How to cook simple pasta. Spaghetti Al Dente with vegetables

Boiled pasta is a familiar and traditional side dish that is simple and quick to prepare. Knowing a few simple rules, even a novice housewife, a child and a husband waiting for his wife and newborn to return from the maternity hospital can cook correct, non-sticky pasta.

To make the pasta tasty, elastic and beautiful, you need to cook it in a large volume of water, which requires a rather large saucepan. The formula for calculating products is simple - 100:1000:10. This is the proportion of weight, volume and mass. That is, for every 100 grams of dry pasta you need to take a liter of water, salt, of course, add everything to taste, 10 grams is not an axiom.

The best pasta is made from durum wheat, so it holds its shape well and requires some effort to make the finished pasta stick together. It is necessary to take into account the fact that pasta perfectly absorbs the taste of the water in which it is boiled, so it makes sense to use bottled or filtered water for cooking.

The cooking process begins from the moment you place the pasta (remember, we don’t break long ones, spaghetti or noodles are placed vertically in the pan and will gradually submerge themselves) into boiling water. The pasta is cooked in boiling water, so if you turn down the heat, then only slightly.

The cooking time for pasta depends on its shape, size and the dish being prepared. Usually the packaging indicates an approximate time, often two options, until fully cooked and al dente(to the teeth). Pasta cooked al dente is usually then supplemented with sauces, from where the pasta will “get” the necessary moisture.

You can check the readiness of the pasta by tasting it, or, if these are long types of pasta that are not very convenient to remove from boiling water, by pressing on the pasta. If the pasta can be easily separated, then it is ready; if some effort is applied, it needs to be cooked for another minute or two.

After cooking, the pasta should be placed in a colander and washed only if the finished pasta was intended for salad. After draining the water, return the pasta to the pan and add oil - or, to taste. Shake the pan thoroughly, after closing the lid tightly. The ideal way to serve pasta is immediately after cooking; if this does not work, after 8-10 minutes, shake the pan with pasta again to ensure that it does not stick together.

Properly cooked pasta will never harm your figure, of course, if you don’t eat kilos of it.

Pasta is both a simple and delicious dish. But in order for them to be truly tasty and look beautiful, you need to follow a number of recommendations when preparing them.

Today, pasta is loved in many countries around the world, not to mention that it is easy and quick to prepare. Cooking them is quite simple, but how to do it correctly, so that they do not lose their taste and original aesthetic appearance, this needs to be analyzed in more detail.

Every housewife needs to know the standard rules!

So, it is necessary to adhere to simple but precise cooking rules that have existed since ancient times, namely:

• In order for the pasta to cook well and not stick together, it must be cooked in a large saucepan, taking into account the fact that for every 100 g of product there should be 1 liter of water. Otherwise, they will not have enough space, they will become sticky and will take longer to cook;
• The pan for cooking should be taken high and, preferably, its walls should be thicker than a regular one;
• Boiled pasta should be stirred thoroughly; a wooden spoon is ideal for this;
• You need to salt the water after it boils until the moment when the vermicelli is lowered into it, with the calculation of 10 g of salt for each individual liter of water. It is highly not recommended to salt the water when pasta is already boiled in it;
• When choosing the size of the pan, you need to take into account the fact that during the cooking process the amount of food increases approximately 2 times;
• One of the main rules for successful cooking is that they need to be poured into the pan at the moment of reaching maximum boiling, and in its center, where it is strongest;
• Ready pasta should be soft. There should be no flour taste left on the teeth. But if you still have it, you need to turn off the heat and leave the dish to stand under the lid for about 3 minutes, after draining the water;
• Do not rinse pasta, especially with cool water. This procedure makes the amount of useful microelements much smaller;
• When the vermicelli is ready, you need to drain the water from it, place it in a colander and shake it several times. Then return it back to the pan, season with sauce, if you have one, or add 2-3 tablespoons of the broth in which it was cooked (it should be left before draining) to prevent drying out.

