Conference turris::cooks

 I always rinse my pasta after cooking. It reduces the amount of starch therein.

 I always use HOT water (I don't care for cold pasta).

 The Doctah

    When I was little (and picking up cooking tips from my mom),
    she always said to rinse the pasta in warm water and drain
    thoroughly. But now, I just drain...no rinsing. I seem to
    have heard that spaghetti sauce "clings" better to unrinsed
    pasta, thus making the dish less watery.
    

Rule of thumb I use:

If the pasta is for salad - rinse in cold water to stop the cooking...no
mushy pasta salad this way.

If the pasta is for a thick sauce - rinse once, quickly, in hot water,
drain and sauce immediately.

If the pasta is for meatless sauce or butter or other thin sauce, don't
rinse; simply drain and sauce immediately.

You rinse to make your sauce cling less and/or to stop cooking.  It isn't
necessary, really, except when making a pasta salad (my opinion) - I HATE
mushy pasta salad

    I've been watching a new series on television called the Travlin
    Grourmet with Mike Kalina.  One of the shows was taped in beautiful
    Italy - I loved it there.  He said the Italians never rinse the
    pasta.  They use a rake to remove it from the water so that 
    some of the water even stays on.  This keeps it from being dry or
    drying out.  He made a Fettucini Alfredo that looked great.
                    
    FWIW
    
    Flo

    I thought the rinse was to remove a bit of the starch and keep the
    pasta from sticking together -- especially important if it does not
    all get served right away or tossed into a salad or sauce.
    
    In the small custom cookbooks that groups do for fund raisers, the
    cookbook company adds a few pages of helpful hints and measure
    conversions.  One of those hints is a line that says to rinse your
    pasta to prevent sticking.
    
    ed

    I only rinse lasagna noodles in cold water so that I can handle
    them without burning my fingers.
    
    Pasta won't stick together if you put your sauce on it right
    away.
    
    Linda
    Who sauces instead of rinses
    

    I have a friend who always cooks her pasta with a couple of tablespoons
    of oil in the water and she swears her pasta never sticks.  I have
    never tried it, but I never rinse except for pasta salad also.

    Since we're discussing pasta, does anyone add butter to their
    pasta before putting the sauce on?  My husband does this, and
    when I asked him why, his response was "because that's the way
    my mother always did it".
    
    I can't tell the difference one way or the other, so I never
    add it.  Just wondering.
    
    Gail

Aside from rinsing to cool the pasta (to stop cooking or handling), what
could you possibly be rinsing off?  I cook my pasta in large quantities of cold
tap water brought to a boil.  When I drain it, the water drains out.  Somehow  I
can't imagine that any more water would make a difference.  Besides, hot tap 
water usually has all that boiler scum in it that makes it undesirable to use
for cooking pasta in the first place.

The true secret to pasta not sticking is LARGE quantities of water.  Salt has no
appreciable affect on it (yeah I know, it raises the boiling point and blah-
blah-blah, but tell me something I can see).  Oil helps unwatched pasta to keep
from foaming over, but I watch it instead.

    I believe oil also stops the sauce from sticking to the pasta.
    
    
    Flo

    
    Well, I feel obligated to add my .02 to the discussion at hand.
    
    I've tried the oil to the boiling water trick, and that seems to
    help prevent it from sticking.
    
    The butter on the spaghetti before sauce, well it does add a different
    flavor, but it also adds all them calories and arterial plaque - 
    better off without it :^)
    
    I always thought that you rinsed spaghetti merely to rinse off
    any excess starch or to cool it down a trifle, come to think of 
    it, none of those sound like very good reasons.
    
    As someone mentioned earlier, I think the best way is to mix a 
    little sauce in with the spaghetti, I've found that method works
    great.  If you're serving the spaghetti with something OTHER than
    a tomato sauce, then adding a little olive oil to the pan and stirring
    in the drained spaghetti to coat is effective in keeping the spaghetti
    from turning into the blob.
    
    Regards, Larry

         Once, when dinner was delayed for reasons beyond my control, the
    pasta in the collander had become cold and clumped together.  Rinsing
    it with boiling water did the job of unclumping and reheating the
    pasta.  If I had left it in the original cooking water rather than the
    collander, I would have had mush.
    
