Simple Spaghetti
Photo: Original uploader was 酒池肉林 at zh.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Simple Spaghetti is a first-pasta recipe that teaches the one skill that matters, which is knowing when the noodles are done. You bite a strand at the seven minute mark and look for a center that is soft but not mushy. Salt and a little oil go into the water, and a jar of sauce simmers alongside. It feeds four in half an hour and welcomes any additions you like.
Instructions
Add salt and vegetable oil to the water in a large pot, then bring it to a boil over high heat. The salt seasons the pasta and the oil helps keep the strands from sticking together.
Turn the heat down to medium and add the spaghetti to the pot.
While the pasta cooks, pour as much sauce as you want into a separate pan and set it over medium heat.
Set a timer for 7 minutes. When it goes off, lift out one strand and bite into it. You want al dente, soft enough to eat with no hard, crunchy center, but not mushy. If it is not there yet, keep cooking and test again.
When the sauce starts to bubble, turn the heat to its lowest setting and cover the pan.
Once the spaghetti is done, carefully pour it through a colander set in the sink to drain off the water.
Divide the pasta among bowls and spoon the warm sauce over the top.
Make it personal.
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