How to cook different types of pasta in a saucepan

Today, varieties of vermicelli vary in shape and size. Accordingly, the method of preparation and the cooking time period are somewhat different.

Nests

Nests are considered one of the most beautiful and elegant types of pasta. But how to cook them correctly so that they do not lose their shape and do not become ordinary noodles after cooking? Let's try to figure it out!

So, you will need the following kitchen utensils:

• Large saucepan with a lid, preferably wide;
• Boiling water;
• A slotted spoon for removing finished nests.

Ingredients:

• Several pieces of nests from the package (as many as will fit in the pan so that they fit freely in it, approximately 5-7 pieces);
• 1 tablespoon olive oil;
• Salt (to taste).

To prepare the nests, place them loosely in a wide-diameter pan. Gently pour boiling water over so that the edges of the pasta are completely covered.

Then you need to pour olive oil into the water and add salt. Then cover it all with a lid and cook over low heat until done.

Carefully remove the nests with a slotted spoon and place on plates.

Horns, shells, spirals and feathers

There are many different shapes of pasta available today! Some of the most famous are: shells, horns, spirals.

Their cooking time depends on what type of flour they are made from (on average it is about 7 minutes, but it is best to check the cooking time on the pasta packaging).

The recipe for cooking horns, shells and spirals is standard, but it is worth considering that depending on the type of pasta, their cooking time differs. So, how long should you cook pasta in a saucepan, you ask? We answer: horns should be cooked for 12-15 minutes, shells - up to 10 minutes, spirals - 10-12 minutes.

The pan should be enameled or made of stainless steel, since pasta tends to stick to the bottom and walls.

Stages of proper cooking of cones, shells, spirals:

1. Pour water into a deep saucepan and bring it to a boil;
2. Pour a measured amount of pasta into the center of maximum boiling water and bring to a boil;
3. After the water boils, turn the heat to low and cook, gradually stirring (check the package for cooking time);
4. After making sure that the pasta is ready to eat, carefully drain the water from it and add oil or sauce;
5. Then arrange on plates and eat hot with the rest of the meal.

Let's see what the process of cooking spirals looks like in the video:

Spaghetti

The process of cooking spaghetti is quite unique and has a number of features. The main secret of tasty and crumbly long pasta is that it does not need to be fully cooked over the fire. They tend to cook after draining the water and leaving them covered in the pan for a few minutes.

Stages of cooking spaghetti in a pan:

1. This type of pasta likes to use a lot of water to cook it. Spaghetti is cooked according to the principle of all other types, with the peculiarity that you should not break it, just put it in a pan like a fan and, as it soaks in the water, slowly lower the ends remaining on the outside with a spoon;
2. To prevent the spaghetti from sticking, you need to stir it periodically. You should not cover spaghetti with a lid while cooking. To ensure that they are well separated from each other, it is useful to pour 1 tablespoon of oil (olive) into the water. If they are almost ready, but not quite, you should not be afraid to turn them off, drain the water and put them in a colander. Then throw the spaghetti back into the pan and let it cook on its own for 2-3 minutes until fully cooked;
3. You should never wash spaghetti, especially with cold running water! They are seasoned with sauce or butter and served only hot in deep plates, preferably with their bottoms heated.

Methods for cooking pasta in gadgets

Every year, the latest technological developments can surprise us more and more.

Today, you can prepare dishes not only on a kitchen stove, but also with the help of modern household appliances, for example: multicookers, microwaves, steamers.

In a slow cooker

The recipe for cooking noodles in a multicooker is quite simple, you just need to know the correct proportions of ingredients, as well as setting the multicooker modes.

Required components:

• Pasta of any favorite variety, except spaghetti - 0.5 kg;
• 1 teaspoon salt;
• 1 teaspoon butter.

