When I make spaghetti sauce, I always double or even triple the recipe. After we've eaten a meal from the batch, I freeze the rest in freezer bags and lay them flat to conserve space.
That is probably not new to most cooks, but I wanted to share this information I learned, from a friend who owns an Italian restaurant (repeatedly voted the best in town). They cook up huge batches of pasta and refrigerate or even freeze it. When an order comes in, they take out the appropriate amount of the cold pasta, dip it in boiling hot water, drain and serve. It's as fresh as if it were just cooked!
I often refrigerate or freeze leftover pasta. I save out enough sauce for another meal, and when I'm ready to serve it, I just pull out the bag of leftover pasta, dip it into boiling water, drain and enjoy a meal that is a snap to fix. I have tried both the refrigerated pasta and some I've frozen. We can't tell the difference.
This is a nice trick to have up your sleeve on a busy day. Not only have you been frugal by not tossing leftovers, but you've saved yourself from double prep and clean up time.
By Sandy from Elon, NC
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This is a great idea. I have always made a big batch of "gravy" and freeze the leftover. But the pasta tip is great. I don't know about everyone else, but when I cook pasta it is always too much, cause when you look at it dry it just needs a little bit more, usually the amount leftover, so I love not throwing it away. Thanks Linda.
I made spaghetti sauce yesterday & put in ziplock bags. They were in the freezer all night but never froze. Why???? This is my first time ever doing this. Although it is delicious!
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Make a batch of spaghetti sauce and/or soup from time to time. Then freeze convenient quantities for easy meals in the future.
- Linda - Norfolk, VA
