L'amore Italian Restaurant

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How To Make The Perfect Italian Pasta Sauce

If you are looking for the best way to make Italian pasta, then it is important for you not to overlook the sauce. When people think about Italian pasta, they usually think about Al Dente perfection. Even though this is incredibly important for your pasta dish, the sauce is just as important. Italian pasta sauce usually has a strong base with a bit of bite at the end of it. The secret is in the ingredients. 

Select Fresh Ingredients For Your Foundation

First, you need to make sure that you select fresh ingredients as the foundation of your pasta sauce. Even though you can certainly purchase something out of a jar, this is not going to create authentic Italian pasta sauce. Make sure that you select high-quality, extra virgin olive oil. Try to find an olive oil that comes in a dark bottle instead of a clear bottle. If the light strikes the clear bottle, is going to ruin the olive oil quickly. Then, make sure that you go with fresh garlic cloves instead of garlic powder. This is going to dramatically improve the quality of your sauce. Finally, don’t skimp on the air. Oregano, fresh basil, and red pepper flakes are going to go well with fresh tomatoes to create the body of your sauce. 

Allow The Sauce Time To Mix

When you put all of the ingredients together in the pot, make sure that you do not rush the process. You need to provide the sauce with plenty of time to sit. Do not hesitate to taste it along the way. Even though you might be worried about overpowering some of the flavors with your herbs and spices, this is also an incredibly important part of making perfect Italian pasta sauce. Spices and herbs are going to go a long way toward creating the authentic thing. 

Select The Right Pairing

Depending on what you are planning on serving with the pasta sauce, there are plenty of sauces from which to choose. Some of the most popular examples include marinara, arrabbiata, and vodka sauce. Do not hesitate to mix and match your meat, noodles, and vegetables with these various sauces. This can go a long way toward helping you figure out how to make the perfect Italian pasta sauce. After a few attempts, you should be able to bring Italy right to your kitchen!

 

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What Are The Top Italian Dining Traditions?

If you are thinking about having an Italian dinner, then you need to stay up-to-date on the top Italian dining Traditions. When people think about Italian food, they commonly think about delicious pasta, unique pizza, and meals that are bursting with flavor. At the same time, so truly get the entire Italian experience, it is a good idea to think about a few Italian dining traditions. What are a few of the top points to keep in mind? 

Bread And Pasta Do Not Go Together

First, it is important to highlight the role that red plays an Italian mule. Obviously, Italy is known for its delicious bread. At the same time, bread is also meant to be eaten first. Bread is a starch. Famed Italian pasta is also a starch. Therefore, they should not be eaten together. Bread should be eaten first. Once the bread is gone, the main course can be brought out. Be sure to eat bread like an Italian. This usually means with a soup or salad course. 

Coffee Is Only Allowed After Dinner

In Italy, coffee is seen as a way to help you digest your meal. Therefore, drinking it with the main course is seen as misguided. Therefore, coffee is always reserved for after the meeting. There are lots of variations on coffee including espressos, cappuccinos, and more. All of them are meant to be consumed after the meal is done. Furthermore, the caffeine in these drinks can help you stay awake if your body is tempted to fall asleep after eating a delicious Italian dinner. 

Italians Share Their Dishes

When you go to a restaurant in the United States, you are probably used to ordering a dish that is meant for you. This is not how it is done in Italy. An Italian dinner is meant to be shared. The goal is to try as many different dishes as possible. Therefore, Italian dishes are usually served on large plates that are meant to be passed around. This will also help facilitate conversation during dinner. Never try to eat all of the food on a single platter. This will be seen as rude. 

Eat Dinner Like An Italian

These are a few of the top traditions and etiquette tips to keep in mind when it comes to eating an Italian dinner. There is something special about Italian food. It is always packed with flavor. Make sure that you enjoy it like an Italian as well.

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What Does Al Dente Pasta Mean?

