# Pasta -- How much is enough? (serving)



## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

Although I've never worked in a kitchen, I try to use techniques that I expect professional chefs and sous chefs use. Two of my important tools are my instant read thermometer and my digital scale.

I imagine many restaurants use pre-measured products, cryovac bagged stuff, etc., no need to measure just grab one out of the box or fridge.

I'm frugal so I like portion control so as to not waste food by cooking too much--whatever is too much I either eat anyway (gaining weight) or put in the fridge which often just gets tossed, or scrape it from plate to garbage can.

Getting to pasta, the basic question is how much is enough? The situation is a bit different in restaurants, because food is cheaper than labor and customer satisfaction is important. Restaurants don't want to serve too little or hungry customers won't come back.

At home I want to cook just exactly the right amount, enough for a full serving, but not too much that I over eat or have to throw it away.

Some years ago when I was younger the dry weight for a serving was 3 oz. Several years ago (I'm getting older and like everybody my metabolism is slowing) so I've reduced the serving size (dry) to 2 oz.

I've discovered that less than 2 oz. can sometimes be enough. My question to others, what are your feelings on how much spaghetti to cook? -- Remember this is the before cooking weight I'm asking about.


BTW I imagine Italian restaurants always have vats of spaghetti cooking and they probably measure the cooked weight, or even with experience just grab what looks right and throw that on the plate.


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## Cheryl J (Feb 27, 2017)

This guide from Barilla's website has come in handy for me on several occasions. 

https://www.barilla.com/en-us/help/measuring-pasta


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## jennyema (Feb 27, 2017)

I use about 1/3 of a box for two people.

I would never bother to weigh it....


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

That's 2.5 oz per serving presuming the smallest (1#) size box!

That's about what I used to serve when I was younger and more active. It's probably pretty reasonable for anybody not on a diet. (Unlike me.)

I'm a retired engineer. You know we engineers are are nuts for accuracy. I even used to portion control my dog's food.


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## Kaneohegirlinaz (Feb 27, 2017)

Greg, I'm a simple home cook, but when I portion out dried pasta for my husband and I, I get out my trusty scale and weigh out 56 grams per person.
When I make fresh pasta, I weigh out 100 grams of flour and mix with 1 large egg, this is plenty of the two of us.


I ran the fresh pasta sheets through the Fettuccine cutter on my KA 

DH's Plate with a Dolly Chicken Breast Parm

My plate, I prefer less red sauce


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

Wow, that dry weight is *exactly* same as my current standard: 2 oz.!

I should get off my duff and try making fresh pasta. It's one of the things I've never done.

I think I may do a smidge less than 2 oz. tonight. Either that or change my name to Big Greg. 

The parm chix looks delicious!


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## Kaneohegirlinaz (Feb 27, 2017)

Greg, my scale isn't the fancy type at all.
If I have it set on ounces, there isn't a point whatever but simply 2oz.
So I've gone to grams, which is much more precise, don't you think?
While we were on our diet, I mean looking at food differently, we were allowed 56 grams of whole wheat pasta.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

Yes, on your ordinary digital kitchen scale grams is definitely more accurate, and here's why:

1 ounce = 28.3 grams

Most digital scales weigh to an accuracy of 0.1 ounce or 1 gram.

0.1 ounce = 2.83 grams

0.1 ounces is about the same as 3 grams, so measuring in grams is 3x more accurate!

I'm not only an engineer, but a soapmaker too, and every soapmaker knows that when you weigh your fats/oils and weigh your lye, you have to be extremely accurate or your soap may be lye heavy. That's part of the reasons soapmakers always add what we call "superfat" which is just an excess of fats to ensure that all the lye is eaten up. (Typically 5-8% extra fat.) It has the additional quality that a small amount of oil in your soap replaces the skin oils lost when washing. (That's why commercial soap can be drying. Actually most commercial soap isn't soap at all, it's detergent. We soapmakers call them "det-bars.") And of course it's not an unusual practice to pour fragrant oils into your bath.

When I make very small soap batches, usually for recipe testing, 16 oz. of oils/fats, I sometimes set my scale to grams. That makes four 5 oz. bars. (The excess is retained water.)

I have a modest priced digital scale, cost maybe $25 on Amazon. I use it for both cooking and soapmaking. 

My stomach wouldn't know the difference of that small quantity of 1 gm.


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Feb 27, 2017)

Carbohydrates, 1/2 cup cooked. 2 ounces by weight.

vegetables, 1 cup cooked (peas and corn are not vegetables, they are carbohydrates).

protein, 4 to 5 ounces, cooked.

A salad can be as large as you desire, as long as you limit the dressing to 2 tablespoons. I once saw Graham Kerr dress a salad big enough for 4 people with 1 tablespoon of dressing. He used his salad spinner!


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## dragnlaw (Feb 27, 2017)

For packaged pasta, I check what the calories are per serving which is always given.  

Example with simple numbers...  if package is 400 g and they say that there are so many calories per serving size of 100 g - you know that you have 4 servings in the package and I eye ball it from there. I don't go so far as to weigh it.  Open package, grab handfuls or spread out and divide into 4 equal bundles. 

I do the same thing when I cook a dish that serves 4.  I know it is a bit labour intensive and more cleaning up to do - but when your weight is out of control - you do what you have to do! So....  

I cook a meal for 4 - I pull out 4 plates - I dish out - I eat one and package up the other 3 and ...  Bob's your Uncle and Tilly's your aunt...  works for me!


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

Hey Beef, you da man!!! 

You got pretty good numbers! (Like same as mine!) The carbs are spot on by my reckoning. While I often eat maybe 1/2 cup of veggies, sometimes I do a cup. How could a cup of green peas or spinach hurt you?

