| Good Eats episode Pantry Raid I: Use Your Noodle is | | | | fascinating segment. |
| part one of a three part series on the great essential | | | | When Alton Brown finally gets to the cooking portion |
| of the pantry, dried pasta. The show originally aired | | | | of the episode, there is a lot of good information to |
| on September 19, 1999. The show has appearances | | | | be had. Cooking pasta can be easy, and in this Good |
| by John Crow as a cook, Dr. Amy Trubeck as the | | | | Eats episode you get to see how to make it so. His |
| food anthropologist, Steven Pitts as a child who is | | | | big message is that you need a lot of water. You |
| eating pasta, Joe Brown as a cook, Luigi Martinelli as | | | | need more than the box says and you need a big |
| a pasta maker, Kelly Braun as a Tupperware Party | | | | pot to get all that water. It's a simple tip, but very |
| Lady, and Phyllis Cook as a Tupperware Lady as well. | | | | effective when you go to cook up some fettuccini |
| The star of this episode is, of course, dried pasta. | | | | or spaghetti. |
| The show opens with AB and food anthropologist, | | | | Finally, Brown covers simple sauces and anti-sauces |
| Dr. Amy Trubeck discussing the history of pasta. It | | | | and how to properly apply them to pasta without |
| apparently started in and around, surprise, Italy and | | | | over saucing it. He also talks about knowing when |
| China. Its popularity can be attributed to the fact | | | | pasta is done without overcooking so that you end |
| that it uses the grains the cultures were using | | | | up with the perfect pasta dish and no hassle. This is |
| anyway and it is easier to prepare than bread is. | | | | fantastic start to a great Good Eats trilogy. Good |
| Great emphasis is paid to the pasta itself. The trend | | | | Eats is always at its best when it takes a simple |
| in US cuisine is to emphasize the sauce and not the | | | | food we take for granted, and makes it even more |
| pasta, AB tries to change that mentality. He also is | | | | accessible and even better than we thought it could |
| quick to point out that dried pasta is in no way | | | | be. |
| inferior to fresh, merely different. | | | | Tip of the episode: When cooking pasta, salt is an |
| Mid way through the episode, we see how dried | | | | absolute must while oil is a no no. The oil just floats |
| pasta is made. It is one of those things that you | | | | on top and makes a mess, and what does stay on |
| have probably given very little thought to. This is one | | | | the pasta makes it resist sauce more than it would |
| of the highlights of this particular Good Eats since, in | | | | normally. |
| the tradition of the show, it a short, informative, and | | | | |