Cooking plan:

1. You need to put pasta in a special multicooker pan, then fill it with water according to the principle that they should be completely covered, and the water should be a few centimeters above them;
2. You need to add butter to the water;
3. Then you need to turn on the mode called “Steaming” or “Pilaf”;
4. Set the timer for 12 minutes;
5. Drain the water, place the finished product in a colander to allow the water to drain, and transfer the dish to plates.

In a steamer

A double boiler with a multicooker has a similar plan of action, but is still somewhat different.

Required ingredients:

• 300 grams of pasta;
• Water;
• 1 teaspoon salt;
• 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.

Cooking plan:

1. First you need to fill the steamer container with water;
2. Pour the pasta into the bowl, add enough water to cover it, and the water level is a few centimeters higher than their level;
3. Add vegetable oil to the container;
4. Cooking time is 15 minutes;
5. Then the pasta is washed off with water, placed in a colander and ready for use.

In the microwave

As you know, in a microwave you can not only heat up dishes, but also cook some of them. This also applies to pasta.

Cooking principle:

• Pour the required amount of product into the container, taking into account the proportion: 100 g of vermicelli is covered with 200 ml of water. Moreover, the container should be either ceramic or glass;
• Add salt to taste and 1 tablespoon oil;
• Cook the pasta for the number of minutes indicated on the package, but add another 4 minutes to this time. To do this, you need to set the timer for the desired time;
• When the timer goes off, you should taste the pasta. If they are not yet ready enough, let them cook for a few more minutes;
• Then drain the water from them and place them in a colander. The pasta is ready to eat.

We suggest you prepare macaroni and cheese in a mug using a microwave oven as shown in the video below:

Simple and delicious recipes

Pasta is quite popular in cooking; it can not only be consumed in its classic boiled form, but also used to prepare interesting dishes.

Horns with stewed meat

How to cook pasta with stewed meat in a saucepan - this is a seemingly easy, but very common question for novice cooks.

The principle of preparation is to boil the horns as usual (use 2 liters for 200 grams of dry pasta), and not completely drain the liquid from them (leave about 50 grams).

Then put the stew into the pan, stir lightly and simmer over low heat for several minutes.

After that, add the pre-fried chopped onion.

Simmer everything together for about 2-3 minutes. The dish is ready to eat, you just need to put it on a plate.

While you are reading this article, our editors have already prepared new recipes for you. This is delicious!

It’s easy to cook delicious pork shish kebab in the oven if you know. And you can also find a lot of cooking tips there.

For pasta, you can prepare meatballs with rice in tomato sauce, the recipe for which is located. Together, these dishes will become a complete lunch!

Vermicelli fritters

This simple dish takes relatively little time to prepare and can be ideal for adults and children as a breakfast.

Ingredients:

• 3 fresh chicken eggs;
• 50 grams of hard cheese;
• 2 cups boiled pasta;
• 50 grams of lard;
• Greens (to taste).

The principle of making pancakes:

• Taking a bowl, beat chicken eggs into it, add grated hard cheese, boiled pasta, and some herbs to taste;
• Then take lard, chop it finely, fry it in a frying pan over low heat and add it to the resulting mass;
• The mixture in a bowl must be thoroughly mixed and spooned into a heated frying pan in which the lard was fried, and fry on both sides until golden brown.

Place the dish beautifully on a plate and sprinkle with fresh herbs if desired.

Fried shells

A rather unusual dish can be obtained from fried pasta. Ingredients:

• A serving of pasta weighing 120 grams;
• 2 glasses of water;
• Salt, pepper, curry, fresh herbs, bay leaf - to taste.

Cooking process:

• Olive oil is added to the initially heated frying pan and spices are poured in, everything is fried for about 30 seconds;
• Add the pasta and fry over medium heat for about 3-4 minutes;
• Then you need to pour in the measured water, add a bay leaf and boil everything over high heat for about 10 minutes (the water should boil away);
• The dish is ready to eat, you just need to put it on a plate and sprinkle with herbs.

In order not to hold a colander over the sink, you can put it in a saucepan - the water will run there, and during this time you can set the table.

