FOOD NEWS
The Cooking Liquid Tip For Incredibly Flavorful Pasta
By Allison Lindsey
If you're struggling to achieve vibrant flavors with your go-to pasta recipe, uncork a bottle of wine and let it bring complex, interconnecting flavor profiles to your pasta dish.
Because the alcohol content evaporates during the cooking process, the wine offers a subtle tapestry of flavors and aromas like sweet zest, earthy florals, and an acidic tang.
Wine also creates a luxuriously silky texture. Thanks to its natural acidity, it can reshape and balance a pasta sauce that's too rich from excessive butter or cream.
It can also help deglaze the browned bits of sauteed meat and aromatics that stick to the pot, integrating all of their flavors into the final pasta sauce.
Cooking wine can improve the flavor and texture of your pasta sauce, but some foodies and chefs think it best to opt for higher-quality drinking wine to get the best flavor.
White, refreshing wines like fruity pinot grigio and buttery chardonnay are excellent options for light or white cream pasta dishes made with seafood or poultry.
Red wines like cabernet and pinot noir work well with heartier, meatier pastas like spaghetti and meatballs or lasagna.