I make a tomato, kale and lemon one-pot pasta on repeat, however what different one-pot pastas ought to I strive?
Linda, Belfast
“One-pot pastas have a specific brilliance to them,” says Anna Jones, who’s behind the recipe of which you communicate and whose newest ebook, Straightforward Wins, is printed in March. Fortunately, this methodology, whereby you place the sauce components, the pasta and the cooking water multi function vessel, could be taken in quite a few instructions, although Jones says it’s particularly effectively suited to “buttery, lemony, olive oil-type sauces”.
To attain carb consolation, there are two colleges of thought. The primary, says Mateo Zielonka, writer of The Pasta Man, is “to combine chopped greens – broccoli, onion, tomatoes, herbs – pasta and water in a pan and convey to a boil”. The opposite possibility can be to “cook dinner onions, garlic and different greens in olive oil, then add the pasta and water, and simmer till the liquid is absorbed”. Both manner, success hinges on ratios, so Linda will want equal quantities of pasta to water. “You may then mess around with flavours,” Jones says, be that by including citrus zest, bashed-up spices, a tablespoon of harissa and even miso. Her present favorite is finely chopped inexperienced olives and capers, which go right into a pan with a load of lemon zest. “On the finish, stir by way of inexperienced herbs. It’s easy, it’s vivid and it’s scrumptious.”
Grated squash tossed in on the finish of cooking is one other good shout: “It softens and, when blended with the starchy pasta water, creates a silky sauce,” Jones says. She may additionally add crushed coriander seeds, a pinch of cinnamon or sauteed purple onions, “though you’d clearly must cook dinner these in a separate pan first“. Zielonka, in the meantime, would cook dinner onions and garlic in oil till simply golden, then add sliced mushrooms. “When you’ve got any white wine handy, add a splash and cut back. Subsequent add rigatoni or casarecce, combine and canopy with water.” A parmesan rind wouldn’t go amiss, both. Simmer till the pasta is al dente, then fold by way of chopped parsley or spinach, plus taleggio or cream.
Rosie Birkett, of the A Lot on Her Plate Substack, is at the moment right into a “form of hybrid between a sauce/soup and pasta; you find yourself with one thing slurpy, warming and scrumptious, and you’ve got just one pot to wash”. This interprets right into a minestrone of kinds. She begins with “a model of soffritto – diced celery, onion, carrot – softened in olive oil and butter for a couple of minutes with salt and pepper, possibly some chilli, and spices similar to coriander seeds or fennel seeds”. In goes chopped garlic adopted by finely chopped chard stalks, a tin or jar of beans or chickpeas – “it really works rather well with purple beans, although they can lead to a sludgy color” – rooster inventory and leafy greens. “Snap spaghetti in half, then cook dinner it within the inventory till al dente. Take the pot off the warmth, cowl and let it accept a few minutes, then add lemon juice and chopped herbs.” High with pangrattato or grated parmesan, and drizzle with oil.
Lastly, proving that nonna is aware of greatest, Rob Chambers, govt chef at Luca in London, heads again to his childhood with pasta e fagioli. “It’s a basic that my nonna used to make. In a big pot, mix cooked cannellini beans with finely chopped soffritto, a parmesan rind and chopped pancetta, guanciale or ham hock.” Chuck in “brief and small” pasta and rooster inventory, cook dinner till al dente, then eat drizzled with oil, parsley and celery leaf. Tender, brown, substantial: perfetto!
