How to Use Pasta in Soup
Pasta often is used as an ingredient in Italian soup recipes, including the classic minestrone (literally meaning "big soup"). When used in soups, pasta adds texture or bulk. Fresh pasta cut into little pieces can be used, but dried pasta is more common. Small tubes such as macaroni and spaghetti broken into small pieces are popular. You also can buy special soup pasta shapes of various sizes. It is critical to add the pasta toward the end of the cooking process. Pasta always should be cooked "al dente" -- meaning literally "to the bite" -- because overcooked pasta is soggy. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Choose a suitable recipe that has pasta as one of the ingredients. Traditional Italian minestrone is a good choice.
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Choose a pasta to use in your soup. Select a chunky pasta type such as macaroni for hearty, thicker soups such as minestrone, or a smaller type such as Conchigliette (baby shells) for thinner, lighter soups. Check the packaging to find out how long your choice of pasta should cook for.
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Prepare the recipe according to the instructions, and allow it to cook with everything except the pasta for as long as instructed but less the time it will take your pasta to cook. For example, if the recipe says to cook your soup for 35 minutes and your pasta takes 10 minutes, you should simmer the soup without the pasta for 25 minutes.
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Add the correct quantity of pasta to the soup according to your recipe and simmer for only as long as indicated on the packaging. Macaroni, for example, is cooked "al dente" in 9 minutes. Serve and enjoy.
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References
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