aem wrote:

> Bob (this one) wrote:
>
>>Michael Horowitz wrote:
>>
>>>Recipes for making pasta vary - some say use oil, others don't
>>>mention it. Why or why not is oil used? - Mike
>>
>> [snip]
>>Putting butter or oil on the cooked pasta absolutely won't keep sauce
>>from sticking. But it will keep the pasta from sticking together. And
>>it adds a nice flavor note to the dish. Both in my restaurants where
>>we literally served tons of pasta over the years, and at home, I've
>>cooked it, drained it and tossed with oil for holding. [snip]

>>Conclusions:
>>1) there's no good reason to put oil in the cooking water.
>>2) there's a good reason to toss the pasta (any kind) with a little oil
>>or butter after draining.
>
> This doesn't seem to me to be a case where restaurant practice leads to
> what's best at home.

Really? Was it too difficult for you to read what was actually written
before you decided to spurt this insufficient opinion? Nice job of
cutting off the germane part. And an utterly spectacular case of
misunderstanding the perfectly obvious.

Let me try to actually have you read the words this time. Note that this
describes *two* different conditions in *two* different settings. One
where pasta is held; the other where it's served immediately. And where
the restaurant technique proceeded from the home approach, not the
reverse as you so thuddingly pontificated.

Ready... get set... bite this...
"Both in my restaurants where we literally served tons of pasta over the
years, and at home, I've cooked it, drained it and tossed with oil for
holding. Both my Italian grandmothers did it that way. Cook, drain, toss
with oil, sauce. Or rather, my Sicilian grandmother tossed it with olive
oil and my northern Italian grandmother used butter. At home nowadays I
use butter."

See where my grandmothers did the oiling thing...? When they were going
to sauce it immediately? Notice the lack of the word "hold" between
"toss with oil" and "serve." Too fast, huh...? Right...

> Most of the time at home we are not going to
> "hold" pasta for any time at all.

"hold" this...

> It goes immediately from being
> drained to being sauced. So there shouldn't be a need to add oil to
> prevent sticking.

If you slather sauce on your pasta, it might serve as a lubricant - or
it might serve to cement it together. But if you dress it sparingly, it
might not coat every strand. And even if it does, it might be a sauce
that doesn't prevent sticking. Not all of them do, you know. Oh, wait.
You don't know. Not all Italian pasta dressings are so liquid. Check out
pasta con sarde.

And you seem to think that pasta *must* go from being drained directly
to being sauced. Bad assumption.

> If, at home, so much time elapses between your
> draining the pasta and serving it, then you need to pay attention to
> your timing, not your use of oil.

Thank you for your trivial opinions. I'm delighted you were able to so
demonstrate your inability to read, to reason and to cook... all in a
short little post like this.

In our home service, we don't sauce all the pasta together. We let each
person add the amount they want. See how that could work? So in the two
minutes or so between the time I drain it and serve it, it could stick
were it not tossed with a dash of butter. Then it doesn't stick. And any
left not served also won't stick. Even when it's cold. And it won't have
sauce on it. So the leftovers can be used in myriad ways instead of
merely as last night's pasta reheated.

> For flavor, yes, occasionally. I sometimes get the urge for a little
> bit of 'plain' spaghetti. While it's boiling I gently cook some minced
> garlic and red chili flakes in my best olive oil. As soon as the
> spaghetti is al dente I drain it, and pour on the garlic and the oil I
> just cooked it in. Add chopped parsley, and a really big handful of
> parmesano. Nothing more needed.

I'm sure every Italian was just startled at your brilliant invention.
I'm absolutely positive that no one else has ever made pasta con olio e
aglio. Brilliant.

And there's no such word as "parmesano." Do at least learn the
vocabulary if you're going to try to do that looking-down-from-Olympus
thing. Bad form to blunder while being smug.

It's a pleasure learning from this sort of erudition, experience and
technical dexterity.

No, seriously...

Pastorio