There are few basic rules to learn how to cook perfectly al dente your pasta.
The basic rule to cook is 10+100+1000, means 10gr of salt for 100gr of pasta boiling in a liter of water.
This rule is very simple and easy to remember, 100gr are an average serving of pasta, so you just have to multiply for the number of guests and that’s it.
Here are the basic steps to cook perfectly you pasta (for 4 servings):
Ingredients:
4lt of water
400gr of pasta
40gr of salt
1. Bring to a boil the water in a big pot
2. When it comes to a boil add the salt
3. As soon as it boils again, pour the pasta and stir immediately after.
Stir frequently while cooking.
4. Check the cooking point a couple of minutes earlier that the direction on the package. To check the pasta take a piece and put it on a plate, cut it in half with a fork. If you can see a thin white line on the inside (see picture on the right), it means that the pasta is ready.You should anyway taste it to check if it’s not too hard.
The thinner the white line is, the more the pasta is cooked. Be careful not to overcook it, otherwise you will loose the perfect “al dente” texture.
Many chefs in restaurants usually drain the pasta few minutes earlier, to stir it in the pan with the sauce, this way the pasta will get the flavors of the sauce and finish the cooking in the pan.
This operation requires a little practice, because you have to be careful to use the right amount of liquid to finish the cooking. If you are cooking a sauce that already contains a good quantity of liquids (for example a tomato sauce) you will need just a little of the cooking water to stir it instead, if you are preparing a white sauce with vegetables and the extra moisture is gone, you will need more water.
Healthy tips when cooking pasta
If you use white pasta but you want to add more fiber to it, you can boil it, cool it down and then reheat it. This process will transform the carbs in the pasta into resistant starch AKA fibers! Meaning you will get more fiber from the same quantity of pasta, and your microbiome will certainly be thankful.
Save some money
If you want to save some money and help our planet you can use a couple of tips to cook your pasta:
Use a pressure cooker
– Put the pasta into the pressure cooker and cover it with water and add the salt
– Cook on high until it reaches the pressure
– Lower the heat or turn off completely then count half the time that is indicate on the package
This is a good way to reduce energy consumption and also the water (you’ll only need enough water to cook the pasta, and there will be little to none left in the pan).
This is also a good way to cook a great one pot meal, in fact you could add some sauce or vegetables and you will get a perfect pasta in half the time and with only one pot.
Use the residual heat
When you boil the pasta, use a less water (700ml for each 100gr of pasta), bring the water to a boil with the lid on, when it boils put the pasta, let it come to a boil again, then cover and turn off the heat. The residual heat will cook the pasta perfectly but in this way you’ll have saved energy and water.