         Preferring not to add butter or oil, I've found that a good rinsing 
    does indeed help keep the stuff from sticking together in normal
    situations, too.
    
                                          Greg  

    Here's my tuppence worth.
    
    I always rinse my pasta and rice with a kettle full of boiling water,
    a.  because it rinses out the last of the starch,
    b.  because it stops both rice and pasta from sticking together,
        therefore making the handling for display purposes easier.
    And c.  because if you happend to drain it off, go and leave for
    a few minutes, as said before it's a good way to reheat - without
    it drying out and loosing the texture.
    
    
    Regards
    Tracy
    
    p.s.  As a by the way, I'm making Zabaglioni tomorrow night (it's
    my first time) and I have tried all the Off-licenes (liqour stores)
    in our town and none has any Marsala.  Can anyone reccommend an
    alternative or should I just make something else???
    
    

    I don't know if frugal Jeff Smith rinses his pasta or not but what
    he does, if it will be a while before he is able to use it is to
    let it sit in cold water - so it won't continue to cook or stick
    together.  When he is ready to use he puts pasta into boiling water
    to heat.  No sticky or mushy pasta.

    RE: .8 (butter)
    
    When I was little I used to eat my spaghetti with butter and sprinkled
    parmesan or romano cheese instead of sauce sometimes.  Yum.
    
    I also rinse my pasta.........
    
    Cara
    

Adding oil to the water while cooking pasta stops the pot from boiling over.
When the water is drained off, the oil disappears from the pot before it gets
to the pasta, it's lighter than water, so the pasta gets no oil on it.

Adding butter before adding sauce - I've met several people who do it...
but it isn't the "traditional" way I learned...I learned from NYC Italians,
and they always tossed the pasta with a tablespoon or two of olive oil
before adding sauce - but they added olive oil to everything...I don't
add oil unless it's THE sauce (as in fettucine with olive oil, walnuts,
chopped broccoli, and fresh grated parmesan - just like it sounds with
lots of fresh garlic lightly sauteed in the oil).

An old trick Mr. Manicone taught me for cooking the dried pasta you
buy in the store:

Bring a giant pot of water to a boil.  Add pasta, stir, and then add
3 tablespoons oil "to keep the water from boiling over".  Boil for
3 minutes.  Turn off the heat. Cover the pot with a tight fitting
lid and leave for 10 - 12 minutes.  Drain.  Put pasta into a pot of
cold water if you don't want to use it right away.  It will stay
just fine for hours.  When you are ready to serve, place pasta in
a colander and put into pot of boiling water for 2 minutes - just
until it is hot.  drain.  serve with favorite sauce.  This is the
way she fed a large family with different work shifts.  Whoever
came in heated just what they wanted to eat.  Everyone's dinner
tasted "just made".

   I don't rinse per se...

But when cooked take the pot form the stove place in the sink and
run cold water into the pot.

It makes all the starch rise to the top, I then pour that off before
draining the pasta in the colander.

/joe

BTW - Was told an interesting way of testing for "doneness" by a 
      New Zealander(bout 12yrs ago)....
	take the noodle and throw against the refrigerator...
	    if it sticks, it's done.... ;)

The base note and the replies have piqued my curiosity.

In the Italian neighborhood in Denver in which I grew up, the custom
was not to rinse -- and nobody ever ate cold pasta in that neighborhood!
Water had salt in it, but I don't remember oil.  I learned that later
from Italian friends in the Air Force, and the idea was to prevent
sticking or so I was led to believe.

With cold pasta salads in vogue, when I rinse now it's for the intent of
making a cold pasta dish -- naturally I use cold water.

But what the hey does this guy know?  Here's what the 'experts' have to 
say about it:

James Beard, in Beard On Pasta, New York: Knopf, 1983:
                --------------

	"As for rinsing, I know that some books tell you to rinse the drained
	pasta under cold water to get rid of the starch.  All that does is
	cool off your noodles, and I think it's a damned silly idea.  Should
	you rinse with hot tap water?  Frankly I don't rinse the noodles at 
	all, letting the volume of boiling water that pours over them from
	the pot carry away enything that shouldn't be there.  But, if they
	should stick, then go ahead and rinse.  Just use very hot water."