To prevent the pasta from cooling quickly on the dish, it can be preheated.

It is best to place spaghetti on a dish with special tongs, high above the plate so that they are well separated from each other.

Spaghetti nests can be easily formed using a fork. To do this, you need to install the fork in the center and twist it in one direction.

Pasta can be boiled, fried, baked. They are easy to prepare deliciously. To make them beautiful and not stick together, you just need to follow simple but mandatory recommendations, then the result will definitely please you!

Now we invite you to watch a video recipe with a very intriguing Spanish pasta dish:

Place the pasta in boiling salted water and cook for 7-10 minutes over medium heat. The exact cooking time for pasta is always indicated on the package.
Drain the cooked pasta into a colander, place the colander in an empty pan and allow the excess water to drain. The pasta is ready.

How to cook pasta

1. For 200 grams of pasta (about half a standard package), pour 1 liter of water into a saucepan.

2. Add a tablespoon of oil to the pan to prevent the pasta from sticking.
3. Salt the water.
4. When the water boils, add pasta to the pan.

5. Stir the pasta to avoid sticking to the bottom.
6. Cook pasta for 7-10 minutes.
7. If necessary, rinse boiled pasta under cold water.
Your pasta is ready!

How to cook pasta in the microwave
Cook the pasta in the microwave for 10 minutes at a water ratio of 100 grams of pasta / 200 milliliters of water. The water should completely cover the pasta. Add a tablespoon of oil and a teaspoon of salt to the container. Close the container with pasta, place in the microwave at 500 W and cook for 10 minutes.

How to cook pasta in a slow cooker
Pour water so that it completely covers the pasta and a couple of centimeters above. Add a spoonful of butter to the pasta. The mode must be selected “steaming” or “pilaf”. Cook pasta for 12 minutes.

How to cook pasta in a steamer
Fill the lower container of the steamer with water. Pour pasta into a bowl, add a couple of centimeters of water, add salt and a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes. Then place the pasta in a colander and rinse.

How to cook pasta in an electric kettle
1. Pour 1 liter of water into a 2-liter kettle.
2. Bring water to a boil.
3. As soon as the water boils, add pasta (no more than 1/5 of a standard 500 gram bag).
4. Turn on the kettle and wait for it to boil.
5. Turn on the kettle every 30 seconds for 7 minutes.
6. Drain the water from the kettle through the spout.
7. Open the lid of the kettle and place the pasta on a plate.
8. Rinse the kettle right away (later you will be lazy).

How to cook pasta in a frying pan
1. Exactly the same as in a saucepan. A saucepan for cooking pasta is more suitable because... The inner and outer surface of the pan is more suitable for cooking. The frying pan option is only suitable if there are no saucepans. Or for making fried pasta.

- It is believed that if pasta is not cooked for 2-3 minutes, it will have less calories.

To prevent the pasta from sticking, you can add a spoonful of oil to the water and stir occasionally with a spoon.

Pasta is boiled in a large amount of salted water (1 tablespoon of salt per 3 liters of water, for every 100 grams of pasta at least 1 liter of water).

Pasta is cooked in a saucepan with the lid not closed.

If you have overcooked the pasta a little, you can rinse it under cold water (in a colander) and stir with added oil - then the pasta will not stick together.

When cooked, pasta expands approximately 3 times. For two large servings of pasta, 100 grams of pasta is enough for a side dish.
- If you want to use boiled pasta to prepare a complex dish that requires further heat treatment of the pasta, undercook it a little - exactly for the number of minutes it will take to cook it later.

Types of pasta and cooking time

- If you cook pasta horns, you need to cook them for 10 minutes-15 minutes.
- Cook pasta tubes (penne) for 13 minutes.
- Cook the nest pasta for 5 minutes.
- Cook the cannelloni for 10 minutes before baking until half cooked.
- Cook fettuccine for 10 minutes after boiling.
- Cook the lasagna sheets for 5 minutes before baking until half cooked.
- Cook the noodles for 5-7 minutes depending on the size.
- Cook the ravioli for 3-7 minutes depending on the size and filling.
- Cook bow pasta for 10 minutes.

