Pasta for Beginners: Episode Three

As you know, I was going to call this Episode 'Unbirthday Pasta' (which I changed,thinking that this new title is more fun). I’m sure that Marin's birthday is long gone and that Sylvia made her friend happy with this simple dinner. That said, there’s no need to abandon our endeavor to master this pasta staple that is good for any day. Are you ready? Read through the instructions first and imagine how all this is going to work in your kitchen. The previous episodes were about ingredients and tools. This episode deals with hot water and timing. It's important that you have your work space ready and are thinking about what's going to happen and when. Don't feel silly about doing this. All cooks prepare ahead. In fact, the more professional the cook, the more preparation...really!

PS To really make this easy, try making one serving first. You can use a smaller pot and with about two handfuls of Pasta you will have a generous portion for one. The big pot thing is for when you are cooking the whole box and serving about four.

New Kitchen Primer Presents
It's Not Marin's Birthday Pasta or Episode Three: Method

Today's photo is pasta as Marin likes it. Very simple. That's why we are starting with this dish. Pasta is tremendously versatile and we have lots of variety in the future. But let's get cooking pasta itself down to an art before getting too ambitious. It's always about the basics!


1. Put cold water in your largest pot and place on stove (leave some room in the pot, the pasta is going to expand about twice in volume).

2. Over high heat, bring water to a boil (large bubbles). Placing the lid on will help. When you have achieved a boil, remove the lid (we're finished with it for now) and add a generous teaspoon of kosher salt.

3. Add pasta to boiling water and give it a stir. You want to keep the water active, but you may want to turn the heat down just a bit. Be nice to your pot and try not to let it boil over.
After about 10 minutes (check the package for timing suggestions), remove one piece of pasta from the pot (use a slotted spoon or strainer) and cut it in half.

NOW… here’s the tricky part. Don’t over cook your pasta. It should be ‘al dente’, which means having a ‘little bite’. Mushy pasta won’t harm anyone, but it’s not as fun as al dente.

If, after cutting or breaking a piece of pasta, you see a white core, it’s not done. Keep cooking. That said, just the teeniest, tinniest amount is OK, because it’s going to take a while to get the pasta out of the pot and it will continue to cook, though just a little. This takes practice and once you have some experience, ‘al dente’ will be your specialty.

4. Pasta done? Turn off the burner.

If you are using a colander, place it in the sink and using your mitts, carefully empty the pot of water and pasta into the colander, then transfer to a bowl (if you are not sure about this, practice ahead of time with a cold pot of water to see if you can manage it. This is a dress rehearsal, so use your mitts).

If you are using the ‘scoop’ method, place a bowl near to your pot and using a slotted spoon or similar tool, ladle the pasta into the bowl.

Either way, do not rinse off the pasta. The starch that was released during cooking will help the sauce to cling to the pasta.

Once your pasta is drained, toss it in the bowl with some grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, a little salt and some freshly ground pepper (or let your guests do the pepper thing themselves). Success! You’ve just made Marin’s Birthday Pasta.