Protein too. I recently made a comment elsewhere that the thing about a steak being the size of your palm, as much as I used to like big steaks I've converted to palm sized steaks and that's filling enough for me. Tonight my shrimp is 4.4 oz. (I just measured it.) I'm having some Alfredo sauce too so my recipe might be a bit imperfect.

And your salad? I challenge anybody to get fat eating lettuce!  Of course the dressing is important as you said, and that's a good number too: 2 T. depending on fat content.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

dragnlaw said:


> For packaged pasta, I check what the calories are per serving which is always given.


Doh! Silly me, as much as I read nutrition labels, I didn't even think this time:

serving size: 2 oz.
calories: 200
carbs: 42 gm = 1.5 oz.
protein: 7 gm = 0.5 oz.

Youse PPL are pretty handy for good advice! 


All those years I was eating 3 oz. or more pasta... Older doesn't necessarily mean smarter but it seems to be working for me. Also, as you get older your metabolism slows and you either get fat or learn to measure your food consumption. In youth you just burn it up doing more exercise.

Actually I've lost about 30 pounds in the last 6 months. Less food. Less wine. More exercise.



dragnlaw said:


> I do the same thing when I cook a dish that serves 4.



Forgot to add, I do that too when faced with multi-serving packages but I try to avoid such things by cooking from scratch. I hate those "serves 2" packages at the market. I try to avoid them, or sometimes just pick at it and toss almost half.


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## Andy M. (Feb 27, 2017)

When I cook pasta such as spaghetti, I use ⅓ of a pound box for SO and me (151gr.-152gr./5⅓ oz.).  SO gets less than half and I get more than half.  That works for us.


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## caseydog (Feb 27, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Although I've never worked in a kitchen, I try to use techniques that I expect professional chefs and sous chefs use. Two of my important tools are my instant read thermometer and my digital scale.
> 
> I imagine many restaurants use pre-measured products, cryovac bagged stuff, etc., no need to measure just grab one out of the box or fridge.
> 
> ...



My advice is to lighten up. When cooking for yourself, sure, go for the minimum. You know what to eat and how much is healthy. 

When cooking for family and friends, making too much is the right amount. 

Besides, leftover pasta is like leftover pizza -- great for breakfast the next morning. 

Technically, 2 ounces of dry weight pasta is a regular serving. But, in my mind, a little too much is better than not enough. 

When I am making a bowl of spaghetti for myself, I make 2 ounces. If I am cooking for a crowd, I go well above that serving size. 

CD


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## dragnlaw (Feb 27, 2017)

caseydog said:


> My advice is to lighten up. When cooking for yourself, sure, go for the minimum. You know what to eat and how much is healthy.
> :
> When cooking for family and friends, making too much is the right amount.
> 
> ...



hear hear!!


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

Actually just for the luck of the throw it ended up 1.9 oz tonight and I didn't feel like putting any back in the package. I finished dinner--meaning I ate all the shrimp--and ended up with left over pasta, but not a lot. I feel comfortably well fed and there is still some small amount of pasta and a bit more sauce left on my plate.

I had garlic bread with it, so everything considered--particularly that there was some but not a lot of pasta left--the 2 oz. figure worked out well enough for me. Funny, just like the package says! Who'd a thunk? 

I sometimes think we (consumers) read the nutritional information--and say "yeah yeah"--and then cook whatever quantity we want. Like the food producers are cheating, telling us "this is what the FDA says you need to limit your eating to, but wink, wink, we know you won't listen to the gummint, we know you'll eat twice the recommendation because we know you are all gluttonous pigs and that you think the gummint sucks, and you'll swill it down until you are sated."

But on a more serious note, you buy a candy bar and the nutritional information says "2 servings" and really, you are going to break that candy bar in half and put the second half away for the next day? That's why I don't eat ice cream. When I used to eat ice cream there were only two kinds of ice cream containers: unopened, and empty. 

That, my friends, is why I never buy ice cream!

So I conclude that yes, Virginia, a good serving size for pasta is dry weight 2 oz. per person. Various factors including gluttonous guests and willingness to not finish your serving are significant factors to take into consideration, as is the possibility of saving uneaten portions for future meals.


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## buckytom (Feb 27, 2017)

Thete's a scientifically calculated limit?

 Mama mia, va fa Napoli.

Actually, we do as Andy does, except with a growing boy, we make the entire pound.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 27, 2017)

Tom, knowing you it wouldn't surprise me if you made a whole pound and would eat it yourself if you couldn't find any victims! LOLOL


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## CraigC (Feb 28, 2017)

We have bacon and eggs on hand, but hardly ever make breakfast with them nor do we buy stuff specifically for lunch. So leftovers are the norm for breakfast and lunch. We most always make whole recipes when it comes to pasta or anything else. Seafood is usually the exception.


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## tenspeed (Feb 28, 2017)

My pasta machine makes batches using 250 grams of flour.  There's a bit of waste stuck in the machine, so calling it 8 oz. of finished pasta (flour weight) should be pretty close.  That's good for 3 to 3-1/2 servings.  Lunch is usually leftovers, so it isn't thrown away.  We're both pretty active, so aren't averse to carbs.

  The machine makes 250 gram or 500 gram batches, with a cup marked for the appropriate liquid volume.  I have a finely graduated measuring cup on the way so I can make intermediate sized batches.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 28, 2017)

Now that I think of it, pasta is so cheap and so easy to cook I can't imagine why anybody would save uneaten cooked pasta for future use. What? Somebody more frugal than me? I had thought that impossible!


