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How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

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Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#11

Post by tptacek »

jcomis wrote: post #4

Crazy, I have been experimenting with this very thing since I read about creating alkaline noodles. The texture is not exactly optimal (more chewy/stretchy), at least compared to traditional. Also tried adding small amounts of baked soda to typical home made pasta dough base, with less success (tastes different). Also inspired me to add semolina flour to my ramen noodles rather than AP which I love.

American alkalized noodles are also a hobbyhorse of Dave Arnold's; another reason to listen to his (amazing) Cooking Issues podcast, which is amazing and people should listen to it, because it's amazing.

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#12

Post by attackcrow »

tptacek wrote: post #11
jcomis wrote: post #4

Crazy, I have been experimenting with this very thing since I read about creating alkaline noodles. The texture is not exactly optimal (more chewy/stretchy), at least compared to traditional. Also tried adding small amounts of baked soda to typical home made pasta dough base, with less success (tastes different). Also inspired me to add semolina flour to my ramen noodles rather than AP which I love.

American alkalized noodles are also a hobbyhorse of Dave Arnold's; another reason to listen to his (amazing) Cooking Issues podcast, which is amazing and people should listen to it, because it's amazing.

Can you recommend some episodes to start with?

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#13

Post by tptacek »

attackcrow wrote: post #12
tptacek wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

American alkalized noodles are also a hobbyhorse of Dave Arnold's; another reason to listen to his (amazing) Cooking Issues podcast, which is amazing and people should listen to it, because it's amazing.

Can you recommend some episodes to start with?

You can pick them at random; it's a call-in show. The ones with Harold McGee are particularly good.

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#14

Post by heydenberk »

attackcrow wrote: post #12
tptacek wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

American alkalized noodles are also a hobbyhorse of Dave Arnold's; another reason to listen to his (amazing) Cooking Issues podcast, which is amazing and people should listen to it, because it's amazing.

Can you recommend some episodes to start with?

Not the parent, but I'd recommend listening to whatever recent episode, in a less intentional, more ambient way. It uses a talk show format, and while it's full of fascinating information, it's very casual and unstructured.

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#15

Post by [deleted] »

ZoFreX wrote: post #3
tptacek wrote: post #2

To me, this feels like part of a cooking change we'll remember in 20 years. We were all taught to cook dry pasta in a giant pot full of boiling salted water, the more water the better. No! Not optimal! A trivially simple change fundamentally alters the process for the better: soak the pasta in cold water for a couple hours (as far in advance as you like, for convenience). The pasta rehydrates and takes on the texture…

Have you tried this yet? How does the end result compare to forking over the extra $ for fresh pasta rather than dried? Between this tip and the baking pasta one, my girlfriend is going to look at me very oddly next time I cook pasta.

[deleted]

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#16

Post by wiredfool »

tptacek wrote: post #2

To me, this feels like part of a cooking change we'll remember in 20 years. We were all taught to cook dry pasta in a giant pot full of boiling salted water, the more water the better. No! Not optimal! A trivially simple change fundamentally alters the process for the better: soak the pasta in cold water for a couple hours (as far in advance as you like, for convenience). The pasta rehydrates and takes on the texture…

One thing I like doing with pasta: cook in minimal water like rice. Especially with something like orzo, I'll brown it in olive oil, then put in ~1qt of water/pound of orzo and cook till it's all absorbed. Maybe add a little salt and basil while cooking.

The kids just love it.

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#17

Post by SixSigma »

ZoFreX wrote: post #3
tptacek wrote: post #2

To me, this feels like part of a cooking change we'll remember in 20 years. We were all taught to cook dry pasta in a giant pot full of boiling salted water, the more water the better. No! Not optimal! A trivially simple change fundamentally alters the process for the better: soak the pasta in cold water for a couple hours (as far in advance as you like, for convenience). The pasta rehydrates and takes on the texture…

Have you tried this yet? How does the end result compare to forking over the extra $ for fresh pasta rather than dried? Between this tip and the baking pasta one, my girlfriend is going to look at me very oddly next time I cook pasta.