Sophia Loren (yes, I bought the book for the pictures), in her book, 
In the Kitchen with Love, (In Cucina con Amore), NY: Doubleday, 1971:

	"The Eight Commandments for Cooking Pastasciutta:

	"...I would like to put together a number of important rules about the
	correct way of cooking pasta.  They are all extraordinarily simple
	operations, but you must observe them to the letter if you want ideal
	results.

	First of all, make sure that you have good-quality pasta made from
	hard-grain flour.  This is very important, not only as regards the
	flavor but also because you will never succeed in cooking poor-quality
	pasta the way it ought to be.  Pasta made of hard-grain flour cooks
	consistently all the way through; other qualities do not.  Here are
	the rules that I want to suggest to you:

	(1)	You need to have a large pot with plenty of hot water in
	proportion to the amount of vermicelli or spaghetti, so that each
	string of pasta will cook separately and is free in the water 
	without clustering.

	(2)	The water must be boiling, on a high flame.  When it is
	almost at the boiling point (in Naples we say 'when the water
	trembles') you throw in a handful of salt.  But not too much.  The
	water should be only slightly salty.  The reason for adding the salt
	at this point is to increase the violence of the boiling.

	(3)	Immediately after, you put in the pasta and turn up the flame.
	This double onslaught of heat from the salt and the heightening of 
	the flame is an old secret of Neapolitan women; it compensates for
	the lowering of the temperature of the water when the pasta is added.

	(4)	As you put in the pasta, spread it out as much as possible,
	the moment you have increased the heat.

	(5)	Keep a careful eye on the cooking, and in the meantime have
	a large colander (Beard suggests the circular stand type over the
	three-legged ones -- having lost a noodle or two (no wisecracks
	appreciated at this point), I now use a circular based colander)
	to drain off the water.  Don't forget that cooking time varies ac-
	cording to: the quality of the pasta, the composition of the water,
	the season of the year, and even the height above sea level.  The
	only way to know whether or not the pasta is ready, is to taste a 
	piece.  When you feel that there is no longer any trace of rawness,
	even if it is still firm, have no further hesitation.  It is now ready 
	to be drained; with a little practice it will take you no time to 
	judge when to stop the cooking.  A few extraordinary people are even
	able to see when the pasta is ready by looking at it.  (But take grim
	warning:  because when pasta starts to disintegrate on the outside
	while the inside is still hard, it means that it is not of good 
	quality.)  Another warning on the same subject: don't pay too much
	attention to the cooking time printed on the packet by the manufac-
	turers.  Very often this is dictated more by a desire to appeal to 
	average international taste which still is inclined to judge spaghetti
	by the tinned product, than by a correct estimate for al dente.

	(6)	Another little secret: before draining the pasta, pour a
	teaspoon of olive oil into the pot.  It will make the pasta more
	mobile, which will make it easier to mix with the sauce.

	(7)	Pour the pasta straight into the colander, which you must
	shake vigorously to drain off the water, to the very last drop.
	Two problems emerge if any water remains:  firstly the pasta con-
	tinues to cook and tastes soft and floury; and, secondly, the water
	dilutes the sauce and ruins the flavor.  If you give the pasta a
	good shaking, both these misfortunes can be avoided.  It is not
	necessary, as some people do, to pour cold water over the pasta to
	stop it from cooking.

	(8)	Waste no time putting the pasta into the serving bowl and
	adding the sauce.  It should be brought to the table steaming hot."

Well, the note, replies, writing this -- Sophia's photos -- have inspired me
to concoct the following:

	Pkg of spinach linguini -- I've had great luck with Delverde brand
        Salt and olive oil         imported from Italy.  Salamone's Mkt in
        A few pats of butter       Maynard and Idylwild Farms in Acton have
	Jar of red lumpfish caviar   this or similar products -- go for pasta
	Freshly grated parmesan      made with durum semolina w/ spinach

Following Sophia's Eight Commandments to the letter, cook the linguini al
dente.  Drain carefully.  Pour onto a heated pasta platter, elongated platter
is a good choice.  Dot quickly with dabs of butter and toss the linguini.  
Pour the caviar down the length of the linguini.  Pour strips of parmesan
across the caviar at right angles.  Very attractive dish -- and so is the
linguini -- in that it has the colors of the Italian flag.