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## CraigC (Feb 28, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Now that I think of it, pasta is so cheap and so easy to cook *I can't imagine why anybody would save uneaten cooked pasta for future use.* What? Somebody more frugal than me? I had thought that impossible!



Because it reheats in the microwave quickly and doesn't require the time it takes to cook dried pasta nor clean the pot. Has nothing to do with being frugal.


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

CraigC said:


> Because it reheats in the microwave quickly and doesn't require the time it takes to cook dried pasta nor clean the pot. Has nothing to do with being frugal.


For me it does. Why would I throw away perfectly good food? And use the energy and water it takes to cook more instead of simply using what I have? I try not to waste food and other resources.


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## CraigC (Feb 28, 2017)

GotGarlic said:


> For me it does. Why would I throw away perfectly good food? And use the energy and water it takes to cook more instead of simply using what I have? I try not to waste food and other resources.



I guess in that sense it is frugal, but that isn't my consideration for doing it. The pasta and "sauce" (if it already isn't mixed together) make a quick breakfast/lunch when in a hurry.


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## di reston (Feb 28, 2017)

We never eat reheated pasta here, based on the premise that pasta in Italy is NOT always a main course, we reckon that the right amount of pasta is 60 - 75 grams per portion. Otherwise,  how the dickens are you going to get through the rest of the meal! Here, it's a first course, with dishes to follow. In Piedmont where I live, for example, for a dinner party with friends, we're expected to dish up to 8 or 9 different dishes. These days I go for healthy, and I plan my menus so that my guests go home satisfied, but not 'pogged' as we say in English. So none of the dishes are too big. Here we have pasta as a main every so often, and that's it.

di reston


Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## roadfix (Feb 28, 2017)

I always cook the whole pound and usually take left overs to work.    Just being practical...
We rarely cook anything just for a single night's worth of meal.


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## CraigC (Feb 28, 2017)

di reston said:


> We never eat reheated pasta here, based on the premise that pasta in Italy is NOT always a main course, we reckon that the right amount of pasta is 60 - 75 grams per portion. Otherwise,  how the dickens are you going to get through the rest of the meal! Here, it's a first course, with dishes to follow. In Piedmont where I live, for example, for a dinner party with friends, we're expected to dish up to 8 or 9 different dishes. These days I go for healthy, and I plan my menus so that my guests go home satisfied, but not 'pogged' as we say in English. So none of the dishes are too big. Here we have pasta as a main every so often, and that's it.
> 
> di reston
> 
> ...



If Italians are like Cubans, where there are several generations living  in the same home, then I can imagine that mother or grandmother are stay  at homes and have the time for preparing all the meals. We don't have  that luxury and the pasta dish is the main course. We depend on  leftovers as I mentioned above.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 28, 2017)

I try to cook only what I can eat. I had like 2 T. of pasta+sauce left last night. I'd rather cook too little and have an accidental diet moment. I don't like having the same thing again in a few days. Different priorities for different people. Nothing wrong with that.


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## roadfix (Feb 28, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> I had like 2 T. of pasta+sauce left last night.


As in 2 tablespoons?....
I'm sorry, but this just made me chuckle....   I would have just dished that extra few grams of pasta and eaten it.


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

CraigC said:


> I guess in that sense it is frugal, but that isn't my consideration for doing it. The pasta and "sauce" (if it already isn't mixed together) make a quick breakfast/lunch when in a hurry.


What sense were you thinking of?


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

di reston said:


> We never eat reheated pasta here, based on the premise that pasta in Italy is NOT always a main course, we reckon that the right amount of pasta is 60 - 75 grams per portion. Otherwise,  how the dickens are you going to get through the rest of the meal! Here, it's a first course, with dishes to follow. In Piedmont where I live, for example, for a dinner party with friends, we're expected to dish up to 8 or 9 different dishes. These days I go for healthy, and I plan my menus so that my guests go home satisfied, but not 'pogged' as we say in English. So none of the dishes are too big. Here we have pasta as a main every so often, and that's it.



This is about pasta as a main dish on a regular night, not a dinner party.


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## medtran49 (Feb 28, 2017)

GotGarlic said:


> What sense were you thinking of?


 
Using additional energy and water to cook fresh, and clean up the pot.


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

medtran49 said:


> Using additional energy and water to cook fresh, and clean up the pot.


That's part of what I said.


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## medtran49 (Feb 28, 2017)

GotGarlic said:


> That's part of what I said.


 
and I was answering your question...


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

medtran49 said:


> and I was answering your question...


I think of that - conserving resources - as being frugal. No big deal, I just wondered.


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## blissful (Feb 28, 2017)

To be perfectly honest, I've NEVER measured pasta, rice, potatoes.....never. Not per serving, never less, always more. I raised 3 boys and something happened at age 13, something like an endless stomach with no weight gain. Now I make 1-2 lbs of pasta every time. I freeze the extra. Extra only happens when we have had our fill, when there is a quart or more in the refrigerator, and then, whatever is left after that is frozen to be pulled out when an endless stomach requires it. I can't keep enough in the house. Even now my grown son is 30 and he can out eat my husband and myself. He eats it a lot and very much of it. He eats it with butter and parmesan or with meat sauce, or with anything that has a sauce. 

I'm going to have to learn to cook by portions when DH and I eat alone, if that day ever comes. I can't see that day.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 28, 2017)

roadfix said:


> As in 2 tablespoons?....
> I'm sorry, but this just made me chuckle....   I would have just dished that extra few grams of pasta and eaten it.


That's why I measured it!!! I'm on a DIET!!! Greg is too fat!!!

Every little speck of food I don't eat helps. Every little sip of wine I don't sip helps. It may not seem like much but over time I am eating and drinking less, consuming fewer calories, and even if I don't exercise I will eventually come to a new equilibrium weight lower than I am now.