If you are looking for a way to cook your pasta like in Italian, then you have probably heard the term Al Dente pasta in the past. Al Dente is one of the most common styles of cooking pasta and is closely associated with Italian food. If you are trying to cook more pasta Al Dente, then your pasta needs to be tender but still firm to the bite. At the very least, your pasta should not be mushy. When it comes to Italian chef, will she pasta is the bane of their existence. If you want to cook your pasta Al Dente, there are a few key points to keep in mind. 

The Test For Al Dente Pasta

There are several ways that you can test your pasta to make sure that it is cooked Al Dente. One of the most common tips that many Italian chefs prefer to involves biting into a piece of pasta. When you bite into a piece of authentic pasta, you should see a tiny white dot located in the center of the piece of pasta. While this dot actually means that the center of the pasta is slightly undercooked, it lets you know that you have cooked your pasta Al Dente. 

Al Dente Pasta Has Some Bite To It

When you are trying to cook your pasta al dente, you should start biting into a piece of pasta a minute or two before the instructions indicated on the package. When you bite into it, you should notice some slight resistance to the pasta. If the pasta is still tender, then you have reached Al Dente perfection. Note that fresh pasta is going to feel a little bit different than dried pasta. Fresh pasta usually cooks quicker than dry pasta because fresh pasta still has some water to it. Still, even if you are working with fresh pasta, al dente pasta should still have some bite to it.

Never Overcook Pasta

If you want to cook your pasta like an Italian, and the biggest thing that you have to remember is not to overcook the pasta. If you are working with fresh pasta, it is going to cook more quickly. Therefore, you are going to have less margin for error. With this in mind, keep a close watch on your pasta and shoot for Al Dente every time. 

 

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The Top Tips for Making Perfect Italian Pasta

If you want to truly eat Italian pasta, and you have to be able to make it from scratch. Some people might be shocked at the idea of making their own pasta instead of simply buying it at the store. At the same time, there is something special about homemade pasta. Take a look at some of the top tips for making homemade pasta below. 

Consider The Sauce

First, you have to consider the sauce that is going to go with the pasta. There are different shapes of pasta and the shapes are important because they are meant to grab the sauce. For example, shorter pasta, such as penne and cavatelli are going to be better at grabbing onto the sauce than longer types of pasta. Furthermore, pasta that has ridges, such as rigatoni, is going to grab sauce better than pasta that is smooth. Therefore, you should consider this when you are thinking about what type of pasta you want to make. 

Start With Less Flour

Remember that it is easier to add more ingredients than to take it out. With this in mind, always start with less flour. Good pasta is usually going to be somewhere around 50 percent water by weight. It is better to start by making the dough a bit wetter because it is always easier to add more flour than it is to add more water. At the same time, you don’t want the final pasta to be caked in flour. Therefore, be sparing with a flower and add more if needed. 

Knead The Dough Thoroughly

Finally, the longer you knead the pasta dough, the easier it is going to be to roll out later. Therefore, try to knead it for at least 10 minutes at the start. Once the surface is no longer sticky, it will be good to go. This will help you create pasta that is uniform in color and smooth with those perfect dimples on the surface. 

Make Italian Pasta From Scratch

Once you are done with this process, let the dough rest. Try to rest it for at least a half-hour before shaping it. Following these tips will help you create the perfect Italian pasta. Don’t hesitate to try to make several different shapes! Some shapes of pasta are better are certain types of sauces than others.

 

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3159 E Lincoln Dr
Phoenix , AZ 85016
Phone: 602.381.3159

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Credit for most photos: Kay W. Eskridge: Images By Kay

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Lunch
TBD.
Dinner
Mon – Fri: 4pm–close
Saturday Dinner: 4pm–close

Note: We're closed from 3pm–4pm
Sunday Closed

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Mon – Fri: 4:00pm–6:00pm
No happy hour on Saturdays

Holidays: Closed Thanksgiving Day
Open Christmas Eve
Closed Christmas Day and Day after Christmas

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