How To Make the Best Spaghetti Any Italian Grandmother Would Approve Of

Can’t seem to get your fill of all that wholesome cooking content you keep drooling over on social media? If you haven’t already, wait until you encounter one of those pasta grannies’ videos. They prioritize traditional Italian methods in their recipes to create the most delectable pasta but are not the most patient when teaching others. These pasta grannies are quite appalled and offended if you do it wrong. Lucky for you, we’ve found a mouthwatering spaghetti recipe you can practice making on your own without all the pressure.

The Two Stages To Making Italian Spaghetti

There are two stages to making spaghetti. Well, technically, three if you’re making the pasta at home.

Boiling the Pasta

It doesn’t matter how great your recipe is, if you aren’t boiling your noodles right, they’re going to be bland. Even if your sauce is world-class, you’re not going to be able to enjoy over-cooked, sticky, or tasteless noodles.

Store-bought vs. homemade pasta

Using store-bought noodles is fine, although an Italian grandmother will probably only approve of homemade pasta, so you may as well make that at home. All you need is flour, eggs, olive oil, salt, and a pasta maker. Just make the dough, let it rest for an hour, then let the pasta maker do the hard work for you.

Boil your spaghetti in salt water

So how should you cook your pasta so that it’s flavorful? After all, it’s just boiling. The answer is salt-water boiling. You need to boil your noodles in salt water, and if you don’t, you’re going to end up with tasteless pasta.

How long should you boil your pasta?

There’s no need to boil it over the recommended period. If the box says to cook for 15 minutes, you should take your noodles out at around the 10-minute mark. Then, if the spaghetti is still underdone, it’ll become fluffy and perfect when you saute it after adding the sauce.

Stir it carefully

You need to be mindful while boiling the spaghetti. We suggest not breaking the pasta in half and trying a spaghetti spoon for seamless stirring. Adding a little oil to your boiling water is a great way to keep the pasta from sticking to each other.

Preparing the Sauce

Once you’re done boiling your perfect noodles, the sauce has to follow. We like ours with notes of olive oil, hearty mushrooms, and a lot of tomatoes.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp black pepper powder
• ¼ tsp sugar
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 2 chopped garlic cloves
• 2 cups mushrooms (sliced)
• 3 tbsp fresh basil leaves (or to taste)
• 28 oz peeled tomatoes
• 15 oz canned tomato sauce
• 6 oz canned tomato paste

Preparation

1. Heat a large saucepan on medium.
2. Add some olive oil, chopped onions, and garlic. Stir fry them until they’re translucent.
3. Add mushrooms and keep stirring. Let everything cook until the mushrooms give up juices.
4. Add the peeled tomatoes and bring them to a boil. Pour in the tomato sauce and paste. Stir properly and let it cook until the sauce starts to bubble and has thickened.
5. Once it starts to thicken, add the salt, black pepper, oregano, and sugar.
6. Let the sauce cook for three more minutes.
7. Mix your cooked spaghetti with the sauce, or serve by adding it on top of your pasta.

Now you can take a seat and enjoy your traditional Italian cuisine.

The Takeaway

Spaghetti is a staple of traditional Italian cuisine, and we’ve brought you a recipe that’s not only tasty but also super easy. Remember, if you aren’t boiling your spaghetti in salt water, you’re doing it wrong. With these simple tips, you’ll be on your way to authentic Italian pasta.