(Family Features) Next time hunger calls in your home, turn to a filling family favorite: pasta. With a nearly endless variety of pasta types, sauce pairings, and recipe ideas, the options are aplenty, and cooking is often a breeze.
Consider these pasta cooking tips from Rouxbe, an online culinary school training people of all abilities to become better, more confident cooks.
* Use a large, straight-sided pot with 6 quarts of water for every 1 pound of pasta. Bring to a boil, add 1 teaspoon of salt for each quart of water and stir to dissolve.
* Wait for rapidly boiling water before adding pre-made pasta then cook according to package instructions for al dente, which means the pasta offers slight resistance. For stuffed or fresh pasta, aim for a gentle boil and cook for 1-5 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water for use in sauces then drain (never rinse) your pasta.
* Add pasta to your sauce; never the other way around. Pair thin kinds of pasta like angel hair with lighter sauces, seafood, basil, and light oils. Fettucine, penne, and rigatoni complement spicy sausage, heavy creams, and chunky ragu. When in doubt, spaghetti offers a versatile option.
Pasta is a natural fit for fresh veggies, and you can put your skills to the test with Homemade Potato Gnocchi.
For more information, visit rouxbe.com.
Homemade Potato Gnocchi
Total time: 2 hours
Servings: 2-4
2 medium Yukon Gold or russet potatoes
3/4 teaspoon sea salt, divided
2 teaspoons water
1 cup all-purpose flour, divided, plus additional, for surface
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
2 large egg yolks
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place potatoes on a sheet of foil, add 1/2 teaspoon salt and water; wrap. Bake 40 minutes, or until cooked through.
Peel potatoes while hot. Cut and rice potatoes. Let potatoes cool completely.
To make the dough, sprinkle potatoes with flour. Aerate with bench scraper then add remaining salt, nutmeg, and white pepper.
Break up egg yolks and pour over potatoes. Cover surface with flour. Continue cutting and gently lifting dough.
Test the dough by squeezing gently; it shouldn’t stick. Add flour, if needed.
Shape dough into a rectangle and fold several times, using fingertips to bring it together. Flatten the dough out until it reaches finger thickness. Sprinkle with flour and let rest 5-10 minutes.
Cut finger-width strips of dough and sprinkle strips with flour. Roll out each strip and cut ropes into 3/4-inch pieces. Separate slightly and flour well.
Fresh gnocchi can sit at room temperature 30 minutes before cooking.
To freeze: Place gnocchi on a tray, making sure they aren’t touching. Once frozen, transfer to a plastic freezer bag and freeze up to 2 months. Cook gnocchi from frozen and serve with desired sauce.
Source: Rouxbe
