There are few things you’ve asked for as much as “Pasta,” so let’s get carby. But first: a bit of important housekeeping.
We’re talking about pasta today - as in, not the broader category of “all noodles.” “Pasta” is the Italian word for “paste” - a reference to the flour-and-water dough used to make it - and it describes any noodle made in the traditional Italian style: with water and high-gluten wheat flour (and sometimes eggs), extruded or hand-/machine-rolled into any number of shapes, and then either cooked immediately (fresh pasta) or dried for storage.
I don’t mean to imply that everything you’re going to read here is traditionally Italian (it’s not), but I do want to acknowledge that there are other types of noodles that the methods discussed below do not apply to. Humans make noodles out of everything - corn, rice, buckwheat, mung beans, chickpeas, sweet potato starch, seaweed, vegetables, eggs - and those ingredients all behave very differently when heat and water are applied. So, today: just pasta, as defined above. We’ll do soba and cellophane noodles and gluten-free things another day.
Another note, while we’re limiting the scope of things: I’m also going to skip fresh pastas for now. The methods and best-practices for fresh pasta are so far removed from those of dried pasta that I think we’re best to separate the two and celebrate them each on their own. So for today, “pasta” will imply dried pasta. Easy enough.
This newsletter is structured a little differently: “Pasta” is a big, broad category, so I’ve split it into two mailers (that seemed to work really well last time - thanks for your feedback!). Today we cover some basics of cooking pasta - and since this has nearly-universal application, I have not included a specific recipe. Instead, you get a few handy infographics that you can save for quick reference. The next pasta issue will have many recipes - links and originals - and it will also cover what you do after you’ve cooked your pasta: saucing it, baking it, souping it, chilling it, eating it. It’s a lot to cover! It’s a lot. So let’s go.
What IS pasta?
Let’s revisit “paste” - pasta is made from a dough (a paste) of water and wheat flour - commonly durum wheat, a species that produces a really flavorful flour that’s high in protein; it’s these proteins (gluten is one of them) that allow the dough to hold it’s shape, even once dried and rehydrated. And it’s important to note that pasta is high in these proteins, because you already know that it’s high in carbs - so now you know that pasta is largely (mostly!) made up of proteins + carbohydrates.
Why does that matter?
Simple: because once you understand how to handle each of those elements, you can cook pasta and create pasta dishes worry-free.
A note about “tradition.”
A brief-ish pause so that I can make this point. People can be very passionate - or very anxious, or both - about their pasta, about their pasta rules, about what they believe to be right, about (and this is serious stuff) what their grandma believes to be right. I get it. Food is an emotional and sentimental thing, and thank goodness for that. I don’t believe in a lot of food rules - if something tastes good to you, then make it, serve it, eat it, be proud! - but I do believe in the value of food science: in understanding how ingredients react to one another, and what the best-practice methods are, because it makes you a better cook. (Hi. That’s why we’re here.) And sometimes, to embrace all of that, you have to let go of But This Is How We’ve Always Done It. In truth, in many instances, we actually haven’t even Always Done It as loyally as you might think: there is no record of the term “al dente” being used in either Italy or America until after WWI, for example; for another, there is not now, nor has there ever been, a consensus agreement on how exactly to prepare a Ragù Bolognese - not even amongst the people and chefs of Bologna. So when the rules and traditions maybe, really, aren’t, then I think it’s a kindness to let ourselves consider some alternatives - because the result could be something that’s better, faster, easier, or all three.
OK. Back to the science.
Remember that we’re talking about dried pasta: pasta that was once a pasty dough, but (after shaping) had all of its water removed (a process called dehydration). How do we make that palatable again? There are two obvious answers: (1) rehydrate it, because that’s the opposite of dehydrating something, and (2) boil it, because That’s How We’ve Always Done It. Let’s dissect both.
The first one is easy to dismantle: if you rehydrate a dehydrated paste, you’re going to get… paste. Simply adding water back isn’t enough. The starchy carbohydrates in the pasta require water AND heat to undergo the changes needed to stabilize the dough.
Why Pasta Works:
Here’s what’s happening when you cook dried pasta: water is being reintroduced to rehydrate the pasta. With the right amount of heat, the carbohydrate molecules absorb so much water that they burst, and their starchy contents mix with the water to form a gel (which is conveniently much more palatable than raw flour; it tastes better, and has a better mouthfeel). At the same time, the proteins that are present will begin to denature and relax (and, conveniently, they also become digestible) - but because of the firm, stable carbohydrate gel that has formed, the proteins are held up into their original shape. The proteins provide initial structure, until the starchy gel steps in and allows the protein to rest.
So when we cook pasta, we’re: introducing water at the correct temperature to keep the dough from returning to its original shapeless consistency; we’re making it taste better; and we’re making it more digestible.
It all feels kind of conveniently meant-to-be, right? It gets better: while wheat flour contains numerous carbohydrates and proteins, they all undergo those necessary and convenient changes mentioned above within the same temperature range: between 135°and 185°F.
And maybe you noticed: 185°F is much lower than 212°F - the boiling point of water. So much for That’s How We’ve Always Done It.
Why Should I Care?
Maybe you don’t, but here’s the takeaway: you don’t have to boil your pasta. I know you’ve always done it that way. I know you’ve been told that you have to. But the science says “not so.” We waste a lot of valuable resources - water, energy, our time and attention - bringing multiple quarts of water to a boil (so much time! so much energy! so much water!) before we begin the cooking process. Imagine living in this dream world: you can pour a box of dried pasta into a pot, add enough hot tap water to cover the noodles by a few inches, and put it on the stove - and all it requires of you before you get to eat it is a few stirs, a few checks. You’ll get cooked pasta in a fraction of the time. You’ll have used less water, and less gas or electricity. You’ll have spent less of your time babysitting. You’ll still have excellent pasta. And if the timing of it all stresses you out, here’s this very scientific representation of the way that pasta’s texture evolves across cook time:
Look at that curve: the amount of time between “al dente” and “overcooked” is almost double. Pasta is really that forgiving. As long as you’re testing your pieces for doneness and seasoning (I usually start about 6 minutes in), it’s going to be really hard for you to miss your target texture - whatever it might be. And next week, we’ll explore this even further: we’ll discuss how to manipulate the initial cook-time to maximize texture in finished dishes like soup or baked casseroles - even pasta salad.