And I am going to exercise.... Tomorrow!


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Hey Beef, you da man!!! [emoji2]
> 
> You got pretty good numbers! (Like same as mine!) The carbs are spot on by my reckoning. While I often eat maybe 1/2 cup of veggies, sometimes I do a cup. How could a cup of green peas or spinach hurt you?



Just noticed this. As SLoB noted, peas and corn are made up primarily of carbs. Most vegetables botanically are fruits or flowers, while peas and corn are seeds. You may want to keep that in mind if you're limiting your carb intake.


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## Cooking Goddess (Feb 28, 2017)

I hear ya, *bliss*. When our son was at home, and especially when he played sports, we would call him "Stomach with Legs". A culinary tornado sucking up everything in its path...




GotGarlic said:


> For me it does. *Why would I throw away perfectly good food? And use the energy and water it takes to cook more instead of simply using what I have?* I try not to waste food and other resources.


If you guys haven't looked at this website yet, you need to skim through *Save The Food*. It has hints for being food efficient along with some stats that will open up your eyes. One stat they showed a while back was that the average family throws out $26 of food a week.  If I kept track, I'd be surprised if  we tossed should-have-been-eaten food $100 a year. Sometimes something gets lost in the fridge, but not often.


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## GotGarlic (Feb 28, 2017)

Cooking Goddess said:


> If you guys haven't looked at this website yet, you need to skim through *Save The Food*. It has hints for being food efficient along with some stats that will open up your eyes. One stat they showed a while back was that the average family throws out $26 of food a week.  If I kept track, I'd be surprised if we tossed should-have-been-eaten food $100 a year. Sometimes something gets lost in the fridge, but not often.



i haven't seen that site, but I've read about this before. I think it was also mentioned in the Master Food Volunteer class I took last fall. I don't eat traditional breakfast foods, so I often eat dinner leftovers for breakfast and/or lunch. DH often ends up working through lunch, so he sometimes has some sort of leftovers when he comes home around 3-3:30 p.m. 

It does happen, but I try really hard not to waste or throw away food. Everyone who has grown, harvested and processed (meaning butchering, cleaning, trimming, canning, etc.) has put time, effort and energy into what I buy, cook and serve and I try to honor that.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 28, 2017)

I sometimes just skip vegetables. Or have like 3 ounces or so. Or eat things like asparagus which probably isn't too harmful. I like mushrooms, even raw. Go ahead and try to find some nutrition in that! 

Doggie died. I'm getting another shortly. That should improve my meat efficiency. Old steak bits for me = nice doggie treats for him. Or her. Don't know gender of next dog yet. And my favorite rule: doggie always gets his/her own steak on his/her birthday. Inexpensive cut, and I chop it for easy wolfing down! 

I'm sure I'm eating 2/3-3/4 of the calories I was eating this time last year. It can't help but have an effect over the long term. I have no real timeline for reaching the right weight, just know what it is. Keep eating less and exercising more and that's what I'll weigh one day.


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## Kaneohegirlinaz (Feb 28, 2017)

Cooking Goddess said:


> I hear ya, *bliss*. When our son was at home, and especially when he played sports, we would call him "Stomach with Legs". A culinary tornado sucking up everything in its path...
> 
> 
> 
> If you guys haven't looked at this website yet, you need to skim through *Save The Food*. It has hints for being food efficient along with some stats that will open up your eyes. One stat they showed a while back was that the average family throws out $26 of food a week.  If I kept track, I'd be surprised if  we tossed should-have-been-eaten food $100 a year. Sometimes something gets lost in the fridge, but not often.



That's an interesting site CG, I had read articles back when in regards to Americans and wasting food and the movement to try to abate this.

Having lived in Hawaii for the majority of my life, I learned to plan out meals, shop accordingly and mostly, not waste food.  90% of all foods in the state is imported, AND MUST be consumed within 10 days.  
Chew on that for a minute.  
I froze everything.  My husband thought I was NUTS!  But what else are ya gonna do?  I stopped buying milk, `cause we couldn't finish a carton before it went bad.  Fresh fruits and vegetables were at a premium.  If ever I did have to throw something out, it just KILLED me!

But I digress...

The topic at hand is Pasta -- How much is enough? (serving)

I suppose it's up to the individual home/family/person it seems.

My husband does not want to eat leftover pasta, unless it's Lasagna, period.
Me, I don't care.  I can reheat a small plate of dressed pasta that is leftover, be it only 2 Tablespoons of sauce and a small handful of pasta, it doesn't matter, I'll eat it, I can't waste it.  But that's how I was brought up.  
"EAT IT! There's starving children in China!"


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## medtran49 (Feb 28, 2017)

My appetite/ability to consume has been dropping over the last year to 2 years, and has taken a nose dive recently.  I couldn't even finish just a loaded baked potato the other night.  I've been eating until I start to feel even the slightest hint of being full and then quit, otherwise I'm miserable.  It's been hard to change, but I've been cuting down on what I cook to where we have minimal to no leftovers.  Told Craig I was tired of eating leftovers more than once and he either had to make an extra effort to eat them or quit cooking so much himself, as I was tired of throwing away (wasting) food.  I don't mind soups that can be frozen and used for another meal later on, but leftovers more than once, maybe twice, just no, unless it's something I really, really, really like, and there hasn't been much of that lately.  I'm getting extremely picky as I get older.  Extra/leftover pasta, I make an Alfredo-type sauce and eat for brunch when we have it, and I'll keep extra rice in the freezer for fried rice.  