About the benefits and nutritional value of pasta

The ingredients of good pasta are flour and water. Therefore, there is no need to talk about the high nutritional value of pasta, no matter how easy it is to prepare and no matter how widespread the people’s love for this product. There are practically no vitamins in pasta.

There is a saying in Italy that pasta does not make you fat. However, this applies to empty pasta, but it is worth adding cheese or sauce to the pasta - it is not recommended to eat such pasta when on a diet. The same applies to overnight pasta - due to the carbohydrate content, the dish will no longer be dietary.

The calorie content of pasta is about 100 kcal/100 grams. If compared with boiled cauliflower, it is 3.3 times more. Therefore, eating boiled pasta every day will lead to weight gain, even if the pasta is cooked al dente. However, if you cook pasta at least every other day, adding a significant portion of vegetables or mushrooms to it, such pasta dishes can quite brighten up any diet.

How to eat empty pasta

There are few dishes tastier than empty pasta with sweet tea. For a bite - bread, and here it doesn’t matter what kind: white, black or Borodinsky will work equally well. For a colorful taste, you can add soy sauce.

About the choice of pasta

1. Pasta should be visible and preferably along its entire length. It is the transparent packaging that will allow you to see the care and precision with which the product was packaged and delivered.
2. The composition of high-quality pasta is only flour and water. Pasta with egg powder will be soft, like noodles, only more mushy.
The highest quality pasta is made from only durum wheat flour (the so-called “group A”), such pasta will definitely indicate that it is pasta and not pasta. Pasta products, although manufacturers do their best to veil the contents, contain cheap glassy wheat (group B) or ordinary baking flour (group B). The grade of pasta is determined only by the content of more or less expensive flour, if the package says “Highest grade” - this is a reason to re-read the composition more carefully.
3. The shelf life of pasta is 1-2 years from the production date. If a shorter period is specified, it is suspicious. If pasta is bought for future use, then the shelf life of the pasta should be as long as possible.
4. Italian pasta is considered the best in the World.

How to make pasta at home

Pasta is a simple product that anyone can make. Pasta is prepared from products that, as a rule, are always available at home. Most likely, you don’t even need to go to the store. Print this page and go to the kitchen. Take yeast-free wheat in flour, knead in water. Knead into the dough, add seasonings, garlic and salt to taste. Roll out the dough and cut it. Let the pasta dry for about 15 minutes. The pasta is ready for cooking. :)

Short notes about cooking pasta, no more than a minute to read

Isn’t it true that the side dish looks attractive if the pasta turns out crumbly after cooking? Although some housewives sometimes have cases when the mass turns into a sticky lump. How to avoid this? You need to know how to cook pasta correctly. This article describes several rules and secrets that will help you prepare the side dish simply and quickly. Tips are also given on how to cook delicious pasta in the microwave or double boiler.

Traditional recipe: cooking in a saucepan

1. Use enough water for cooking. For every hundred grams of product, take about one liter. When cooking, pasta “absorbs” liquid, so you need to take it with some reserve.
2. Make sure the pan is not filled to the very brim. When boiling, the water with pasta begins to boil, so some of it may “escape”, which will lead to the fire on the stove being extinguished. The most suitable would be to use, for example, a four-liter pan for three liters of water and three hundred grams of pasta.
3. Immediately after the water boils, add salt. For one serving you need about a teaspoon.
4. When pouring products into boiling water, you need to know how to cook pasta correctly. Any of them must be stirred immediately to avoid sticking. Spaghetti that does not fit in the pan does not need to be broken into pieces. Just wait a minute or two. And the softened long “twigs” themselves will gradually plunge into boiling water.
5. Once the pasta liquid has returned to a boil, reduce the heat to below medium to ensure moderate and even cooking.
6. Knowing how to cook pasta correctly, you will stir it periodically and it will not stick to the bottom.
7. The lid can be omitted at all or left only slightly covered.
8. Usually the packages indicate how many minutes to cook the pasta. If the recipe does not contain such information, aim for about eight to ten minutes.
9. Place the finished pasta in a colander and let the water drain.
10. You can rinse finished products, but only using hot, but never cold, water.
11. After the water has completely drained, place the pasta in a saucepan and add butter or some sauce.

