Chef and culinary expert Andrew Zimmern explains how to prepare various types of pasta.
- Put a large amount of water in the pot when cooking pasta so that the starch remains in the pasta water.
- The best way to cook pasta is to boil it in the water until it is al dente (cooked enough to be firm but not soft), Strain and throw it into the saucepan with the sauce and saute it. This cooks the sauce into the noodles.
- If you need to store your pasta, do it before the second stage of the cooking process. Throw the al dente pasta in with the olive oil and store it in the refrigerator. It will keep for 24 hours.
- If pasta is to be used in a dish that requires further cooking, such as lasagna, reduce the cooking time by one-third.
- Prevent pasta from boiling over by adding 1-1/2 teaspoons butter to the boiling water.
- For a quick meal, make a one-pot pasta dish by tossing in chopped peppers, zucchini, scallions, frozen peas or any other vegetable of choice into the pot with parboiled (cooked partially by boiling for a brief period), strained pasta. Throw in a cup of stock and continue to cook until the vegetables are done.
- The shape of the pasta determines the type of sauce that complements it.
- To heat a serving bowl for pasta, place a large heatproof bowl in the sink and set a colander in the bowl. When the pasta is done, immediately pour it into the colander and lift the colander to drain the cooking water into the bowl. Tip the bowl to empty it, put pasta and sauce in the warm bowl, toss and serve.
- Try zucchini "pasta" for a low-calorie change. Cut zucchini into fettuccine-like strips and steam quickly until limp. Top with a tomato sauce and a light sprinkling of freshly grated Parmesan.
Guests Andrew Zimmern
Professional Chef and Culinary Expert, Food Works Inc.
1116 Raymond Ave.
St. Paul, MN 55108
Phone: 651-335-7456
E-mail:
chefaz@visi.com
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