Spoon Rests! What A Totally Superflous Kitchen Item!

[icyfroth]

I often see them in the op shops and think pffft, what a useless item. As if you couldn't use a saucer or whatever you have at hand while you're cooking. Making bolognese tonight I just rested the spoon on the side of the can.

[lurker172602]

Nooooo! No oil! As long as the saucepan is big enough and the water is boiling vigorously the pasta won't stick and there is no need for oil.

[j*oono]

It's a common misbelief that adding oil to the water stops the pasta from sticking.  As you say Lurker, it just needs plenty of boiling water, salt and a good stir when the pasta is first added.

Adding oil will just leave a slick on the pasta when it's drained, which is not what you want when adding a sauce.

[debra9275]

adding oil to the water doesn't work for me either

[amber-eyed-girl]

Oil interferes with the action of the natural starches and makes pasta slick. No oil. 

The starches bind to the sauces.

but I do rinse pasta and have no problem with sauce run-off unless there was also oil. Tried it once, not again though.

A quick rinse leaves enough starch.

never used a spoon rest

[*crikey*mate*]

hmmmm

oil in pasta water...

When you drop your pasta into the pot of water on a rolling boil, the starch granules on the surface of the pasta, instantly swell, expand and then pop, releasing the starch into the water and causing the pasta to stick, particularly if it was not added to a rolling boil or stirred in the firast few minutes. This is when the pasta clumps and deteriorates.

You may also notice that often, even when you add your pasta to water on a rolling boil, when you add the pasta, the water comes off the boil thus stopping the movement of the pasta which also leads to clumping.

The oil also serves to prevent a raft from forming on the water surface which is why pasta water often boils over

worried about flavour absorption? make fresh pasta not the dried packet stuff. make your own so that the flavour is in the pasta. The sauce is generally supposed to accompany the pasta, not invade it.

additionally, the inclusion of salt will help to countbalance any of these flavour absorption affects as the salt will absorb flavour as it enters the starch molecules that "pop" (think of it like a pimple errupting)

as for preventing the sauce from coating the pasta - ROFL you are only using 1/2 tbs per litre, you're not using enough oil that would make the US want to invade the pot!

Fresh pasta already has oil incorporated into the pasta, whereas dehydrated/dried pasta, it has largely been compromised

but anyway - back to spoons.

[mtnlane]

This video might assist those still in doubt:

The Barilla instructions might also assist those who are cooking dried pasta as opposed to freshly made pasta 

http://www.barilla.com/content/howto/how-cook-pasta

[mtnlane]

Oh ....... and I use an old ashtray as a spoon rest 

[lloydslights]

DEB

[lloydslights]

So can I assume from the varying thoughts, that packet spaghetti should not be boiled with oil? And that fresh should be cooked with oil?

Actually, had packet spag last night; I admit to putting a slurp of oil in.  But I don't use salt.  And I forgot to put the exhaust fan on and the windows misted up.  So I wiped them over with my Vileda window cloth.

Sat down to a satisfying repast  with bread to "mop up". Then had to soak the tablecloth because it got spotted with sauce.

All round, an exciting night

DEB

[mtnlane]

---

@mtnlane wrote:

Oh ....... and I use an old ashtray as a spoon rest 

---

See?