COLUMN: Re-creating a classic spaghetti dish
As college students it’s easy to get stuck in food phases. You find something you like that’s easy to make and make it over and over again. I’ve definitely gotten stuck in a spaghetti phase a few times. All you have to do is boil the noodles, open the can of sauce and dinner is served. What’s not to love? Although this is a convenient dinner, let’s be real: it’s not really that great. With a little tweaking, though, you can make a delicious spaghetti dinner that is as good as anything you can get at a restaurant, and not much harder to make than the original can version.
Three tricks will take your spaghetti over the top. First, save some of the water you boiled the spaghetti noodles in and add it to the sauce. This adds a little starch to your sauce, which gives it some extra body and texture. Second, add a little butter, parmesan cheese or both to the sauce after it’s cooked. This adds a lot of flavor. Last, don’t cook the pasta all the way. Drain it while it’s still got a little crunch left in the middle and let it finish cooking in the simmering sauce. This will help the sauce stick to the noodles, rather than just sitting in a pile on the top them. These three tips aren’t hard, expensive or time consuming and they make all the difference when it comes to a delicious spaghetti dinner.
PASTA AL POMODORA
Serves 4. Total time with prep 45-55 minutes.
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1 (28 ounce) can peeled tomatoes, pureed in a food processor
1 big (or a few small) sprigs of fresh basil leaves
12 ounces dry spaghetti
2 tablespoons cubed unsalted butter
1/4 cup grated or shredded parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat.
Add the minced onion and cook, stirring often, until it becomes soft and clear, about 12 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 2-4 minutes, until it is lightly browned and fragrant.
Add the red pepper flakes and stir 1 minute more.
Add the pureed tomatoes and a few dashes of salt.
Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 20 minutes. My sauce started to splatter while it was cooking, so I put my lid on the skillet at an angle so it wasn’t totally covered. You can do this to prevent splattering.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sprigs of basil leaves and set aside; let sit for 15-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring 3 quarts (12 cups) of water and a generous pinch of salt to boil in a 5-quart pot. Usually I don’t measure the water I boil my pasta in, but since you will be using some of this water later in the recipe I suggest measuring, so it will have the right amount of starch to it.
Add the spaghetti and cook until about 2 minutes before tender. You can either cook it 2 minutes less than the package directions for “al dente,” or just cook it until it’s soft on the outside but still breaks and is white on the inside. Drain the pasta and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water. Set aside.
Returning to the tomato sauce, remove and discard the sprig of basil leaves.
Stir the pasta water into the sauce; bring to a boil. (The sauce will kind of break apart when you first add the pasta water, keep stirring and it will come back together after a few minutes of cooking).
Add the pasta to the sauce and cook, stirring often, until the sauce coats the pasta and the pasta is al dente, about 2-4 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat; add the butter and parmesan cheese and toss until they are totally melted and incorporated.
Serve with more parmesan cheese and chopped fresh basil sprinkled on top.
– jenn.wilson@aggiemail.usu.edu