Thursday,
May 24, 2007
You Thought You Knew about Pasta?
The
ANNOTICO Report
In
Why
doesn't that amount of consumption result in obesity ,
which is rare in
What
is the best type of Flour to use?
What
is the second most important ingredient?
What
part do the Bronze Die play?
Must
the dough move slowly or quickly through the Dies?
Is
"Al dente" for Taste or Health?
Does pasta
shape effect flavor? Require different sauce?
How
many different pasta shapes and sizes are there?
Etc....
By
Joan Leotta
Wed,
May. 23, 2007
Gurus of
low-carbohydrate diets often place pasta on the list of foods to be avoided,
but pasta can be an important part of a tasty, healthful diet.
In
Many chefs and
much anecdotal evidence suggest that Italians are concerned about the quality
of their food and consume less at one sitting than Americans do - of pasta and
everything else.
In fact, one
could say that
Choosing the best
pasta, cooking it correctly, and savoring it in small amounts with healthful
sauces are a part of how Italians make pasta a delicious and healthful choice
for mealtimes any day of the week.
Pasta
perfection
My husband and I
were privileged on a recent trip to
Pasta perfection
starts with the ingredients in the pasta itself. In
Water is an
important ingredient in making pasta, and most large and small premium pasta
companies are proud of their water source, especially those in the Abruzzi
region where the factories of DeCecco, DelVerde and smaller makers like Rustichella
D'Abruzzo obtain their water from the clear mountain
streams.
Most Italian
pasta makers also offer pasta made from organically grown grain or from farro (an ancient grain popular in today's Italian cooking)
and premium pastas, such as Rustichella's Primo Grano, which features durum semolina from grain grown in
the Abruzzo region. For those with wheat allergies,
many Italian pasta makers now offer wheat-free, gluten-free alternatives such
as rice flour pasta.
Production
affects quality
The kinds of dies
used to stamp out the shape of the pasta affect its taste and quality. The best
dry pastas are cut with bronze dyes and dried slowly, resulting in a wonderful
flavor. Pasta cut with Teflon dyes is so smooth that it has no surface ridges
or nooks to hold sauce.
Large pasta
companies, even those that use bronze dies, still push the pasta through quickly.
Small companies such as Rustichella D'Abruzzo move the dough more slowly to preserve the
important glutens in the pasta.
"We make one
lot at a time," said one Rustichella manager.
"We make in a year what some other of the larger firms make in one day."
Also at Rustichella, pasta dries for 24 to 56 hours. At large firms
it's common to quick-dry pasta under high heat. Slow drying prevents the pasta
from becoming brittle and preserves the nutritional value, according to the
company.
Cooking
for health
Italians are
adamant that another important factor in healthy eating is the way the pasta is
cooked. Al dente, which literally means to the tooth, refers to cooking pasta
only until it is firm - never soft or mushy.
According to an
exhibit in the
The
shape of flavor
Each pasta shape
(even in the same brand) has a distinct flavor and works differently with
sauce. Estimates are that there are 300-600 different pasta shapes and sizes.
Learning to match the shape and size of a pasta with
the sauce that works best with that shape can take a lifetime of luscious
learning.
While it is
obvious that in a pasta course the heavy hitter in calories and fat is the
sauce, Americans often are hesitant to move beyond the idea of a red or white
sauce to "dress" pasta. Try a saute of
spring vegetables (in olive oil), or perhaps place some sliced fresh tomatoes
in a saute pan with a bit of basil, add grated
pecorino cheese to taste and stir in almost-cooked orechiette
pasta. Presto - you have a spring dish that graces the menu of one of our
favorite restaurants in
In general tiny
pasta bits (stelline, acine
di pepe, orzo) are used in
soups or made into a side dish. Small pastas such as ditaline
are often used with beans. Most pairings are a matter of regional tradition and
personal taste.
Those
new to deciding which shape pasta to use with which sauce or condiment might
want to consult "Everyday Pasta" by Giada
De Laurentiis. Also, the package of many types of pasta
often suggest preparations that go well with that type or cut of pasta.
Eat
less, enjoy more
To make pasta a
part of a regular healthy diet, the amount eaten at one sitting should be small
- 3-4 ounces (dry measure). Eat a salad along with it and then perhaps a light
protein (small portions of both of those as well).
End the meal with
a simple cup of coffee or with fruit. Eating less at a time, savoring each bite
and lingering over a meal to have good conversation are habits that permeate
Italian culture and contribute to good digestion and, therefore, good health.
Try
a premium pasta
Consider moving
from the $1.50 box of pasta with 100 percent durum semolina to the specialty
dry pastas that can cost from $4 to $9 a bag. Why should you bother to search
these out on the internet or specialty stores? Even better
taste.
Giancarlo D'Annibale of Rustichella said
people in the
"It's a
matter of educating the public to the differences in taste and quality,"
he said.
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