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Boiling elbow macaroni for Macaroni Salad....

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UNCLE JIMMY

UNCLE JIMMY

Just a something I always do when boiling the elbow macaroni.
We always use Mueller's Brand, And.....I noticed if you test the pasta for doneness, it's better to over cook them a little, because the harden up after they are cooled. No

Anyone else find those results? We like them softer than Al-dente, but not at the point that they are mushy soft.
Also, we never rinse the cooked pasta after they are drained. The mayo or sauce does not cling and stick to the pasta if one does that.

bethk

bethk
Admin

I find that the shaped macaroni needs a bit longer than, say, linguini or fettucini. My oracetti (sp?-little ears pasta) always sticks inside each other so I'm constantly standing there stirring it or I get some really hard parts.

Crybaby

Crybaby

UNCLE JIMMY wrote:Just a something I always do when boiling the elbow macaroni.
We always use Mueller's Brand, And.....I noticed if you test the pasta for doneness, it's better to over cook them a little, because the harden up after they are cooled. No

Anyone else find those results?  We like them softer than Al-dente, but not at the point that they are mushy soft.
Also, we never rinse the cooked pasta after they are drained. The mayo or sauce does not cling and stick to the pasta if one does that.

To your first question, Jimmy, I've never noticed cooked elbow mac to harden up after cooking. The only pasta we end up cooking MORE than usual, and even more than the label suggests, is that Garofalo imported dried pasta, as it takes a bit longer to get to al dante than other pasta. I usually end up cooking it 2 or 3 minutes longer than the label recommends, not that I ever went by a pasta's label to determine when it was ready!

As far as rinsing goes, I never rinse pasta for hot dishes and rarely rinse it for pasta salad. I only rinse it when I'm making pasta salad if I've forgotten to undercook it a bit, as when it sits in the colander for a while after draining, I do feel it tends to continue cooking for a bit and I hate overcooked pasta in pasta salad. I often use a spider to get pasta out of the boiling water, too, which helps it cool down a bit faster than draining it into a colander. Plus it keeps me from having to lift a heavy pan of boiling water if I don't feel I'm up to it and Brian is not around.

If you've never tried Garofalo pasta, it's really delicious, especially the pappardelle which of course is wider so the taste just comes through a lot better. You can actually TASTE this pasta as different from others. It actually has a flavor and it's soooo good. I used to order in online but now thank goodness, our local grocery carries it in lots of styles of pasta, as it's become really expensive online. Brian and I flipped out the first time I bought it (I couldn't find pappardelle and so decided to order it online and saw the imported Garofalo and figured I'd try it, as it was reasonably priced for being imported). It actually tastes like something besides just a vessel for a sauce -- it's especially good with a pot roast or a bolognese sauce as it's flavor really comes through.

UNCLE JIMMY

UNCLE JIMMY

Crybaby wrote:
UNCLE JIMMY wrote:Just a something I always do when boiling the elbow macaroni.
We always use Mueller's Brand, And.....I noticed if you test the pasta for doneness, it's better to over cook them a little, because the harden up after they are cooled. No

Anyone else find those results?  We like them softer than Al-dente, but not at the point that they are mushy soft.
Also, we never rinse the cooked pasta after they are drained. The mayo or sauce does not cling and stick to the pasta if one does that.

To your first question, Jimmy, I've never noticed cooked elbow mac to harden up after cooking.  The only pasta we end up cooking MORE than usual, and even more than the label suggests, is that Garofalo imported dried pasta, as it takes a bit longer to get to al dante than other pasta. I usually end up cooking it 2 or 3 minutes longer than the label recommends, not that I ever went by a pasta's label to determine when it was ready!  

As far as rinsing goes, I never rinse pasta for hot dishes and rarely rinse it for pasta salad. I only rinse it when I'm making pasta salad if I've forgotten to undercook it a bit, as when it sits in the colander for a while after draining, I do feel it tends to continue cooking for a bit and I hate overcooked pasta in pasta salad. I often use a spider to get pasta out of the boiling water, too, which helps it cool down a bit faster than draining it into a colander. Plus it keeps me from having to lift a heavy pan of boiling water if I don't feel I'm up to it and Brian is not around.

If you've never tried Garofalo pasta, it's really delicious, especially the pappardelle which of course is wider so the taste just comes through a lot better.  You can actually TASTE this pasta as different from others. It actually has a flavor and it's soooo good.  I used to order in online but now thank goodness, our local grocery carries it in lots of styles of pasta, as it's become really expensive online.  Brian and I flipped out the first time I bought it (I couldn't find pappardelle and so decided to order it online and saw the imported Garofalo and figured I'd try it, as it was reasonably priced for being imported).  It actually tastes like something besides just a vessel for a sauce -- it's especially good with a pot roast or a bolognese sauce as it's flavor really comes through.  

Going to have to try that Garofalo brand. Sounds Good!

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