How and how much to cook pasta?

Surely every housewife knows how to cook pasta. Here are just a few of the chefs think that this simple process has its secrets. To make pasta always tasty and not stick together, it is worth using some tricks.

How to cook pasta?

The main question in the process of preparing the most popular side dish: how much to cook pasta? The exact time depends on the cooking method chosen, as well as on the variety and quality of the product. It is important and to choose the right dishes for cooking pasta.

In the pan

Most often, pasta is cooked in a pan. It is best to use a tank with a thick bottom for this process. First, the pan is filled with filtered water. Ideal proportions: liter of water per 100 g of product. If there is not enough liquid in the container, the dish will turn out to be too sticky. Typically, a family of three takes 300 g of pasta and 3 liters of clean water.

The product is lowered into actively boiling water. It needs to be salted to taste in advance. The heating plate should be maximum. Immediately after immersing the pasta in the liquid, the pan is tightly covered with a lid. After boiling again, the lid is removed and the fire is reduced.

Immediately after adding pasta to water, mix them well to prevent them from sticking together. Next, prepare a side dish for 10-12 minutes.

In a slow cooker

Ingredients: 1 cup pasta, 380 ml filtered water, salt, seasonings to taste, a slice of butter.

1. First of all, prepared liquid is poured into the bowl of the “smart pan”. Salt is immediately poured into the water and the selected seasonings are added.
2. The menu is set to "Paste" mode. After a signal of boiling liquid, pasta is laid out in it. Next, the dish is cooked for 8 minutes. If in the end it is not ready, you can extend the process by another equal amount of time.

The resulting side dish is reclined in a colander and flavored with butter.

In the microwave

Ingredients: 220 g of pasta, 2 times more filtered water, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of refined oil, table salt to taste.

1. To prepare pasta in this way, you need to choose a deep dish suitable for the microwave oven.
2. First, the capacity is sent to the device at maximum power for 12-15 minutes before the liquid boils.
3. Boiling water can be salted, pour oil into it. Pasta is immersed in the mixture. The oil will protect them from sticking together.
4. The products mix well and the tank returns to the oven for 20 minutes at medium power.

It remains to throw the pasta into a colander and you can take a sample.

In a double boiler

Ingredients: 350-370 g of pasta, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of refined oil, salt, seasonings, water.

1. First, water is poured into the container of the double boiler designed for rice. There should be enough liquid so that its level is about 1.5 cm higher than the layer of pasta.
2. Salt, seasonings and oil are immediately added to the water.
3. Pasta is immersed in the liquid, after which the device closes and turns on.

The dish is prepared for 20-25 minutes. It remains to rinse the pasta with warm water.

Aldente pasta - how long does it take to cook?

Slightly undercooked aldente pasta is used to make compound dishes. For example, when spaghetti is eventually combined with sauces or separately cooked meat. If you add ready-made pasta to the boiling sauce, then in the end they will quickly boil. The state of aldente makes it possible to perfectly prepare a compound pasta dish. An additional couple of minutes of languor will bring them to full readiness.

Selected pasta is immersed in actively boiling salted water. Next, you need to detect 3-4 minutes. After this, the semi-finished product is left to stand in water for a couple of minutes, reclines in a colander and rinsed with water.

The secrets of cooking different types of pasta

The most difficult thing is to figure out how to cook nests from pasta. This basis allows you to cook a delicious dish with vegetable and meat fillings.

Nests are carefully dipped in boiling water and cooked on the principle of regular pasta until cooked. The main thing is not to stir them and carefully remove from the pan with a slotted spoon. You can remove the undercooked nests from the container, cover them with the filling and send them to bake in the oven.

Vermicelli cobweb is cooked very quickly and simply. If it becomes part of the soup, then you can add it to the pot with the first dish 5 minutes before readiness. Separately, the product is cooked the same amount of time in salt water with a small amount of vegetable oil.

To cook spaghetti deliciously, you can dip them both in boiling water and milk. Check the readiness of the dish every 3 minutes. Once the product is soft but resilient, you can remove the pan from the heat.

If large spirals or shells are selected, then they will need to be cooked a little longer in time. Until fully prepared, such products should be held in boiling water for 12-14 minutes.

Do I need to rinse pasta after cooking, and with what water?

Experienced cooks from Italy consider the habit of Russian housewives to wash pasta with cold water as a big mistake. In the process, the product cools and loses taste, and, in addition, the starch, which is necessary for excellent absorption of sauces, is washed off.

Each housewife will have to decide whether to wash cooked pasta. Be sure to rinse the product with water if the pasta is intended for the preparation of a salad.

What to add so as not to stick together?

To prevent pasta from sticking together during cooking, it is often necessary to stir it with a wide spoon or spatula. Subsequent rinsing with water also helps to prevent sticking.

But these precautions are not enough. To surely protect the dish from sticking together, you just need to add vegetable oil to the water during cooking. 1-2 teaspoons are enough.