Cook Pasta More Cheaply

[GeoffF100]

Cook pasta more cheaply, by bring the water to the boil with the lid on, and then turning the gas off:

https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2022/0 ... 87f37.html

[Maroochydore]

I always bring to boil and then turn gas right down as low as it will go, just to retain the heat in the water.

[stevensfo]

Cook pasta more cheaply, by bring the water to the boil with the lid on, and then turning the gas off:

https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2022/0 ... 87f37.html

I've been doing this for years, with rice as well. As long as it's been boiling for a while to kill any nasties, it gives more control over getting it just right. Nothing worse than too-soft pasta or rice! Reminds me of school dinners.

I also do this with our gas bbq, though mainly cos when my wife says that everything is ready and we can eat, it translates into at least another ten minutes! I also know that it tastes nicer if cooked more slowly. I get it up to about 200'C, wait a minute, then switch off the gas. Repeat ad infinitum!

Steve

[DrFfybes]

I've discovered that Penne cooks in 4 mins, compared to 10 for fusili!

[Midsmartin]

I have similarly wondered what the minimum temperature is to 'boil' potatoes. Might that work too, if you cut them up small?

[GeoffF100]

I've been doing this for years, with rice as well. As long as it's been boiling for a while to kill any nasties, it gives more control over getting it just right. Nothing worse than too-soft pasta or rice! Reminds me of school dinners.

I gave that a try. I soak my brown Basmati rice for 10 hours, which reduces the cooking time and also opens the pores to make it easier to remove atomic number 33 (which triggers the expletive filter here). I cooked 80 grams of rice in 1 litre of water. I brought it to the boil and left it for just over 15 minutes, and brought it to the boil again. That did not take long, so it had not cooled much. It was chewier than after simmering for 15 minutes, but was OK. Cooking in a large amount of water is also good for getting rid of atomic number 33.

[GeoffF100]

I've discovered that Penne cooks in 4 mins, compared to 10 for fusili!

They both cook in 15 minutes for me, but the result is better for penne, and it needs less water to cover it. Whole wheat pasta is becoming a rich man's food though.

[mc2fool]

I've discovered that Penne cooks in 4 mins...

Yeah, me too: https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/all-276023-44/sainsburys-quick-cook-penne-500g

...compared to 10 for fusili!

Try: https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/fusilli---spiral-44/sainsburys-quick-cook-fusilli-500g

[servodude]

Might be a time shortly where fresh pasta is worth the premium (or the effort) because it cooks that much faster

[swill453]

Might be a time shortly where fresh pasta is worth the premium (or the effort) because it cooks that much faster

Back of fag packet says that'll be when electric is about £5 a kWh, so a ways to go.

Scott.

[UncleEbenezer]

Cook pasta more cheaply by combining it with the veg in the same saucepan. Works fine with most veg. Obviously, if the veg needs longer/shorter cooking time than the pasta, put them in at different times to coordinate them being ready.

Or in the case of steamed veg, put the pasta in the water that's being heated under the veg to make steam.

[Eboli]

Uncle Ebenezer suggested:

Cook pasta more cheaply by combining it with the veg in the same saucepan. Works fine with most veg.

The problem with this for me is that I heavily salt the water in which the pasta is cooked (as most Italians recommend) - far too much salt for most veg.

Eb.

[Mike4]

Might be a time shortly where fresh pasta is worth the premium (or the effort) because it cooks that much faster

Back of fag packet says that'll be when electric is about £5 a kWh, so a ways to go.

Scott.

Curiously, when the power starts going off and everyone buys themselves portable petrol generators from Screwfix, that IS about what the electricity costs when generated using them.

[didds]

The problem with this for me is that I heavily salt the water in which the pasta is cooked (as most Italians recommend)

Eb.

recommend = what they are used to.

Its like porridge with salt or sugar. If you are brought up one way, that's the way you want it, and the other way tastes foul.

didds

[Maroochydore]

recommend = what they are used to.
Its like porridge with salt or sugar. If you are brought up one way, that's the way you want it, and the other way tastes foul.

It's not 'what they are used to'. The addition of salt raises the boiling point of the water. The temperature needed to boil will increase about 0.5 C for every 58 grams of dissolved salt per kilogram of water. It's called boiling point elevation. Hotter water, better pasta.

The 'elevation' is true in respect of the freezing point of water, hence putting salt on an icy pathway extends the freezing point of the ice, making the surrounding air warmer and hence melting the ice.

[didds]

Im aware that salt raises the boiling point etc.

Im sceptical about whether the water boiling at 101 degrees rather than 100 makes a huge amount of difference to the pasta we eat, and better results would proably be found initially by just buying better pasta to start with, or making our own each time.

Its not a hill Im going to die on, but Im unconvinced personally.

[mc2fool]

recommend = what they are used to.
Its like porridge with salt or sugar. If you are brought up one way, that's the way you want it, and the other way tastes foul.

It's not 'what they are used to'. The addition of salt raises the boiling point of the water. The temperature needed to boil will increase about 0.5 C for every 58 grams of dissolved salt per kilogram of water. It's called boiling point elevation. Hotter water, better pasta.

Hmmm ... yes, Italians insist on salting the water, but if it's 'cos "hotter water, better pasta" then why do they also insist that pasta be boiled without a lid on the saucepan?

[NotSure]

... yes, Italians insist on salting the water, but if it's 'cos "hotter water, better pasta" then why do they also insist that pasta be boiled without a lid on the saucepan?

I'm guessing the same reason? You have to turn the heat down if there's a lid (which is what I do BTW). No lid, you can let the pan "boil free", i.e reach 100 C?

[swill453]

Hmmm ... yes, Italians insist on salting the water, but if it's 'cos "hotter water, better pasta" then why do they also insist that pasta be boiled without a lid on the saucepan?

I don't know, but one thing it won't be affecting is the temperature of the water.

(And re the other point, nobody puts 58 grams of salt per kg of water, that would taste rank, and 0.5 degrees is nothing).

Scott.

[mc2fool]

... yes, Italians insist on salting the water, but if it's 'cos "hotter water, better pasta" then why do they also insist that pasta be boiled without a lid on the saucepan?

I'm guessing the same reason? You have to turn the heat down if there's a lid (which is what I do BTW). No lid, you can let the pan "boil free", i.e reach 100 C?

Uh? How can that be the same reason? The claim was "hotter water, better pasta" and that adding salt raised the boiling point.

I don't know, but one thing it won't be affecting is the temperature of the water.

As we all know, keeping a lid on makes it boil more vigorously, 'cos it keeps heat in more rather than letting it escape, and while (unless the lid is tight enough to form a pressure cooker effect) technically, yes, the water is still at 100C, the steam in the water (which is what is the boiling) will be hotter, so more steam (i.e. more boil) hotter pasta, right?

(P.S. While I do add salt to pasta water, I'm not at all convinced that the reason to add it is to raise the boiling point; I'm just curious about the seeming contradiction of that idea with the fact that Italians also insist on cooking pasta without the lid on....)