> How does the end result compare to forking over the extra $ for fresh pasta rather than dried?

Why not just make your own fresh pasta, it's not that hard!

I have an attachment for my food mixer - so all I have to do is put my dry flour in the mixing bowl until the gluten is developed and then feed it through the pasta rollers.

$200 gets you a dedicated machine

http://www.pasta-recipes-made-easy.com/electric-pasta-machin...

or even cheaper

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDImZ493V3U

Watch Gordon Ramsay do it by hand

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VzXH3o88mw

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#18

Post by tptacek »

wiredfool wrote: post #16
tptacek wrote: post #2

To me, this feels like part of a cooking change we'll remember in 20 years. We were all taught to cook dry pasta in a giant pot full of boiling salted water, the more water the better. No! Not optimal! A trivially simple change fundamentally alters the process for the better: soak the pasta in cold water for a couple hours (as far in advance as you like, for convenience). The pasta rehydrates and takes on the texture…

One thing I like doing with pasta: cook in minimal water like rice. Especially with something like orzo, I'll brown it in olive oil, then put in ~1qt of water/pound of orzo and cook till it's all absorbed. Maybe add a little salt and basil while cooking. The kids just love it.

I'm friendly with a really awesome chef-turned-butcher in Chicago (Rob from Butcher and Larder) and when I posted this to my Facebook feed, he PM'd "while you're on your unconventional pasta cooking trip- get a small shape and cook it like risotto: sweat onion, garlic, etc. Add pasta and coat. Add wine and stir. Add stock cup by cup as per risotto."

Cooking pasta in minimal water is in the Ideas cookbook (again amazing buy strongest possible recommend).

To me, the huge shift is going to be decoupling rehydration from heating. It's more convenient, produces more consistent results, and opens up a lot of possibilities, like flavoring and alkalizing.

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#19

Post by tptacek »

SixSigma wrote: post #17
ZoFreX wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you tried this yet? How does the end result compare to forking over the extra $ for fresh pasta rather than dried? Between this tip and the baking pasta one, my girlfriend is going to look at me very oddly next time I cook pasta.

> How does the end result compare to forking over the extra $ for fresh pasta rather than dried? Why not just make your own fresh pasta, it's not that hard! I have an attachment for my food mixer - so all I have to do is put my dry flour in the mixing bowl until the gluten is developed and then feed it through the pasta rollers. $200 gets you a dedicated machine http://www.pasta-recipes-made-easy.com/electric-pasta-m…

Because it's really messy, involves a lot of counter space, takes a fair amount of extra time, and isn't shelf stable.

Making your own pasta is a great idea. Also delicious. But it's like a Sunday afternoon idea.

Turning dried pasta into alkalized ramen-style noodles, though, is something you can set up in 4 minutes on a Tuesday night and then on Thursday when you remember you did that setup have for dinner in 3 minutes of cooking time.

The two cooking techniques just aren't comparable. The point of the Ideas In Food technique isn't to approximate fresh pasta. It's to make a better and more interesting use of dried pasta, which is simply a different product.

Re: How to Ramen-ize Dried Pasta and Rice

#20

Post by jedanbik »

tptacek wrote: post #18
wiredfool wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I like doing with pasta: cook in minimal water like rice. Especially with something like orzo, I'll brown it in olive oil, then put in ~1qt of water/pound of orzo and cook till it's all absorbed. Maybe add a little salt and basil while cooking. The kids just love it.

I'm friendly with a really awesome chef-turned-butcher in Chicago (Rob from Butcher and Larder) and when I posted this to my Facebook feed, he PM'd "while you're on your unconventional pasta cooking trip- get a small shape and cook it like risotto: sweat onion, garlic, etc. Add pasta and coat. Add wine and stir. Add stock cup by cup as per risotto." Cooking pasta in minimal water is in the Ideas cookbook (again amazi…

Got a link to the cookbook? I'd like to check it out.
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