It's hard to change the way you have cooked for years.  Craig used to have a job where he could take lunch for work and heat it up, now he's on the road and can't do that.  We used to have DD before she moved away that was always home for breakfast, and more often than not lunch (with a boyfriend sometimes), besides the fact that after she married they lived with us for a while and she worked at home with me so we had 2 adults eating at home consistently for breakfast/lunch, plus 2 men eating dinner/breakfast, and usually taking lunch, plus a small child.  

You just have to roll with the flow, as the saying goes, and figure out what works for you and your family as far as how much to cook.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 28, 2017)

I completely agree. I don't know how I ate so much food in the past, but eat so little now to feel filled. And I too just don't like leftovers. I want more variety, and would have to freeze it before I want to eat it again. Anyway much of my cooking is just not amenable to freezing and reheating. Measure, eat, scrape, wash dish. Cook it again the next time I want to eat that recipe.

Except bulk stuff like rice etc. I make a bunch of jasmine rice knowing cooked rice is just nuke and eat. Goes with lots of things.

It's difficult cooking for one. That's why I'm so focused on portion control. Cook too much and either toss it or eat more than's good for me.


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## larry_stewart (Mar 1, 2017)

All extra pasta is saved for a few days, if it looks like its not going, the chickens get it.  they love spaghetti, I think they think its just a pile of tasty worms.

When I have pasta initially , I like the sauce on top,  but with leftover pasta, I like to fry it up a bit with a the sauce.  I feel left over pasta heats up better that way.  When I try to nuke it or do a quick boil, the consistency just seems off when compared to the first time.  But fried up, is like a whole different dish and seems to keep its al dente feel.

Now that I have to cut carbs myself, with pasta dishes , I just changed the ratio of pasta to veggies.  Id never be able to completely eliminate pasta from my diet, but If I just mess around with the pasta to veggie ration ( especially in a pasta primavera, or pasta salad type of dish), I seem to be satisfied and healthier without feeling like I'm missing out on something.   Unfortunately , gotta skip the garlic bread.


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## CWS4322 (Mar 1, 2017)

3.5 oz of cooked pasta was considered a portion when I worked in a commercial kitchen.


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## caseydog (Mar 2, 2017)

Kaneohegirlinaz said:


> I stopped buying milk, `cause we couldn't finish a carton before it went bad.  Fresh fruits and vegetables were at a premium.  If ever I did have to throw something out, it just KILLED me!
> 
> But I digress...
> 
> ...



Switch to organic milk. It tastes much better, and a carton is good for _*at least*_ a month. I don't know why, it just is. It costs more, but is worth every penny. 

I love leftover pasta. I can pull it out of the fridge and eat it cold if I'm in a hurry for some food. Otherwise, I nuke it and grate some Parmigiano-Reggiano on it. Maybe it is my Italian heritage, but pasta is my go-to food. 

CD


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## dragnlaw (Mar 2, 2017)

*Cursed Carbs!*

I love pasta and make my own.  I don't make any extruded shapes - don't have the equipment.  But do make Linguine, etal and ravioli.  LOVE ravioli...

But Pasta is no longer on my menu - at least not as an entire meal in its own. 
ARGHHHH   !!

Unfortunately I need constant food in my stomach to offset acid re-flux (gall bladder is gone) and the only thing that seems to keep it at bay are carbs. Rice, pasta, legumes, 'patates' and BREAD!  So I savour every little morsel when I do eat it.  There is NEVER any leftovers.


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## tenspeed (Mar 2, 2017)

caseydog said:


> Switch to organic milk. It tastes much better, and a carton is good for _*at least*_ a month.* I don't know why*, it just is. It costs more, but is worth every penny.


Most organic milk is UHT processed.

https://www.cooksillustrated.com/how_tos/5721-shelf-life-of-organic-milk?ref=HowTo_browse_14

The taste part is subjective.


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## buckytom (Mar 2, 2017)

My wife made a pound of angel hair last night. My boy ate about half (after grazing for 2 hours when he got home from school). and my wife and I ate the rest - me slighlty mire than she-  with a good handful leftover for my birds. 

So I guess a portion for me is about 4 ozs.

That's very unlike the old days, though, when 3/ 4 of a pound was normal. Heck, I used to be able to kill off 6 or 7 slices of a NYC pizza (18" diameter, thin crust) once a week, and I didn't gain a pound.


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## CharlieD (Mar 2, 2017)

Cheryl J said:


> This guide from Barilla's website has come in handy for me on several occasions.
> 
> https://www.barilla.com/en-us/help/measuring-pasta



Trying to figure out this table. Most interested in Angel Hair pasta. Doesn't make any sense to me. Anybody care to enlighten me? Please.


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## buckytom (Mar 2, 2017)

Charlie, when you take a bunch of dried long pasta like angel hair out of a box, pull it together between your thumb and forefinger, and a single serving is about 2 and 1/8 inches around when looking at an end.

When it's cooked, it'll measure about a cup.


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## buckytom (Mar 2, 2017)

Btw, there's some interesting math going on in that chart.

Given the circumferences of a serving and a portion, and relative other measures, I wonder if one could calculate how much water is absorbed, and how long the strands of pasta would have to be.


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## tenspeed (Mar 2, 2017)

It must be tough to scale down from cooking for 250 people   Congratulations on your success!  You are a brave man!

  One of the pasta makers (can't remember which one) has a guide printed on the box.  It's circles of varying diameters, depending upon how much you want to make.  In this case, Barilla calls for 2-1/8 inch circumference.  Diameter of a circle is circumference (2.125 inches) divided by pi (3.14), so if you make a template with a .68 inch diameter hole, you will get a cup of cooked pasta.  To scale up, you will want to vary the amount be area of the circle.  Remember, the area of a circle is radius squared times pi.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 2, 2017)

buckytom said:


> That's very unlike the old days, though, when 3/ 4 of a pound was normal. Heck, I used to be able to kill off 6 or 7 slices of a NYC pizza (18" diameter, thin crust) once a week, and I didn't gain a pound.


