Baked Pasta Tips

By Mark Strausman

Tips for turning tossed pasta into baked:

Use any dried pasta other than capellini. These ultrathin strands blot up the sauce and dry out when baked.
Boil the pasta until it’s al dente. There’s no need to undercook the pasta before baking because it’s in the oven for only a short time and won’t turn mushy.
Avoid tossed pastas with egg sauces. The raw eggs in carbonara and similar sauces will scramble when baked. Add more eggs to make a frittata.
Stay away from seafood pastas. Canned tuna is fine but cooked fresh seafood like shrimp will dry out in the oven.
Save some of the pasta cooking water. Stir it into the sauced pasta before baking to add moisture without fat.

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