Pasta expands to fill all available space... - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: SilverSolder
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 09, 2021, 05:52:57 pm
content: It seems I keep discovering some basic law of physics whenever I add pasta to a dish (e.g. chicken noodle soup, to start with something simple).No matter how little pasta I feel I am adding, it always seems to end up taking over the pot, especially if it stands around for a few days...Is there any way of managing pasta's propensity to swell and dissolve? Is it to do with the type of pasta used?

author: I wanted a rude username
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 10, 2021, 08:30:17 am
content: When making extra to refrigerate or freeze, don't add pasta to it ... instead, cook the pasta as needed, before serving. This saves precious freezer space. I make soups extra rich and dilute later for the same reason.

author: SilverSolder
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 10, 2021, 01:00:42 pm
content: Cooking the pasta separately is a good idea, I didn't think of that. - It does take some of the convenience away from the concept, but...

author: Microdoser
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 17, 2021, 12:42:16 pm
content: Quote from: SilverSolder on March 09, 2021, 05:52:57 pmMurphy's pasta law:You will always cook too much pasta even when you take Murphy's pasta law into account.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 04, 2021, 05:30:03 pm
content: rice has a similar problem when you need to use parboiled rice in things like stuffed peppers

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2021, 03:02:59 am
content: Yup.... pasta and rice both do the same thing.Mistake #1.... go to Vietnamese restaurant and order a needle soup dish and fried rice dish. Eat fried rice dish, then fill up with noodle dish. Be sure you can get home within 30 minutes time limit!

author: SilverSolder
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2021, 03:25:17 am
content: I finally got it under control by adding less than 1 cup of pasta to 1/2 gallon of soup, LOL!

author: telliz
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2021, 02:02:10 pm
content: Try to choose pasta from durum wheat, and cook it by throwing it into boiling water for no more than 8-10 minutes. first, the water should boil and then boil over medium heat

author: T3sl4co1l
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2021, 03:28:26 pm
content: Yup, very easy to go from a thin brothy soup to a thick stew, or after chilling, just about a... solid casserole, say; with not very much rice, pasta, beans, etc. Remember that most of these absorb 2-3 times their volume in water, so start with at least as much broth. And they release a lot of starch, thickening the broth, especially evident once left to cool.Your basic friends (carrot, celery, onion, meat, etc.) I think are pretty inert (other than the mechanical effect), but mind that potato releases some starch.And the other things you're cooking will take up space, making it... more congested so to speak, once the starches go in. It's like going from mortar to concrete: you start with a modestly thick paste, then add gravel and it's that much firmer.So all of that together, plan on maybe 20-50% more water than calculated? Or put another way, and probably about what I do -- add enough water to cover the base, then add starches with their recommended hydration. Seems to go alright. But I'm definitely very careful with pasta, it expands much more, and releases much more starch, than you expect from its loose, open structure.Tim

author: Microdoser
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2021, 10:41:41 pm
content: Since I started making fresh pasta, I admit I have not had this problem. 100g of pasta flour and an egg (maybe a little olive oil) makes just the right amount of pasta for one person. The downside is after mixing up the egg and flour, it needs to sit in the fridge for an hour for the flour to absorb the egg, so it isn't quite so instant any more.The upside of course is fantastic pasta.

author: Just_another_Dave
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 12, 2021, 02:08:34 pm
content: Quote from: Microdoser on August 06, 2021, 10:41:41 pmI once heard that it is possible to keep fresh pasta frozen to avoid having to make it each time your¡’re going to eat it. However, I have never tried that myself