Cooking pappardelle

I'm using pappardelle as a substitute for wide Chinese flat wheat noodles when serving mapo eggplant. This is Pastene brand dried pappardelle and the noodles come wound up in nest shapes. The problem is that the nests don't come apart as the noodles boil--even if I stir them around with a fork. They tend to stick together in double layers and then they get almost mushy on the outside but not cooked enough inside.

Is there a neat trick way around this problem? All I can think of is to cook in two stages. Boil for five minutes or so to soften them up, remove the noodles and let them get cool enough to handle, separate the noodles by hand, then return to the pot to complete the cooking.

Any other suggestions?

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

The nest is typical of many Italian pastas--many of my favorites come that way--but your dilemma is not. They should slither apart as they soften in the cooking water. I've had one or two here and there that didn't cooperate, but not what you're describing. I think removing them and parting them is going to be your only option. And though I know it's a crime to many, I would also consider adding a little oil to your cooking water to make sure they didn't re-attach once they return to the pot.

Last night I tried taking the nests out after four minutes of boiling, letting them cool a bit, and trying to separate the strands. That wasn't enough time and I had mixed success with the separation process. The package says cook for 8 minutes. The pasta is decidedly undercooked at at that point. I'm thinking now that I'm just not cooking it long enough. Next time I'll be more patient and we'll see if the nests sort themselves out and separate properly. Thanks, Jenise.

-Paul W.

Paul, I’ve never used pastene pasta. I can’t remember using any of their products so I can’t comment on the problem at hand.

Katie and I loved a brand called Rustichella d’abruzzo”. It’s also a dried pasta and it has great flavor.
Also, there is a local brand “Valencita” (not sure of the spelling). They are in Hollis NH. This Pasta is fresh and are generally in a cold case. Unfortunately, the places local to me only have herb pappardelle.

Both brands have pappardelle and both are available at Lull Farm
Including the basic (no herb) valencita.

BTW. Lull also has Inner Beauty hot sauce. And heirloom tomatoes are plenty there (not the supermarket “heirlooms”. These actually have the variety names).

Lull Farm is a real gem. I keep finding hard-to-get things there. Most recently it was Mexican oregano and Sage Derby cheese. Market Basket used to carry Sage Derby but they stopped almost 10 years ago. Lull Farm had some, unlabeled (their cheese counter people didn't know what it is) and it's turned up at the cheese counter at Whole Foods in Nashua NH as well. I'll have to look through their pasta selection next time I'm there. And now that tomato season is in full swing I'll have to check out their selection of heirloom varieties.

-Paul W.

I went to Lull Farm today and found Rustichella d'Abruzzo tagliatelle and pappardelle. These differ from the Pastene brand in that they are made with semolina, durum wheat, and egg. The Pastine tagliatelle are made with semolina, durum wheat, and water. According to Marcella Hazan, there are two main ways to make pasta in Italy. The first is made from hard wheat (durum and/or semolina) and egg and is rolled out and cut. This is the traditional way tagliatelle is made. The second general way to make pasta is with a dough of hard wheat and water that is extruded through a die.

Heirloom Tomato Season is in full swing at Lull Farm right now. About 20 types of heirloom tomatoes for sale. I was disappointed last year when there were only a few heirloom tomatoes for sale at Lull. They told me that the summer drought conditions had ruined the crop. It's good to see the heirloom tomatoes back again this year.

-Paul W.