That was your life before 30 years old. This is your life after 30, probably a lot after 30. I could eat anything any quantity before 30 and not gain a pound. Now I can weight just by looking at things!


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## Kaneohegirlinaz (Mar 2, 2017)

caseydog said:


> Switch to organic milk. It tastes much better, and a carton is good for _*at least*_ a month. I don't know why, it just is. It costs more, but is worth every penny.
> ...snipped .....
> 
> CD



Casey, that was when we lived in Hawaii... here on the mainland, I can get a small "carton" of milk and we're good with that, not to mention that it's WAY cheaper here.


[photo at Walmart in Honolulu 2015]


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## Dawgluver (Mar 2, 2017)

We got this pasta measurer as a free gift, probably in a box of pasta.  It's for one to four servings.  It resides in a drawer, I've never used it.


I usually just cook up a half box of angel hair.  We always have leftovers.


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## di reston (Mar 2, 2017)

To Gotgarlic: I WAS talking about pasta in my message. It depends on how you view it and the place it has in your planned menu. Here it is rarely a main course. It's a second course, following an antipasto, and preceding the third course which is often called the 'pezzo forte', meaning main dish. And that's for an ordinary meal. Where I live, the traditional Piedmontese dinner can have many courses, but that does'nt mean that the pasta course is not important - it's vital. I just wanted to convey the concept that pasta is a very important part of the Italian menu. For example, when you go out for an evening with friends, to the cinema et al., it's traditional to go on to the home of someone of the party for a 'spaghettata'. We have an expression here, 'Butta la pasta' ( get the pasta on), when friends get together for a simple meal of pasta. Pasta is a fundamental and very important part of our diet - that's what I was trying to convey.

di reston




Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## buckytom (Mar 2, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> That was your life before 30 years old. This is your life after 30, probably a lot after 30. I could eat anything any quantity before 30 and not gain a pound. Now I can weight just by looking at things!




Dude, you have the diplomacy and tact of a rhino in heat.

Actually, I was pretty good shape until my early 40s. But dping the midnight shift for a little less than a decade now really takes its toll.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 3, 2017)

Maybe I lack tact but the shoe appears to fit.

I wish both of us could be 30 again.


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## di reston (Mar 3, 2017)

Looking at the thread again, I have the feeling that I missed the point. Here in Italy, a healthy diet with pasta would require portions of 85 to 75 grams per person. However, I'm going to check that out with my friends at It.Hobby.Cucina, and see what they say. Interested? Let me know! I'll post the response.


di reston


Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## Andy M. (Mar 3, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Maybe I lack tact but the shoe appears to fit.
> 
> I wish both of us could be 30 again.



Being right doesn't make bad manners acceptable.


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## tenspeed (Mar 3, 2017)

di reston said:


> Here in Italy, a healthy diet with pasta would require portions of 85 to 75 grams per person.


  That doesn't sound too far off from what we eat.  75 - 85 grams is 2.65 - 3 ounces.  I think most Americans don't have too many courses in a typical meal (certainly not the 8 or 9 courses you describe for a dinner party!).  When I have pasta, it is commonly a bed for proteins and sauce, with a vegetable or salad on the side.  We're right around 70 - 80 grams of pasta in that case.  Some dishes (like pasta with bolognese) will typically include more pasta - somewhere in the 85 - 90 gram range.

  I never used to measure the amount of pasta, but now that I'm making pasta in a machine and weighing the ingredients, I'm much more aware of how much we are eating.  When I eyeballed the amount to cook I usually made too much and ended up throwing some out.


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## Addie (Mar 7, 2017)

Pirate asked me how much Angel Hair pasta was one serving. I showed him how I measured it out for myself. And I also told him two ounces. He didn't believe me. When I place my thumb on the knuckle of my index finger, that is one serving. Then I told him to check out the serving chart that I hade printed out from this thread. Right on the button. Two ounces with my own personal measurement. I made a believer out of that kid!


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 7, 2017)

The consensus is one serving = 2 ounces of pasta, dry measure. Coincidentally, just what the pasta package nutritional information says.

Now the next question:

What do you add to your boiling water before the pasta?

(1) nothing
(2) salt
(3) oil
(4) salt + oil

Or are there rules?


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## Kaneohegirlinaz (Mar 7, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> The consensus is one serving = 2 ounces of pasta, dry measure. Coincidentally, just what the pasta package nutritional information says.
> 
> Now the next question:
> 
> ...



If I'm making pasta ahead to use later, say in a soup, I 

boil water, 
add salt (I use 1Tbsp/lb of dry pasta), 
cook pasta as directed, 
drain well (DO NOT rinse), 
transfer to a bowl, toss with olive oil (just a bit) so that they don't stick together.

I like to add the pasta to soups as I serve it. So I place a portion of the now cooked and lightly oiled pasta to an individual serving bowl and top with the REALLY hot soup.

But rules?
I don't really care for too many rules, 
life's a party


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## Andy M. (Mar 7, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> The consensus is one serving = 2 ounces of pasta, dry measure. Coincidentally, just what the pasta package nutritional information says.
> 
> Now the next question:
> 
> ...



Rules, conventional wisdom, etc.  Salted water and no oil ever.  Oil coats the pasta and prevents sauce from sticking.