Serve immediately -- a good dry white wine, crusty bread, and a Romano
lettuce salad, cold and crisp, make for a solid and seductive meal.

Enjoy, Bill
 

    
    
    Hello to everyone !!!!
    
    I hope I can still help in answering your question:
                                       
                 You MUST NOT rinse your pasta after cooking
    unless you want to make a salad.
    
    So you should only boil it and when it is cooked you just dump all
    the water and you put it in a dish together with the sauce.
    
    Hope I made myself clear enough, but feel free to ask more questions
    on italian food and cooking....I am Italian !!!!
    
    Ciao,
    		paola

    I don't think it's "to get rid of the starch" but to get rid of the
    surface starch.  Just look at the pot after it dries if you don't rinse
    it, there will be a white film.  I am told that that is also starch.
    
    ed

    I took an Italian cooking class and the instructor who was a
    professional cook told us that boxed pasta should be rinsed with 
    hot water to remove the excess starch.  However fresh pasta does not
    need to be rinsed.  In both cases, oil should be added to the water prior 
    to boiling to prevent sticking.
    
    - cathy

    I rinse my pasta and also any rices.
    
    --- Gavin

    Cathy, I agree with rinsing boxed pasta, never rinse fresh.
    I don't add oil to the pan, because the sauce doesn't stick
    to the pasta well.  A good rolling boil and a little stirring
    prevents most of the sticking problems.
    
    
    Michael   
    

    Hmmm, the reasoning I've heard for adding a drop or two of oil to pasta
    was to reduce/eliminate foaming of the pasta, or to insure that the
    pasta doesn't stick once it's drained.  Most times I'm just too lazy to
    mess with it :).
    
    --- Gavin

    If you use a large pot with lots of water,  you don't have to rinse the
    pasta the starch only builds up if you don't have enough water.  Re -2
    I agree about the oil and rinsing the pasta the sauce dosen't that
    well.   If you are adding salt to the water, do it only right before 
    you add the pasta, as it can cause a reaction with the pot.  I always
    spinkle the pasta with a little cheese before I add the sauce.
    
    -marc
    

>>    If you are adding salt to the water, do it only right before 
>>    you add the pasta, as it can cause a reaction with the pot.  

    Could you elaborate? Are you saying that just salt and water
    can damage the pot, and are you hence trying to minimize the time 
    there's salt in there? If so, wouldn't that apply to boiling anything
    with salt, not just pasta: vegetables, for instance?

    I guess I'm the only one who sprinkles cooked pasta with coarsely
    ground black peppercorns before adding the sauce, then...

	Robert

    Sorry, it been awhile since I been in the Cooks notesfile.  I read
    somewhere a long time ago that when boiling anything in metal pans that
    you should only add salt at the last minute before you add pasta or
    veggies since it can add to the leaching of metals from the pot. 
    
    Like Nickel from Stainless Steel and Aluminum from Aluminum etc..
    These types of metals you don't need in your food or on your pasta.
    
    -marc
    

    I use a stainless steel-lined pot and never noticed a color change
    (which would indicate chemical change) when cooking.
    
    I've heard that some high-acid foods, like tomatos, can interact with
    aluminum.  I think they oxidize the surface.  They turn it black.  I
    don't know if this affects the food.
    
    I heard an old-spouses's (nonsexist, right!) tale that cooking
    hardboiled eggs in aluminum will turn the yolks green.  I cook them in
    stainless steel to be on the safe side.
    
    Cooking in iron contributes a small amount of iron to food.  This would
    be a good thing, but I recall reading that this iron is not assimilated
    by the body.

>    I heard an old-spouses's (nonsexist, right!) tale that cooking
>    hardboiled eggs in aluminum will turn the yolks green.  I cook them in
>    stainless steel to be on the safe side.

   Actually, it's cooking them too long that does that.  As soon as the
   egg is cooked, you should cool them at once and this prevents green
   yolks.

   - Jim