Are you sppposed to rinse spaghetti noodles?

[rgwalt]

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: Number1

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: misle
No, and remember to salt the water before cooking the noodles.

Why salt the h2o?

Salted water conducts heat better and cooks the spag faster. It?s not mandatory.

Salted water takes longer to boil. It actually raises the boiling temperature. Salt is mostly for flavor.

Exactly... hotter water means faster cooking times for the pasta. I add enough salt to make the water taste like the ocean. Same goes for boiling veggies, like potatoes.

R

 

[sao123]

Originally posted by: grrl

Originally posted by: Number1

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: misle
No, and remember to salt the water before cooking the noodles.

Why salt the h2o?

Salted water conducts heat better and cooks the spag faster. It?s not mandatory.

It also adds flavor. It also depends upon whether you are using a bland sauce or not. (Who really cares how fast the pasta cooks?)

Restaurants who want their spaghetti cooked in 7 minutes instead of 11.

 

[acemcmac]

I don't salt my water because that'll pit your cookware

 

[Mellman]

I salt the water AND add some EVOO...

 

[DivideBYZero]

Originally posted by: acemcmac
I don't salt my water because that'll pit your cookware

What?

*checks for pitting in stainless steel saucepan*

Nope. No pitting. Ever.

 

[sao123]

Originally posted by: acemcmac
I don't salt my water because that'll pit your cookware

only if you buy the cheapo stuff.
Good cookware will never pit or desurface.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
Most people don't use enough water when cooking it.

And, (as true Italians know) you don't add oil to the water to stop the noodles from sticking to each other. Because, that stops the sauce from sticking to the noodles.

My friend's ex used to make the worst spaghetti... she'd add oil (to keep the noodles from sticking) and then she'd rinse the noodles. It was awful.
Then again, she couldn't cook ANYTHING well.

 

[Pacemaker]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog

Originally posted by: DrPizza
Most people don't use enough water when cooking it.

And, (as true Italians know) you don't add oil to the water to stop the noodles from sticking to each other. Because, that stops the sauce from sticking to the noodles.

My friend's ex used to make the worst spaghetti... she'd add oil (to keep the noodles from sticking) and then she'd rinse the noodles. It was awful.
Then again, she couldn't cook ANYTHING well.

Ok now one of the points of rinsing is to make them not stick. The only reason to add oil is to make it not stick. It's one or the other, but neither is really needed if you are serving immediately.

 

[Steve]

I was taught that salting the water keeps the noodles from sticking to the pan.

 

[dabuddha]

Originally posted by: swimscubasteve

Originally posted by: Number1

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: misle
No, and remember to salt the water before cooking the noodles.

Why salt the h2o?

Salted water conducts heat better and cooks the spag faster. It?s not mandatory.

Ummm, it's actually for flavor.

I always thought it was to raise the boiling point of the water so it cooks faster.

 

[swimscubasteve]

Salting the water will not raise the boiling point a significant amount.

If you can't taste a difference bewtween pasta cooked in salted water and pasta cooked in unsalted water then you have no tastebuds.

 

[AbsolutDealage]

Originally posted by: swimscubasteve
Salting the water will not raise the boiling point a significant amount.

If you can't taste a difference bewtween pasta cooked in salted water and pasta cooked in unsalted water then you have no tastebuds.

Or you're not adding enough salt.

Anyways OP... don't wash the noodles. It will take off the starch coat on the outside and prevent sauce from adhering properly. You can try that at home if you want... take a handful of the cooked noodles and wash them and then sauce, and then take a handful and put the sauce right on them. Stir them around and you will be able to see a significant difference in sauce adhesion.

 

[Dee67]

The only pasta I rinse is angel hair - I give it a quick shock in cold water to stop the cooking process.. I find it helps keep the noodles separated and whole better than without rinsing... But only angel hair.

 

[ElFenix]

i finish cooking my noodles in my sauce (drain noodles and place immediately into sauce with about 1 minute left for cooking). 14" skillet ftw!