnD] spaghetti questions > > I was told by the ex-boyfriend of a friend of mine, who was wrong in just > about everything else, that to measure spaghetti in terms of number of > people you grab a bunch of spaghetti in your dominant hand, with your thumb > and index finger circling the pasta. If the ring puts your fingernail at > the first joint of your thumb that's pasta for one, the second joint is > pasta for two, and the end of your thumb is pasta for three. I've found this > works well. Some may say that this varies depending on how big your hands > are, but the assumption is that the smaller the hands the smaller the > appetite, so you may want to vary it a bit, deciding if you want a loose or > tight hold on the pasta. > The pasta pot uses less water than you think it does, so trend your water > level down a bit. Don't put oil in the water, as it'll prevent the sauce > from sticking to your pasta, and don't salt the water until it's boiling or > it'll take longer to reach a boil. > Sauce is a matter of preference, and it depends on if you want the spaghetti > drenched in sauce or if it's just a flavoring element, and also on how much > other stuff you choose to put in it, like chopped up vegetables. I find that > three or three and a half minutes in the microwave is often enough to heat > sauce, so unless you're going for presentation you can heat it in the bowls > you're going to serve in. > And of course, YMMV, as in all things cooking. > >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Cookinginthedark [mailto:cookinginthedark-boun...@acbradio.org] >> On Behalf Of Holly Anderson via Cookinginthedark >> Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2015 8:49 AM >> To: cookinginthedark@acbradio.org >> Subject: [CnD] spaghetti questions >> >> Hi all. Today I'm going to attempt something I've never done before, >> spaghetti. I know its kind of sad. I'm making spaghetti for 2 people. >> I have a spaghetti cooker, it has a section with holes inside a pot >> that the spaghetti goes in. So when I lift the section with the holes >> out of the pot the water will drain from the spaghetti. My questions >> are: >> 1. How long do I cook he noodles? >> 2. This one is probably depending on how much we eat. but I'm not sure >> how much to make for 2 people. >> 3. I have a jar of meat sauce, do I just put it in a pot not he stove >> and simmer, how long do I cook the sauce, and how much sauce for 2 >> people. >> >> I know these questions seem basic, but I'm new to all this. And it >> might just be a trial and error type thing, but I'm kind of nervous. >> Any help would be really appreciated. >> >> Thanks. >> Holly >> _______________________________________________ >> Cookinginthedark mailing list >> Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org >> http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark > > _______________________________________________ > Cookinginthedark mailing list > Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org > http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark > > _______________________________________________ > Cookinginthedark mailing list > Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org > http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark > _______________________________________________ Cookinginthedark mailing list Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark
