The Only Times You Should Rinse Your Pasta

The Only Times You Should Rinse Your Pasta

When you’re cooking pasta properly, rinsing it after you boil it is usually a no-no. There are a few instances when it’s OK, though.

Photo by apasciuto

When you rinse pasta, it washes away all the remaining starches that allow sauce to cling it. Under normal circumstances, the more sauce you can get to stick, the better. Kelli Dunn at The Kitchn explains, however, that there are two times when you’re better off with rinsed pasta:

  • Pasta salad: It stops the cooking process so it doesn’t get mushy and keeps the pasta from clumping together.
  • Stir-fry: Reheating un-rinsed pasta could make it gummy and clump it together.

Other than those instances, strain your pasta and go right to adding your sauce! Let that starchy goodness do its thing.

When to Rinse Pasta (and When to Skip It) [The Kitchn]


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