Kitchen Chemistry. Cooking pasta

  • Context: High School 
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the best practices for cooking pasta, specifically the debate over whether to cook it with the lid on or off the pot. Participants explore the implications of each method on the cooking process, texture, and energy efficiency, touching on both culinary and physical principles.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • One participant argues that cooking pasta with a lid on could reduce the energy required by maintaining a constant boiling temperature, although they express uncertainty about the significance of the pressure increase on the boiling point.
  • Another participant claims that cooking pasta covered results in a slimy or starchy texture, suggesting that the method affects the final taste and quality of the pasta.
  • A question is raised about the physical differences in the water when cooking pasta with or without a lid, indicating a desire for a deeper understanding of the cooking process.
  • One participant humorously notes that while a covered pot may lead to poor pasta, an open pot is said to produce poor rice, implying a contrast in cooking methods for different foods.
  • Another participant suggests that pasta benefits from vigorous motion in the water, which is facilitated by cooking without a lid, as it promotes convection and heat distribution.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing opinions on the effects of cooking pasta with a lid versus uncovered, with no consensus reached on the best method or the reasons behind culinary recommendations.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention various factors such as energy efficiency, texture, and cooking dynamics, but do not resolve the underlying assumptions or conditions that may affect these outcomes.

mrspeedybob
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My wife insists that pasta is not to be cooked with the lid on the pot. I reason that the cooking temperature must be fairly constant at the boiling point of water, so the energy required to cook the pasta can be reduced by putting a lid on the pot and turning the burner down just enough that the water does not boil over. It is true that many online sources specify that pasta is to be cooked uncovered so I tried to come up with possible explanations.

I do understand that the lid will slightly raise the pressure at the surface of the water, thus causing a slight increase in the boiling point, but I can't imagine it being a significant increase.

A recipe that specifies pasta to be cooked uncovered may include a certain amount of extra water, which is intended to boil away. Making this recipe with that amount of water, but in a covered pot, may result in too much water remaining in the pot. I find this hypothesis unlikely due to the fact that pasta is usually drained of excess water after cooking.

Uncovered pasta is less likely to boil over and make a mess on the stove. I believe this is the most likely reason that most culinary web sites specify pasta to be cooked in an open pot.

Am I correct? Does anybody else have any insight on why most culinary websites specify pasta to be cooked uncovered? Can it, in fact, have a perceptable influence on the final product?
 
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If you cook pasta covered it'll go slimy/starchy.

So it's your choice, you can save 0.001% of the energy to cook the pasta that tastes terrible. OR, listen to your wife and do it properly.
 
What is physically different about the water that the pasta is cooking in that depends on the presence or absence of the lid?
 
Not got a clue, a covered pot makes crap pasta. An open pot makes crap rice.

It's magic.
 
mrspeedybob said:
What is physically different about the water that the pasta is cooking in that depends on the presence or absence of the lid?

Pasta cooks best when it's in constant vigorous motion. Lots of heat at the bottom of the pot and rapid heat loss at the top means lots of convection through the water to keep things moving. Indeed, if you're ever stuck trying to cook pasta over too small a burner, you can sometimes salvage the situation by vigorously stirring the pasta as it cooks.
 
That sounds plausable. Thanks.
 

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