How to cook pasta in a microwave or double boiler?

This option is most convenient for working women and bachelors. You can also prepare a quick lunch this way while you are in the office and have a microwave oven at hand. Pour pasta into a plate, which is then filled with double the volume of water. You need to salt it right away. Set the timer on the timer (ten minutes) and start cooking. After half the time, turn off the oven, remove the dish and stir, adding butter. The pasta turns out crumbly and appetizing. It’s even easier to use a double boiler, the program of which usually provides different cooking options. Follow the instructions, and you will get not only tasty dishes, but also healthy ones. Bon appetit!

“so that the smallest cook can prepare lunch or dinner for himself, and if necessary, feed the whole family: parents, sister or brother. I will teach you how to cook the simplest dishes that do not require special culinary skills, and if the cooking process fascinates you so much and you want to cook something more complex, for example: then my step-by-step recipes with photos will help you with this. And remember, you can always ask any question that worries you, to which I will try to give a very detailed answer. So, today we cook pasta in a saucepan.

Cooking pasta in a saucepan is very simple, the most important thing is to follow certain rules and observe a strict quantitative ratio of pasta and water: for about 1 liter of water you need 100 g of pasta = half a regular 200 ml glass)! You can safely add a little more water, but a lack of water will cause the pasta to stick together, especially if it is not of particularly good quality.

Ingredients:

• 100 g pasta
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 liter of water
• piece of butter

Inventory:

• saucepan with lid
• spoon
• colander or sieve
• plate

Step-by-step instruction

« How to cook pasta in a saucepan":

Step 1. Prepare pasta, water, vegetable oil, salt and butter.

Step 2. Pour water into the pan, cover with a lid and put it on the fire. Wait for the water to boil.

Step 3. When the water boils, add salt to taste (10 - 12 g per liter of water = one teaspoon) and 1 tablespoon of olive oil (if you don’t have olive oil on hand, any other vegetable oil will do) - this will prevent the pasta from sticking.

Step 4. Place pasta in a saucepan of boiling water. Do not cover the pan with a lid! Stir with a wooden spoon to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom. After adding the pasta, the water will stop boiling. Cover the pan again with a lid so that the water boils again, then remove the lid and reduce the heat, otherwise foam may appear.

Step 5. Cook the pasta for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Alternatively, follow the cooking directions on the package. Manufacturers usually indicate how long it takes to prepare pasta.

Step 6. 2-3 minutes before readiness, taste the pasta on a tooth – it should be soft, without a floury aftertaste. When the pasta is ready, drain it in a colander and rinse with hot boiled water.

Step 7 Artistically stir the pasta on a plate or plates with butter, decorate with sauce, herbs, grated cheese, pieces of meat, cutlets, meatballs - whatever comes to hand, as you wish.

Additional tips:

• Choose pasta only from durum wheat.
• Don’t skimp on water when you cook pasta; excess water can always be drained after cooking, but if you suddenly don’t have enough of it, the pasta will stick together and turn into real porridge!
• Only throw pasta into boiling water.
• Many chefs do not recommend rinsing the pasta with cold water, but rather immediately mixing it with hot sauce or butter.
• Stir the pasta only a couple of times during cooking, otherwise it may simply fall apart and lose its shape.

Below I indicate the approximate cooking time for various pasta products:

• horns – 10-15 minutes
• penne (tubules) – 10-15 minutes
• fettuccine – 10 minutes
• farfalle (bows) – 10 minutes
• ravioli – 3-7 minutes
• noodles - 5-7 minutes

Bon appetit!