Letting go of habits and preconceived truths can be really hard. One down! But let’s keep going. There are a ton of oft-repeated pasta “musts” bandied about - let’s dispel a few more to make our lives even easier (and double-down on some others that actually have merit).
Some Pasta Myths, Some Pasta Rules.
I made you this infographic because I love alignment charts and believe that pasta deserves one. Also, it’s save-able for future reference; a bonus.
If you’re hungry for more info, I’ve expanded upon each of these points below the chart (they’re not in any particular order), but if you’re done reading for today, that’s cool, too - see you again in a few days for More Pasta. xo.
Myth: Dried pasta must be boiled. Nope. We just did this. Your pasta WILL boil, and that’s fine, but it doesn’t HAVE to boil.
Myth: Dried pasta must be boiled for the length of time listed on the package. This one’s complicated, but that’s still not true. Two things have to happen: the starches & proteins need to hit 185°F for about a minute and a half, for both to be “cooked,” and the noodle needs to be fully rehydrated (the time here is more variable: depends on the shape & size of pasta, the temperature of the water, and when you added the pasta to it). In general, though, if you add the pasta to hot tap water and then put it on the stove, your start-to-finish time will be about 30-40% shorter than if you waited for the water to boil.
Also worth noting: you can add the pasta to cold water - it just seems silly not to take the ready-made headstart by using hot, from the tap. But if you’re camping or something, or your hot water tank is on the fritz, by all means. Just adjust your expectations of cook time accordingly.
Myth: You have to use lots of water to cook pasta, to keep it from sticking. Also not true. When the starches on the outside of the pasta hit the water - cold water, warm water, hot water, or boiling water - those outermost starch molecules are going to “cook” almost instantly: they’re going to gel. Stirring is what keeps your pasta from sticking together. You just need a little physical disruption. Increasing the amount of water doesn’t make a difference: the same process occurs. Stirring your pasta immediately after placing on the stove and then an additional once or twice in the few minutes following will solve all problems of stick-age, regardless of how much water is in your pot. Once the water looks cloudy (with the starches that have sloughed off), you’re good to leave it alone.
Myth: You have to use lots of water so that adding the dry pasta doesn’t lower the temperature. This has been proven to be untrue, but also, we’re not adding pasta to boiling water anymore, are we? Next.
Truth: You should use as little water as possible to cook your pasta. This is true for all of the reasons above - there’s no need to waste additional water (and energy heating it) when it doesn’t solve any problems. What’s more, not only is it more efficient to use less water, but the less water you use, the starchier your water will be - and that starchy water helps mount and emulsify your pasta sauces. Always save 1 cup before draining it off. How much water DO you need? It depends on the pot, and the pasta shape, but I usually try to cover it by about two inches - as in, the surface of the water should be two inches above the surface of the pasta below it.
A “Myth”: You don’t have to save your pasta water. Yes, fine: you do not have to. You could use plain water, or nothing at all, when saucing your pasta. You will not be met with utter disaster. BUT: why wouldn’t you? The starches in the water help to emulsify your sauce. Also, the pasta water is already at the ideal temperature AND has been seasoned. To use nothing is fine-bordering-on-laziness; to use tap water is an outright rebellion.
Myth: Pasta water should be as salty as the sea. Ocean water, at a salinity of about just under 4%, is salty as hell. Our palates enjoy a salinity level of anywhere from 0.5-2%, usually, and while I actually do not stress about the specific amount of salt in the water, “salty as the sea” is way too much. Start with a teaspoon or two, and adjust when you test your first piece; starches absorb salt quickly, so adding more salt if needed even 1 or 2 minutes before it’s done cooking is sufficient to season the pasta through.
Myth, ish: Salt should be added once the water comes to a boil, because it changes the boiling point. This is technically true, but statistically insignificant; depending upon the salinity, it’s about a degree of difference, if that. Also, we’re not waiting for the pot to boil anymore, so it doesn’t matter. There IS an argument to be made that you should not add salt to a pot of cold water and just let it sit on the hot stove: the marriage of salt and water in the presence of heat can result in a chemical reaction that will damage the surface of stainless steel, resulting in pits over time. However, stirring to dissolve the salt avoids this problem - and we’ve already addressed the need for stirring, too.
Myth, ish: Adding oil to the water keeps the pasta from sticking. STIRRING keeps the pasta from sticking. Oil floats on water: how is it affecting the pasta, far below the surface? It’s not. What it WILL do, however, is coat the pasta when it comes time to drain, and then - yes - it will keep your drained pasta from sticking — and will keep your sauce from sticking to it. Pass.
Myth, ish: Adding oil to the water keeps the pot from boiling over. This is true - the oil floats on the top of the water, and disrupts the surface tension created by the starches, so, no bubbles. However, since you’re using much less water, now, you don’t need to worry about your pot boiling over. Two birds, one stone.
Myth: Pasta must be cooked for the amount of time on the package. Generally, no, but there’s not a hard rule on cook-times - there are a lot of variables (see Chaotic Evil, and Neutral Good), and how you wish to serve the pasta has a significant impact on how long you should be cooking it.
And serving the pasta is… next week’s issue. Thanks for being here - see you again soon.