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## Addie (Mar 7, 2017)

Always salt the pasta water. No salt in the water and it is just too late after it is cooked. I can't think of any food that taste as bad or flat as unsalted pasta.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 7, 2017)

Addie said:


> Always salt the pasta water. No salt in the water and it is just too late after it is cooked. I can't think of any food that taste as bad or flat as unsalted pasta.


What is the difference between salting before and salting after?


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## Addie (Mar 7, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> What is the difference between salting before and salting after?



Salting after is like all the salt just sits on top of the pasta and never becomes part of the dish as a whole. Salting the water, the salt dissolves in the water is then absorbed into the pasta and becomes part of the food. 

Cook first a small portion in unsalted boiling water. Just three or four strands of pasta. When it is done remove the strands and taste them. Then salt the water and repeat. You will see a tremendous difference. 

Many years ago I asked my downstairs neighbor who came from Italy, why she didn't add the salt to the flour when she was making her pasta. Something she did faithfully every day. You would have thought that I cursed God right to His face. When she calmed down she explained to me that it makes the pasta tough and difficult to cook. It would never become soft enough to even chew. That was her explanation. How true it is, I can't say. I took her word for it and have never added salt to any pasta I have made by hand.


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## Dawgluver (Mar 7, 2017)

I never salted my pasta water for many years, but after watching Ann Burell and Rachel Ray, I've done it a few times.  Both say to salt it like the sea.

Frankly, I don't notice that much difference, other than it tastes saltier.  I wouldn't do the salting after either.


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## Cooking Goddess (Mar 8, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> ...What do you add to your boiling water before the pasta?
> 
> (1) nothing
> (2) salt
> ...


Rules, smools. The rules I follow are the ones I make. My kitchen, my rules.

That being said, I also salt the water. No oil in the water if I'm using it for a pasta meal. However, I will add water if I'm using the pasta for a pasta salad. After all, I'll be adding a dressing that includes oil to the pasta. Therefore, I will put about a Tbsp of oil into the water right as I'm dropping the pasta into the pot.


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## Andy M. (Mar 8, 2017)

Cooking Goddess said:


> Rules, smools. The rules I follow are the ones I make. My kitchen, my rules.
> 
> That being said, I also salt the water. No oil in the water if I'm using it for a pasta meal. However, I will add water if I'm using the pasta for a pasta salad. After all, I'll be adding a dressing that includes oil to the pasta. Therefore, I will put about a Tbsp of oil into the water right as I'm dropping the pasta into the pot.



Not sure I understand why.  If you're making pasta salad, cook the pasta in salted water, drain, rinse and toss it with the dressing so the pasta absorbs the flavors of the dressing.


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## GotGarlic (Mar 8, 2017)

Andy M. said:


> Not sure I understand why.  If you're making pasta salad, cook the pasta in salted water, drain, rinse and toss it with the dressing so the pasta absorbs the flavors of the dressing.


Same here. I don't understand the purpose of adding oil to pasta water before cooking. I do salt it. Dawg, that's exactly the reason for salting the cooking water - to season the pasta while it's cooking. 

I've found that sprinkling cooked, drained pasta with vinegar and other seasonings flavors it much better than tossing it with a dressing. I give it a few minutes to absorb the seasonings, then add the oil or mayonnaise, depending on what kind I'm making.


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## medtran49 (Mar 8, 2017)

GotGarlic said:


> Same here. I don't understand the purpose of adding oil to pasta water before cooking. I do salt it. Dawg, that's exactly the reason for salting the cooking water - to season the pasta while it's cooking.
> 
> *I've found that sprinkling cooked, drained pasta with vinegar and other seasonings flavors it much better than tossing it with a dressing. I give it a few minutes to absorb the seasonings, then add the oil or mayonnaise, depending on what kind I'm making*.


 
I recently found out you should do that with potatos for potato salad.  Cook them, do the above, then let the potatos cool, then add rest of your dressing.  It does make a difference, gives it a fuller rounder flavor.


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## GotGarlic (Mar 8, 2017)

medtran49 said:


> I recently found out you should do that with potatos for potato salad.  Cook them, do the above, then let the potatos cool, then add rest of your dressing.  It does make a difference, gives it a fuller rounder flavor.


Yes, I've been doing it with potatoes, too. Definitely makes a difference [emoji2]


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 8, 2017)

Thanks for explaining it to me. I think I'll pre-salt and skip the oil from now on.


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## msmofet (Mar 10, 2017)

In my house 1 lb. pasta is 8 servings. So it is 2 meals for the 4 of us.

I always salt the water when cooking pasta.

I find adding the vinegar and spices to hot potatoes, pasta or veggies allows it to absorb the flavors easier and quicker.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 10, 2017)

I have a little plastic thingy which has holes on it indicating 1, 2, 3, etc., portion sizes. You push the spaghetti, etc., through to gauge portion size. It only works with long thin pasta, though.

I don't know where it came from and I've never used it. I just go by eye and people always accept "seconds".


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 11, 2017)

Msmofet you confirmed the 2 oz serving size.

Mad Cook, around here we call people who eat seconds "weight challenged." Admittedly this varies depending on person. A gowning teenager could probably eat 4-5 oz of spaghetti and burn it up.


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## Addie (Mar 12, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Msmofet you confirmed the 2 oz serving size.
> 
> Mad Cook, around here we call people who eat seconds "weight challenged." Admittedly this varies depending on person. A gowning teenager could probably eat 4-5 oz of spaghetti and burn it up.



