I know you're supposed to put salt in the water when you're cooking pasta, both to aid in anti-starch gelation and to add flavour.
This got me thinking – what ELSE can pasta absorb from the water it is boiled in? I suppose it couldn't be anything, probably depends on the surface of the pasta, its cells, etc.
To test I put a LOT of nutmeg in a bowl of water, boiled it and dropped some couscous in it.
The couscous didn't taste like nutmeg at all. I guess it could be because the nutmeg does not dissolve in water but still – does pasta absorb everything that is dissolved in the water it is cooked in? Does that mean we can create super-pasta if we boil it in sauce or something?
Best Answer
It can absorb spices.
I have a Sicilian couscous recipe which involves boiling large couscous in water with a couple of cinnamon sticks. The couscous tastes mildly of cinnamon when it's done, which is part of the balanced spicing of the recipe. The large couscous in this case is boiled for 7 minutes, and you put the cinnamon sticks in while the water is still cold.