Like many people, when you cook pasta you may simply dump it into a colander when it’s done boiling. Then it goes on the plate with the sauce poured on top. Seems reasonable and straightforward, right? But if that’s how you’ve been doing it, you’ve been doing it wrong. You aren’t getting nearly as much out of the sauce as you should and the pasta has a way of clumping. And if you run cold water over the pasta while it’s in the colander, you’re really doing it wrong, washing away some of the starchy flavor that makes it so tasty.
Chef Andrew Carmellini can show you the right way to prepare pasta and sauce. The right way is, of course, the Italian way! But don’t worry, it’s actually really easy but you’ll get great results.
First and foremost, it’s important to have the sauce cooking while the pasta is boiling. The last thing you want to do is put the pasta on a plate and let it sit there getting cold and clumpy while you deal with the sauce. Instead of dumping the pasta into a colander, use a wire mesh to fish it out of the water and put the pasta directly into the sauce pot. Stir it up thoroughly and give the pasta and sauce a minute or so to cook together. This way, the pasta will have a chance to soak up some of the sauce. Next, that pasta water comes into play: ladle some of it into the sauce pot. Add some olive oil, grated cheese, and add any spices you like. Finally, the secret weapon: throw in some butter and mix it all up thoroughly.
To learn all the details, check out the video posted below. You’ll be cooking Italian-style before you know it!
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