Pasta / Noodles (with a twist) – Quick and Delicious Pasta Noodles

Pasta / Noodles (with a twist) – Quick and Delicious

Inspired by an Italian Chef in Food Safari

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Pasta has to be boiled properly and it needs plenty of water and salt for this.  Sauce for pasta is important. Make it with thick tomato puree, garlic and pepper.

Serves 3

Ingredients

    

      50 ml olive oil, plus extra, for drizzling / vegetable oil will do

        1 garlic clove, finely sliced

        2 French shallots, finely diced / we managed with one onion or 7 to 10 baby onions

      300 g  tin whole Italian tomatoes / we used fresh tomato puree / skin the tomatoes by             blanching them and puree by hand.

       250 g fettuccine or any other pasta – we used spaghetti.

       salt to taste

         3 large basil (Tulsi) leaves / can use parsley as well.

 

INSTRUCTION 

Cook the pasta in a large pot of well-salted boiling water until al dente. It may take any thing from 7 to 8 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy bottomed frying pan over medium heat and add the garlic, and onions till translucent. Take out half a cup of pasta water and add part of it to the pan o avoid the garlic from burning. Add tomato puree and let it simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.

Drain the pasta and put it to the frying pan. Pour sauce over it. Sauce should coat the past lightly Sprinkle some olive oil and add some pasta water. Shake the pan well. Starch in the pasta water with olive oil will make a good emulsion and help cover pasta with the sauce. Add the basil and toss well. Add a dash of oil and toss. Serve immediately

Experiential Tips

1.      Cook pasta in lots (2 liters) of water and 2 heaped teaspoons of salt.

2.     Sauce should be cooked well too.

3.     Add some kasuri methi after adding tomato, it adds a flavour  akin to celery.

4.     To give colour to the pasta add a tea spoon of degi mirch mixed in pasta water after the    garlic and onions are done.

A variation of this we tried with Maggi noodles.

In the sauce recipe we added some Indian masalas like cloves, cardamom and few cumin seeds. Onions were lightly browned, garlic added. Add tomato puree and cook for 10 minutes. Pour over the noodles and serve.

We tried adding one teaspoon of degi mirch or soaked red chillies paste into the sauce after onions were done. And cooked the sauce till oil got separated. We found the result to be closer to Indian taste.

Keep the sauce aside. In the mean time cut vegetables – red bell pepper, mushrooms, carrot, beans, potato, green peas – steam these into a microwave steamer for two minutes except mushroom after sprinkling with a little salt. Sauté mushroom for a minute and add the steamed vegetables. Sauté for 30 seconds . Add sauce and mix for a few seconds. Add some pasta water, add pasta from the colander, add cut parsley and toss well. We can also add grated cheese as an option. Serve immediately.