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Summertime pasta salad By Kady Guyton
We all have days where all we want it is dinner to appear like magic. Wave a hand toward the stove and something delicious materializes. Or when the weather is hot and cooking anything seems like an exercise in sweat. Pasta salad is a good solution for both those situations, or any other time when all you want to do is get to the eating part of the day. Yes, making pasta requires boiling water, but fortunately, the cook doesn't have to be hovering over the pan the entire time. Put on the water, then retreat to the cool side of the kitchen. There are a couple small tricks to boiling the perfect pot of pasta. The first is to always salt the water. And by "salt" I mean SALT, the water should be as salty as the ocean. This accomplishes two things: pasta is pretty much flavorless cooked in plain water. The salt helps bring out the taste of the grain, giving the finished dish a more rounded flavor. The second reason is that the salt helps tenderize the protein in the gluten, creating more tender noodles. And who doesn't want that? So don't fear the salt when it comes to cooking pasta. The salted water should be brought to a rolling boil before the noodles are added. Once in, separate them with a fork, then leave them alone for six to seven minutes. Don't bother adding oil to the water. The oil floats on top of the water, over the pasta, contributing nothing. Once the noodles are drained, add the oil to keep them from sticking. To tell if the pasta is done, forget everything you ever heard about throwing noodles against the wall. Pretty much any wet noodle will stick to a wall, it's a waste of good pasta and eventually someone has to clean up. Just taste it. Finished pasta should be "tender to the teeth" as the Italians say, with a very slight amount of bite. It will keep cooking after it's drained, so by the time it's ready to be served, the noodles will be perfect. Drain, toss with a little oil and cover while everything else gets done. Pasta salad is one of those dishes that can be either sublime or absurd depending on who's doing the mixing. I am not a fan of mayo-based pasta salads. I find them gluey and the mayonnaise flavor tends to overwhelm everything else. But that's me. If you love them, proceed with what makes you happy. My ideal pasta salad has an oil and acid dressing, followed by many vegetables and herbs, with an optional amount of protein. Olive oil and lemon is perfect for the vegetables available this time of year. Oil and balsamic vinegar pairs very well with all sorts of grilled meats. Oil and raspberry vinegar is an interesting combination with spinach and strawberries. Have fun with it and enjoy in a cool place. Summer Pasta Salad Dressing Salad Whisk together dressing ingredients into a small bowl. Set aside. Boil pasta in salted water until done, drain and pour into serving bowl. Add vegetables and parsley. Pour dressing over the salad. Toss to combine, serve immediately. |
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