George said...

> Mark Thorson wrote:
>> George wrote:
>>> Sounds like you need to use more water. Not sure why you are breaking
>>> the noodles. Is it because you are using a small pot (which would also
>>> likely mean not enough water)?
>>
>> Exactly! Beats me why pasta does this, but there's
>> a certain amount of water needed to cook it properly.
>> Below that amount, you get a lot of starch dissolving
>> out of the pasta. I learned this when I was a college
>> student and trying to make pasta using an immersion
>> heater in a Pyrex measuring cup. Fried pastas like
>> ramen can be made this way, but real pasta can't.
>
> I suspect that the concentration of starch in the water is too high when
> using a small pot. So that leads to clumping and sticky films and
> attempts to fix it by dumping oil in the water.
>
>>
>> I went through a ton of immersion heaters as a college
>> student. I became an expert on everything you could
>> make with one. I should have written a cookbook on
>> the subject. Too late now, though. I've forgotten
>> too much. That's what happens when you turn 50.


Sorry.

What George said!

Didn't read up in advance.

Andy