Growing up, my kids had their own dishes to eat from. They got pasta served In cereal bowls. Adults' food went on a dinner plate. As the kids grew, salad plates replaced the bowl. By the time they were teenagers, my boys could eat me out of house and home from dinner plates. And my first born (daughter) could out eat the both of them.  I am sure if I cooked 1-1/2 pound of pasta of any shape or length, the family would have left the table with full tummies and empty plates. I tried to practice 'portion control.' Plus limiting the intake of carbs. Healthy kids, healthy appetites. Today, cooking for just myself, I use a salad plate and am lucky to get down two ounces. What I like about pasta is that it is so easy to cook. Crack open a jar of commercial gravy, a couple of spoonful's of it with a small pat of butter. I am a happy person and feel full. I restock my pasta about every three months.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 13, 2017)

Addie said:


> Always salt the pasta water. No salt in the water and it is just too late after it is cooked. I can't think of any food that taste as bad or flat as unsalted pasta.


I can agree with that, Addie.

Unless someone has serious, medically diagnosed, salt issues, the amount of salt absorbed by pasta from the cooking water can't be much. I'm not a salt lover but even I find pasta cooked in unsalted water is pretty dire.

The packaging for the last lot of salt that I bought has a sell-by date (why - on salt?) of 2005, which shows how much salt I use! (A matter of taste not health)


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## Mad Cook (Mar 13, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Msmofet you confirmed the 2 oz serving size.
> 
> Mad Cook, around here we call people who eat seconds "weight challenged." Admittedly this varies depending on person. A gowning teenager could probably eat 4-5 oz of spaghetti and burn it up.


And around here, "Greg Who Cooks", we call people who eat seconds "hungry"


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## CraigC (Mar 13, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Msmofet you confirmed the 2 oz serving size.
> 
> *Mad Cook, around here we call people who eat seconds "weight challenged."* Admittedly this varies depending on person. A gowning teenager could probably eat 4-5 oz of spaghetti and burn it up.



Wow, you seem to have a high opinion of your opinion if you think you speak for others. I often have seconds, eat as much pasta as I wish and still lose weight @59.

Where is that "dead horse" emoji when you need it?


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## Addie (Mar 13, 2017)

Mad Cook said:


> I can agree with that, Addie.
> 
> Unless someone has serious, medically diagnosed, salt issues, the amount of salt absorbed by pasta from the cooking water can't be much. I'm not a salt lover but even I find pasta cooked in unsalted water is pretty dire.
> 
> The packaging for the last lot of salt that I bought has a sell-by date (why - on salt?) of 2005, which shows how much salt I use! (A matter of taste not health)



All pasta is, is a mixture of flour and water. With a smidgen of salt. There simply is not enough salt in the preparation of the pasta to alter the taste. I don't know one single person who enjoys eating cooked the paste of flour and water. Not unless they have no taste buds at all.


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## medtran49 (Mar 13, 2017)

Addie said:


> All pasta is, is a mixture of flour and water. With a smidgen of salt. There simply is not enough salt in the preparation of the pasta to alter the taste. I don't know one single person who enjoys eating cooked the paste of flour and water. Not unless they have no taste buds at all.


 
No Addie, all pasta is NOT just flour and water.  Lots of people use eggs.  Lots of people DON'T put salt in their pasta dough, they let it absorb from the very salty cooking water.


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## taxlady (Mar 15, 2017)

tenspeed said:


> Most organic milk is UHT processed.
> 
> https://www.cooksillustrated.com/how_tos/5721-shelf-life-of-organic-milk?ref=HowTo_browse_14
> 
> The taste part is subjective.


Around here, a lot of the organic milk is fine filtered, which also gives it a shelf life of about a month. I usually look for that one. It's not just the difference in flavour. If you try to make yogourt, quark, or cheese with UHT milk, the protein won't coagulate properly. The higher temperature affects the protein in that way.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 15, 2017)

Mad Cook said:


> And around here, "Greg Who Cooks", we call people who eat seconds "hungry"


You surround my username with quotes? You do know, I really do cook. It's not just a name that means nothing.

I eat what I cook. I cook what I eat. I measure to ensure that I eat a good diet, but not so much that I get fat or gain weight.

I recognize that those with growing teenagers need to feed the gawking bird open beaks with whatever it takes to feed the maw.


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## msmofet (Mar 16, 2017)




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## CraigC (Mar 17, 2017)

msmofet said:


> View attachment 26426



! Thanks!


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## Greg Who Cooks (Mar 20, 2017)

Is there really any difference between store brands of dried pasta (e.g. Kroger's) and imported name brands. I've not been able to taste the difference but I'm not Italian. To me the sauce covers any difference.


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## taxlady (Mar 20, 2017)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> Is there really any difference between store brands of dried pasta (e.g. Kroger's) and imported name brands. I've not been able to taste the difference but I'm not Italian. To me the sauce covers any difference.


I buy wholewheat pasta. The organic Italian stuff is noticeably better than anything else I have tried. It's good enough that I usually munch some of it with no sauce.


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## medtran49 (Mar 20, 2017)

I prefer Barilla over just about anything we've had, other than fresh homemade, especially bucctini.


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## Addie (Mar 21, 2017)

medtran49 said:


> I prefer Barilla over just about anything we've had, other than fresh homemade, especially bucctini.



I love Buccatini. My mother would always hit me on the back of my head so I would stop eating it like it was straws. "Stop playing with your food! Whack!"


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## Addie (Mar 21, 2017)

We have a brand here made by Pastene. It is made in Italy and they send us all the ingredients you need for an authentic Italian meal. They are priced way out of my range. But when their tomatoes go on sale, folks will buy cases of them. I get two or three cans, if that. 

Because of the large Italian community we have in Boston, there are all kinds of pasta imported. But for me, they are too expensive. And I don't see any difference in the imported items and those made in America. But then I do try to live by "Buy America."


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