# Pot sized spaghetti **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 18, 2018, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765 "2018-03-18T05:32:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/61 "2018-03-19T14:24:48Z")
There used to be a store near my old house where you could buy fresh made pasta to take home and cook. They would cut it right in front of you. It was great. Love the stuff. (I know some people can’t seem to tell the difference, my Wife being one). ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/62 "2018-03-19T15:08:09Z")
> [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](#): > > I promise I’m not being facetious here, but…what does that mean? At first glance I took it to mean “putting the sauce and the pasta together” but that’s surely not deplorable, that’s just…well, that’s just serving a meal. Isn’t it? > [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](#): > > Yeah, that’s what I thought. I rather get the impression that mixing it is the better way to do it though: there’s less opportunity for the uncovered pasta to cool/dry out/coagulate. Whenever I’ve eaten pasta in Italy, it’s come mixed in the sauce. Hence I wondered if there was something I was missing: I didn’t think that coating pasta in the sauce that’s been made expressly and exclusively to coat it could really be thought so terrible. Yes, the mixing before serving is what I was condemning. I always put the pasta on a plate and then ladle the sauce over it. As I said earlier, I don’t care about tradition and I don’t care what Italians allegedly do, I keep it separate for the same reason that I sautee whole mushrooms separately and distribute them around the sides and top, and for the same reason that the Parmigiano is sprinkled over the top instead of being thrown into the sauce. Sure, it’s all going to be eaten together, but part of the joy of eating is the differences in taste and texture in the various distinguishable complementary ingredients. That said, when there is leftover spaghetti, there is no alternative but to put it in a casserole dish and mix it with the sauce, since by the end of the meal the leftover noodles in the colander are already sticking together. I throw in the leftover mushrooms and put it in the fridge and it makes a passable microwave meal the next day, but to my mind it’s more like a pauper’s dinner compared to the feast of the night before. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/63 "2018-03-19T15:41:43Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Unless you can give me a real cooking reason, which none of you have. What difference in texture is there in 5" vs 10" cooked strands? How about this… Let’s ask your wife if she prefers 10" or the usual 5". Also, Rao’s sauces are beyond reproach if you’re not making your own. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/64 "2018-03-19T16:15:40Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Also, Rao’s sauces are beyond reproach if you’re not making your own. That’s the only jarred sauce I’ve tasted that I actually enjoyed, and wasn’t just some “well, I need food in my belly, I don’t care what it tastes like.” That said, I just can’t bring myself to spend like eight bucks for a friggin jar of spaghetti sauce. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/65 "2018-03-19T16:26:44Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > How about this… Let’s ask your wife if she prefers 10" or the usual 5". She breaks the pasta when she’s cooking. It’s purely based on the fact that we cook such a small amount and use such a small pan. One-third of a box is both dinner and a leftovers lunch, maybe two. If you have a large family you might never think that way. Basically, you’re telling me to whittle a tree to make a tastier toothpick. We don’t mix the pasta and the sauce. But we do have a recipe that calls for cooking the meatballs, once they’re browned, in a sauce made from tomato sauce and tomato paste, other stuff added appropriately, which imparts a nice flavor to them and can be ladled over the pasta. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/66 "2018-03-19T16:54:34Z")
Well, I’ve completely stopped browning MY meatballs. I prepare the sauce, get it simmering, then form each meatball and drop ‘em one at a time into the pot. Makes for a nice, tender meatball. How do you like THEM apples? Come on, everybody pile on. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/67 "2018-03-19T17:14:18Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Well, I’ve completely stopped browning MY meatballs. That’s good because the ideal meatball is, for lack of a better word, “porous”. It is firm enough not to fall apart, but soft enough to allow the sauce to permeate the meatball. When you brown meatballs, you are essentially sealing the surface so this process cannot take place. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/68 "2018-03-19T17:21:32Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > That’s the only jarred sauce I’ve tasted that I actually enjoyed, and wasn’t just some “well, I need food in my belly, I don’t care what it tastes like.” That said, I just can’t bring myself to spend like eight bucks for a friggin jar of spaghetti sauce. We catch it on sale for $5.99 and stock up. BTW, if you make your own pizza at home, Rao’s pizza sauce is fantastic as well. Trader Joe’s is a solid second place though, at 1/3 the price of Rao’s. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/69 "2018-03-19T17:34:20Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Well, I’ve completely stopped browning MY meatballs. I prepare the sauce, get it simmering, then form each meatball and drop ‘em one at a time into the pot. Makes for a nice, tender meatball. > > How do you like THEM apples? Come on, everybody pile on. > [@Jasmine](#): > > That’s good because the ideal meatball is, for lack of a better word, “porous”. It is firm enough not to fall apart, but soft enough to allow the sauce to permeate the meatball. When you brown meatballs, you are essentially sealing the surface so this process cannot take place. Colloquially called, “gravy”. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/70 "2018-03-19T17:39:43Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > We don’t mix the pasta and the sauce. But we do have a recipe that calls for cooking the meatballs, once they’re browned, in a sauce made from tomato sauce and tomato paste, other stuff added appropriately, which imparts a nice flavor to them and can be ladled over the pasta. Spaghetti a la [Lady and the Tramp](https://www.google.com/search?q=image+lady+and+the+tramp&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=UVX8HaTmaO9gQM%253A%252Co_bn3_4ectbJ4M%252C_&usg=__K6eSsYzBs4Tu216-N1pLQzIbdR0%3D&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjNvZTe9vjZAhUEZN8KHdo1B5AQ9QEIKTAA#imgrc=UVX8HaTmaO9gQM:). 