Really Good Pasta Ideas

[Pickman's model]

I read "really good pasty ideas".
I click.
I feel disappointed.

I read 'really good party ideas' so all this pasta bit's something of a let-down

 

[Ming]

Make a low and slow cooked Ragu (with chicken livers). Make a lasagne with it. Put slices of mozzarella in each layer rather than a bechamel sauce. Put thin slices of Parmesan cheese on the top (gives a nice crust). Morrisons used to do pre sliced Parmesan for the topping.
Serve with a salad. Which no one will eat.

 

[Nine Bob Note]

• Buy 24 boxes of "Cheesy Pasta" (similar to Kraft Mac and Cheese, but somehow more artificial and sold in a red box) when it's on offer in your supermarket of choice
• Throw the nasty quick-cook pasta away
• Boil dried Spirali (Cavatappi) for ten minutes in salted water
• Drain, wash and return to the heat
• Add a knob of butter, a spoonful of Philly and a splash of milk for each person
• Add two heaped spoonfuls of the radioactive cheese powder per person
• Stir, serve and sprinkle over fresh parsley for sophistication.
• Enjoy

 

[Saffy]

Marmite pasta is one of my favourite things.

 

[MrCurry]

For pasta, I make a bolognese sauce in a big batch in possibly the most complex and over-long way possible.

My wife makes a creme fraische sauce for pasta, with bacon and sweetcorn in, which takes about 15 mins start to finish (not including crisping up the bacon beforehand) and produces a better result. Without wishing to generalise too much, I feel this does illustrate the difference between women and men! I recommend to you my wife’s approach in any case.

My notes on it:

275g penne pasta
1 small plain creme fraische 200ml
1 small paprika/chilli creme fraische 200ml
1 small tin (150g) sweetcorn, drained
1 pack streaky bacon 120g
0.25 lvl tsp salt

Cut up bacon finely and cook fan oven 200C 10-15 mins until crispy and dark
Bring pasta water to boil and add pasta for 11mins
Add bacon and corn to frying pan on medium heat then without delay, add both creme fraische and salt, mix well and boil sauce briefly (30 secs)
Drain pasta and add back to saucepan then add sauce and mix thru

Serve immediately. Will dry out if left too long because the creme fraische soaks into the pasta.

 

[danny la rouge]

I can’t get Fez909 ’s rigatoni picture off my mind; it’s been distressing me ever since I saw it. I had no idea this was an issue for me!!!

 

[dessiato]

My go to for cheapness speed and ease is to sweat off some onion and garlic in the oil from a can of tuna. Then add the tuna and some dried chilli flakes. Heat it through

 

[8115]

Nigel Slater's sausage, mustard and cream pasta is amazing.

 

[Fez909]

I can’t get Fez909 ’s rigatoni picture off my mind; it’s been distressing me ever since I saw it. I had no idea this was an issue for me!!!

 

[danny la rouge]

 

[trabuquera]

Works for any sort of green and won't give you tryptophobia:

Choose some pretty robust, flour-only dry pasta shapes (penne rigate, farfalle, but not flat spaghetti/linguine/noodly kinds)
Parboil some horribly healthy green stuff (ideally broccoli, but cauliflower, kale, savoy cabbage, even green beans would work) until softened but NOT completely cooked. Put your pasta on to cook and while it's boiling away, melt 1-2 chopped jarred anchovies per person, a fat clove of minced garlic per person, and half a fresh chili or a pinch of chili flakes per person in a different pan, in some nice olive oil over a very low heat (you really want to be just melting the anchovies and warming, rather than cooking, the garlic. The garlic shouldn't colour at all.) As soon as the anchovies have disintegrated, stir your parboiled and drained veg into this flavoured oil. Then stir through the pasta when that's been cooked and drained. Quick, healthy, not dear, savoury enough not to be completely boring. Even better with loads of grated parmesan or pecorino on it, but this may alienate vegans or people who don't like stinky cheese.

 

[maomao]

Have you ever eaten an English crumpet?

 

[Fez909]

Even better with loads of grated parmesan or pecorino on it, but this may alienate vegans

I think the vegans might also have a thing to say about the anchovies

 

[pug]

Cook pasta shells in lots of water, at the appropriate moment depending on taste add a load of frozen broad beans to the boiling pasta, continue boiling until done, drain, add butter and olive oil black pepper stir add parmezan when serving.

 

[polly]

I used to live with a load of Italians. When we were broke, pissed and hungry, one of them used to soften loads of garlic in a frying pan, add chilli flakes and little pieces of stale bread (nice Italian bread so hard and crunchy, not Sunblest) and fry it all until the bread went brown, then add cooked spaghetti. I remember it being really carby and delicious. It's maybe not one to serve your mates for a special dinner, but was good end-of-the-month, soak up the beers food.

 

[Part 2]

This a favourite.....pasta, aubergine, tomatoes, onion chilli, mozzarella and parmesan, olive oil, salt, pepper.

Aubergine pasta sauce

 

[zora]

Guys, can you please cut out the trypophobia shit? It was kinda humourous the first time, but to carry on posting triggery pics on a gentle pasta thread after someone has explicitly expressed distress is not cool (and yes, the images are making me heave, too!)