Pasta is an ideal recipe for almost every occasion, and while nothing beats a warming bowl during the colder months, there’s nothing quite like tucking into a fresh pasta salad in the summer. Ideal for lunch or dinner, it can easily be transformed with a few ingredients found in the kitchen.
You might look forward to experimenting with different ingredients in a pasta salad, many of us dread the thought of cooking during the hot weather. Standing over the kitchen hob waiting for the pasta to cook, and keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t boil over, can be uncomfortable when temperatures are already high. Fortunately, one TikTok user has shared some advice for “how to cook pasta when it’s way too hot to cook pasta”.
In a video posted by Amiyrah Martin, the TikTok user shared how you can prepare and cook pasta without having to stand over a hot kitchen hob waiting for it to be done.
While many of us cook pasta by adding it to boiling water and leaving it for ten minutes or so until it’s ready, or al dente, Amiyrah said: “We most definitely do not want to be cooking over a stove when it’s 90 degrees (fahrenheit) outside.”
Instead, Amiyrah brings a pot of water to a boil, and instructs viewers to add their pasta of choice to the water as soon as it starts boiling. Giving it a stir immediately, she then proceeds to put the lid back on the top of the pot, and turns the heat off.
“Turn off the heat and push it to the back of your stove and walk away,” she said to viewers. It might sound odd, but Amiyrah assured viewers that the pasta will cook itself in the hot water.
Taking around 20 minutes to complete, while Amiyrah suggested reading a book or even taking a quick nap in this time, it also gives you plenty of time to prepare everything for your pasta salad.
One TikTok user said: “Thank you! This is how I cook rice but never thought of pasta. I’m sensitive to heat, so this technique of yours is gold.”
This method of cooking pasta isn’t new, however, and is in fact often referred to as the Vincenzo Agnesi method, although Amiyrah has made some changes to it.
A cooking technique first tested by Vincenzo Agnesi over 50 years ago, part of the Agnesi family now known for producing their own pasta, the technique is said to save 75% of energy and water while cooking.
Also known as passive pasta cooking, there’s a few different ways to do this, and Nigella Lawson has also recommended using this method on her website as she says it “reduces the risk of overcooking”.
However, she lets the pasta cook for two minutes before turning off the heat and placing a clean tea towel over the pot, and leaving it to cook (so to speak) for as long as the packet says to with a lid on top too.
Amiyrah’s method is slightly less fussy, and while it takes longer, it gives you more time to think about what you want to add to your salad.