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A Brit's Guide to Pasta

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Oli C
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Oli C

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Join date : 2011-11-10

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PostSubject: A Brit's Guide to Pasta A Brit's Guide to Pasta EmptyMon Sep 09, 2013 6:08 am

People often ask me which pasta goes with which sauce (and when I start to explain some wish they'd kept their mouth shut lol) so in this little series I'll attempt to list some of the more popular varieties together with a typical authentic italian recipe. Although matching the right sauce to the right pasta isn't essential it does make a huge difference. Pasta shapes in Italy are designed very scientifically with very specific sauces in mind to eat them with. Italians are a fickle bunch and the wrong type of pasta with the wrong type of sauce is almost guaranteed to get you dirty looks for the rest of the night!

Today we'll start with...

A Brit's Guide to Pasta 3578234437_87775c49d6

First let me dispel a myth. Marco Polo did not introduce Spaghetti to Italy after discovering noodles in China. The fact is that pasta had already existed in Europe for a very long time before that. A fourth century B.C. Etruscan tomb has a bas-relief carving of a group of natives making what appears to be pasta. Pasta in Italy is a very very long tradition!

Spaghetti, traditionally, is never eaten with a Bolognese sauce. This is a relatively new British pairing of the two. Ask for Spaghetti Bolognese in a Trattoria in Italy and expect to see the waiter snigger and make a comment along the lines of bloody tourists. The reason a Bolognese sauce is never eaten with spaghetti is because the pasta does not hold the little bits of mincemeat very well. How often have you eaten your spaghetti Bolognese only to have a bowl full of mince at the end?

Spaghetti should be eaten with a very thin sauce that can coat each strand individually. Examples of this are spaghetti a olio e aglio e pepperoncini (spagetti with olive oil, garlic and chilli flakes), spaghetti carbonara (authentic carbonara uses no cream) and spaghetti napolitana (spaghetti with a fresh basil and tomato sauce.

Spaghetti a olio e aglio
(serves 4 as a starter)

Ingredients

1 packet good quality spaghetti
2 crushed cloves of garlic
Extra virgin oil
Crushed chilli flakes
Grated Parmesan or Pecorino
Salt & Pepper
Chopped parsley to garnish

Method

Cook the spaghetti in a large saucepan of salted boiling water according to the packet instructions.

About 4 minutes before the pasta is ready, heat roughly 100 ml of olive oil in a large frying pan and sauté the garlic and chilli. When the garlic turns golden-brown, add ½ cup of hot pasta water to stop the garlic cooking any further. Remove from the heat while you drain the pasta.

Return the pan to high heat and add the pasta, parsley and a little more olive oil. Keep tossing the pasta. The pasta water and oil will emulsify, thickening and coating the spaghetti. Season to taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle with parmesan or pecorino cheese.

A Brit's Guide to Pasta Spaghe10



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Oli C
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Oli C

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PostSubject: Re: A Brit's Guide to Pasta A Brit's Guide to Pasta EmptyMon Sep 09, 2013 7:49 am

Next up is a favourite of mine..linguine. (pron. lin-gween-e)

A Brit's Guide to Pasta Linguine

I call this mafia pasta because in all the mafia films you always seem them tucking into a big bowl of linguine before going out to do a "hit" lol. Like spaghetti these are long and thin but instead of being circular they are flat. They tend to be eaten with the same sauces as spaghetti so it really comes down to personal preference. Fish based sauces like a marinara also work very well.

Linguine a la Napolitana
(serves 4 as a starter)

Ingredients

1 packet good quality linguine
2 crushed cloves garlic
2 tins peeled plum tomatoes
Salt & Pepper
Grated Pecorino/Parmesan cheese
Fresh basil
Extra Virgin olive oil

Method

Empty the tins of tomatoes into a large glass bowl. Use a potato masher to break down the tomatoes to a thick pulp. Add a little olive oil to a large saucepan on a high heat. Flash fry two cloves of crushed garlic and as soon as the garlic begins to brown add the tomatoes immediately. It is very important not to burn the garlic as this will give the final sauce a very bitter aftertaste.

Add salt and pepper to taste to the sauce, add 3/4 basil leaves, lower heat and partially cover, then allow to simmer gently for 20 mins stirring occasionally.

Cook the linguine as per the packet instructions, drain, and return to saucepan.

Sauce the pasta! This means add a few tablespoons of sauce to the pasta and mix it while in the saucepan before plating. Once plated add more sauce on top, sprinkle with cheese. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

A Brit's Guide to Pasta Dsc_0310


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Storm
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PostSubject: Re: A Brit's Guide to Pasta A Brit's Guide to Pasta EmptyMon Sep 09, 2013 8:22 pm

Lovely Oli...going to make those for sure :-) You are a good little wop for sharing :-)
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Oli C
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Oli C

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PostSubject: Re: A Brit's Guide to Pasta A Brit's Guide to Pasta EmptyTue Sep 10, 2013 3:35 am

My intentions are purely selfish. Pisses me off when people get it wrong lol
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Oli C
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Oli C

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PostSubject: Re: A Brit's Guide to Pasta A Brit's Guide to Pasta EmptyTue Sep 10, 2013 3:37 am

Later on I'll do fettucine carbonara and tagliatelle...bolognese!! Yes! That's right...a PROPER bolognese sauce. None of this Dolmio Day malarky!
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Storm
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Storm

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PostSubject: Re: A Brit's Guide to Pasta A Brit's Guide to Pasta EmptyWed Sep 11, 2013 5:56 pm

LOL...You sound like an Italian Mama :-) It's good to know the proper way though x
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