😉 ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/71 "2018-03-19T18:06:35Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Well, I’ve completely stopped browning MY meatballs. I prepare the sauce, get it simmering, then form each meatball and drop ‘em one at a time into the pot. Makes for a nice, tender meatball. > > How do you like THEM apples? Come on, everybody pile on. Actually… that sounds pretty good. I’ll try that next time I make spag’n’balls. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/72 "2018-03-19T18:15:30Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > That’s the only jarred sauce I’ve tasted that I actually enjoyed, and wasn’t just some “well, I need food in my belly, I don’t care what it tastes like.” That said, I just can’t bring myself to spend like eight bucks for a friggin jar of spaghetti sauce. This. Same same for [Michael’s of Brooklyn](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Michael-s-Of-Brooklyn-Gluten-Free-Sauce-Arrabbiata-32-Oz/52794379?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222227045563811&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=116133525849&wl4=pla-204559701369&wl5=9031472&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=52794379&wl13=&veh=sem). Good jarred sauce but the price is ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/73 "2018-03-19T18:29:38Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > That’s good because the ideal meatball is, for lack of a better word, “porous”. It is firm enough not to fall apart, but soft enough to allow the sauce to permeate the meatball. When you brown meatballs, you are essentially sealing the surface so this process cannot take place. Uh-huh. More traditional advice? [Should You Brown Meatballs Before Cooking?](https://www.chowhound.com/food-news/135678/should-you-brown-meatballs-before-cooking/) > [@](#): > > When you make Italian-style meatballs simmered in tomato sauce, there are a few ways you can go. You can brown the uncooked meatballs in a sauté pan before adding them to the sauce (that’s the method in the CHOW Test Kitchen’s Spaghetti and Meatballs recipe, pictured). [Food52](https://food52.com/hotline/19356-how-to-brown-meatballs-evenly) > [@](#): > > I just made meatballs (in tomato sauce, for spaghetti). They are delicious, but unevenly browned. The recipes I consulted (including Lucinda Scala Quinn’s Mad Hungry and the always-reliable 365-Ways to Cook Hamburger and Other Ground Meat) call for browning the meatballs evenly before simmering in the tomato sauce. [Bon Appetit](https://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/common-mistakes/article/the-8-most-common-meatball-making-mistakes) > [@](#): > > There’s a reason nobody ever poaches beef–you don’t get nearly as much flavor as when the meat hits a hot pan. Sear the balls for a nice brown crust (if you’re cooking for a crowd, space the meatballs out evenly and just throw the pan into a hot oven for the same effect), then braise them. It’s really hard to overcook them in your sauce, since they’re sitting in liquid. Braise them for about 15-20 minutes, or until you’re ready to serve them. ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/74 "2018-03-19T18:30:11Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > Yes, the mixing before serving is what I was condemning. I always put the pasta on a plate and then ladle the sauce over it. As I said earlier, I don’t care about tradition and I don’t care what Italians allegedly do It’s your meal, obviously, and you’re clearly welcome to enjoy it the way you enjoy it! I don’t particularly care about the tradition of it either - if it tasted good to crunch it straight from the bag then I’d do so - it’s more that it’s not too silly to at least try taking recommendations about how to serve pasta from Italian cooks. I have, and have found them to be A Good Thing. It was certainly the case here in the UK for many years that - along with the rest of our bastardised culinary interpretations - standard service technique was “sauce on a bed of pasta”. Then I came to realise that “pasta with sauce” is an item, a unified recipe: the pasta isn’t finished and fit for service till it’s dressed, and the sauce combines properly with the pasta if done so as part of the cooking process. And I don’t think there’s anything ‘alleged’ about Italians serving it like that! ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/75 "2018-03-19T18:43:47Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > There’s a reason nobody ever poaches beef–you don’t get nearly as much flavor as when the meat hits a hot pan. Sear the balls for a nice brown crust (if you’re cooking for a crowd, space the meatballs out evenly and just throw the pan into a hot oven for the same effect), then braise them. It’s really hard to overcook them in your sauce, since they’re sitting in liquid. Braise them for about 15-20 minutes, or until you’re ready to serve them. Yes! Maillard reaction = flavour! “Sealing” isn’t really what happens - even with solid slabs of meat like steaks and chops. Interesting cultural aside though: American diners appear far more tenderness-obsessed then much of the rest of the world, if recipe sites/cookery shows/forums are anything to go by. I don’t want meatballs _too_ tender, I want a bit of texture. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/76 "2018-03-19T19:00:00Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I love the feel of biting into a big forkful of spaghetti and the way the strands break under your teeth. I have no position on long vs. short spaghetti. But please tell me you don’t bite your fork. That sound is… there are no words for that sound. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/77 "2018-03-19T19:00:43Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > That’s good because the ideal meatball is, for lack of a better word, “porous”. It is firm enough not to fall apart, but soft enough to allow the sauce to permeate the meatball. When you brown meatballs, you are essentially sealing the surface so this process cannot take place. Two problems with this: The sauce does not permeate the meatball or any other sort of meat. If it did, the meatball would fall apart. Browning meat doesn’t seal anything. ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/78 "2018-03-19T19:19:32Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Two problems with this: > > The sauce does not permeate the meatball or any other sort of meat. If it did, the meatball would fall apart. > > Browning meat doesn’t seal anything. Quite so. Otherwise, it would be impossible to have dried out, leathery pork chops. And lamentably, it’s not… ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/79 "2018-03-19T19:44:37Z")
> [@wonky](#): > > I have no position on long vs. short spaghetti. But please tell me you don’t bite your fork. That sound is… there are no words for that sound. No, I do not bite my fork. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2018, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765/80 "2018-03-19T19:52:18Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > No, I do not bite my fork. Thank god. Carry on! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-sized-spaghetti/810765.md?page=5)