If you ever need a reminder why salting the pasta water is key to good pasta, just wait until you forget to do it.
I know because this is exactly what happened to me the other night. I took one bite of that pasta and thought my tastebuds had gone berserk. Talk about bland, boring, and tasteless noodles. Bleck.
But other than eating a mistake like this and moving on, what can you do? Pim of Chez Pim has a very clever idea.
After I shared my distress on Twitter, Pim wrote back with this helpful advice:
You could toss in a handful of salt right after draining. Salt will melt & be absorbed by pasta. Not the same but helps.
Unfortunately, I had already sauced and served my pasta before reading Pim's tip, but what a great idea for the next inevitable time that I get distracted while preparing dinner.
Have you ever tried this? Any other great post-facto pasta salting tips that work for you?
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To remember, just say... Pasta Salt n Water.. Makes it edible after:) (*add a sing song note to it)
I've never salted my pasta! I must have been living under a rock! I love pasta though so maybe this will make me love it even more.
A handful of salt on drained pasta? A handful?
Funny...I never salt my pasta water. I never mind nor do I get complaints!
I do salt my sauce and most every savory food I cook, although not heavily.
My husband is from Italy and never salts the water. I find if the sauce is properly seasoned, the salted water makes the dish too salty.
My husband and his family instead drain the pasta and then toss with a small scoop of sauce and then serve with more sauce on top. This flavours the warm pasta with the delicious SAUCE, not just salt.
Every once in a while I do forget as well so this tip will come in handy-provided I remember this too.
@sygyzy - Point taken! When Pim first said this to me, I envisioned more like a teaspoon of salt in the palm of the hand, shaken evenly over the pasta.
@PineTree - The idea behind salting the pasta water is that the dish is seasoned all the way through, instead of just on the surface of the pasta with the sauce. But your husband's technique of tossing the salted sauce with the warm pasta so that the pasta absorbs that sauce is very similar to Pim's idea. I'll give it a try!
You can also use other flavor enhancers if you're trying to keep away from too much salt.
For instance, if I'm making a tomato-sauced pasta, I just throw in a heaping spoonful of no-salt tomato paste. Lots of "umami," no salt needed.
when i was younger, i never salted my water. the first time i had it salted, my husband (then food seducing boyfriend), had made it, and i actually thought it was too salty.
now, we only lightly salt--a compromise for the two of us.
I never salt the water. I did it once and had to make the dish all over again because my husband and I found it too salty. I'm with PineTree - if the sauce is well-seasoned (and why wouldn't it be?) you don't need the salt.
We're not watching our sodium intakes just yet, but I figure it's best not to get into the habit if it doesn't make much difference to us anyway.
I never salt the water either. I have done it both ways and never noticed a difference. But I'm usually serving the pasta in a seasoned sauce.
I've never salted my pasta water. I use a drizzle of olive oil (about a tsp) though to keep the pasta from sticking together. A lot of people salt the water because apparently it makes the water boil faster. If I want my water to boil faster, I just put a lid on it!
I never salt the water. Like shipwrecks I have tried- a little and a lot, and have never noticed any difference, so why bother? Plus I'm not big on seasoning. I often find a lot of things don't need salt and pepper- people are just accustomed to doing it.
@Lipstick6
Actually salting the water increases the boiling point, it just looks like it's boiling more because the salt adds nucleation sites for the bubbles.
I think it's safer to salt the water a little, especially if you're not too practised at balancing the seasoning of your sauce -I've had some terrible pasta cooked for 60 people with no salt in the water and way too little sauce to coat it. Not nice at all.
But if you're sauce is spot on, problem solved. I dunk a few noodles in my sauce to check the seasoning.
Interesting..I was taught to use 1 tablespoon of salt per pound of pasta it keeps the pasta from being bland. You should normally wait till the water starts boiling before adding the salt so it is absorbed properly and make sure the water is boiling again before adding the pasta. I also add a tablespoon of canola/olive/garlic oil or butter (depending on the dish) to my pasta water after it's been boiling for about 5 minutes to keep the pasta from sticking and adds a little extra flavor. Only salt I would recommend using if I did forgot would be probably sea salt. Sprinkle it very lightly over the pasta and toss it lightly before serving and adding any sauce. I don't use much salt in my sauces as the pasta should compliment the sauce. Another trick is to use bacon or tiny piece of fat back in the pasta water.