Had to pick between fresh pasta and dry for my Sunday gravy and it almost ruined dinner

Last weekend I was prepping for a big family Sunday dinner and got stuck choosing between making fresh pasta from scratch or using the good dried stuff I get from that Italian grocery in my town. I figured fresh would impress everyone but I had like 4 hours to get everything done including the sauce which simmers for 3 of those. I went with fresh because I'm stubborn and it took me an extra 45 minutes rolling and cutting while the sauce was reducing. The noodles came out way too soft and they soaked up too much gravy making the whole dish kinda mushy. My uncle straight up said 'this would be better with boxed pasta' and he was right lol. Has anyone else regretted going fancy with fresh pasta when the occasion didn't really call for it?

2 comments

2 Comments

parkerb758d ago

Haha oh man. My buddy did the exact same thing for his in-laws. Spent forever rolling out fresh fettuccine and it turned into a sticky mess that clumped up like glue. Everyone just pushed it around their plates and his wife's dad went for seconds of the store-bought salad instead.

umab868d ago

Oh man, I gotta say something about the whole fresh vs dry debate. In my experience, fresh pasta really isn't meant for long-cooking sauces like Sunday gravy. That stuff is for light, quick sauces like butter and sage or a simple tomato basil. The dry pasta actually holds up better to the heavy, slow-simmered gravy because it's made with a different kind of flour and dried slowly. Your uncle was probably right, but not because fresh is bad. It's just a mismatch of tools for the job. I've definitely made that mistake myself, so you're not alone.