A while back I was talking with a friend born and raised in the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy about the set-in-stone cooking rules she has inherited from her ancestors. In particular, the ones that we both have been breaking for a while now: the how to cook pasta rules.
Many chefs around the world consider going against these on the same level of opposing the laws of nature. Under their rule, breaking them could earn any intern a life ban from any kitchen. How dare one not using the exact water to pasta ratio or the right sized pot? Or not cook it over high heat? Why would one add salt and oil before it boils? Inconceivable.
Yet, the following recipe breaks all of these.
I share it because anyone—foodie, busy parent, daft college student— that does not know this method ought to. Because, without exaggerating, it should be your go-to way of cooking your pasta. Either when you’re busy and have little time, or when you cooking abilities are null, or when you want something delicious and easy to make.
Basically, you cook the dry pasta on the same frying pan as everything you want to it, at the same time. It rivals the simplicity of adding Ragu sauce to your cooked noodles, but surpasses the flavour tenfold whilst retaining pasta’s glorious versatility. If you think about the science behind it, it’s brilliant. The pasta will soften, the ingredients will cook, and all of it will absorb the precious starchy water released by the pasta. This will thicken the ingredients together into a sauce with the perfect consistency.
The version I provide is only an example—one deemed successful by an extended group of people who have tried it at my place. Though, as I mentioned previously, this is all about versatility. It’s through your own, simple experimentation with the herbs, veggies, and/or meats you like that you can exploit the full potential of this method.
So without further ado:
Ingredients
- 150 grams spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 500 grams cherry tomatoes
- 50 grams fresh basil leaves
- 50 grams green olives
- 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Water
Directions
- 1Cut the cherry tomatoes and olives in half. Chop the basil leaves into strips. Then put them on a wide pan along with the spaghetti, olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and the Parmigiano-Reggiano.
- 2Add just enough water so that it covers the pasta. Naturally, the quantity varies depending on the size of the pan, but don’t despair if you think you’ve added too little or too much it can be fixed later.
- 3Cook over high heat. After 15 minutes everything should be cooked and ready to serve. If the pasta is still a bit hard, just add a bit more of water and wait a couple minutes. If the sauce is still too runny, set the heat to high for a couple minutes.
