Old Wive's Tales and Other Myths

I recently had someone ask me why I don't pour a bit of oil into the boiling water when I'm cooking pasta. And this conversation got me thinking about all the commonly held kitchen myths. And today, I would like to debunk a few of those myths, starting with pasta water.

It is believed by some that pouring a tablespoon or so of olive oil into a boiling pot of pasta will keep the pasta from sticking together. And though it is true that oil does keep pasta from sticking together, one tablespoon is hardly enough to de-stick-ify an entire pound of pasta. In fact, to truly achieve this goal you would have to float a rather thick layer of oil over the top of the boiling water – a dangerous concept to say the least – as most middle school science students can tell you that oil and water do not mix. Let's be serious here - many a kitchen fire starts with an inexperienced cook trying to mix those polarized water molecules with those neutral oil molecules. So if you're worried about your pasta clumping together, do as I do – drain the cooked pasta first, and then toss it with some olive oil before serving.

Then, there is the myth that fish is done cooking when it can be easily flaked with the tines of a fork. Well... that's true, the fish is done when it flakes. But the fish was also done well before it was flaking out. So the better test of a fish's doneness is to poke it with a knife. If the fish is firm and opaque all the way through, it is done. And when cooking fish, the rule of thumb is: a 1-inch thick piece of fish takes between 8 and 10 minutes to cook.

And when it comes to old wive's tales, one of my person favorites is: if you sear a piece of meat, it will seal in the juices. And this is simply not true. You sear a piece of meat to enhance it's color, texture, and flavor. You don't sear it to seal in the juices. And if you don't believe me, think of it this way – if you get a sunburn, you still sweat. And the case does not change for a piece of beef. When you cook the outside of a steak, the juices still run out of it just as easily.

So I hope that helps clarify a few points of contention in the kitchen. Of course, cooking is in many respects a subjective art. So if you believe in one of these kitchen myths, don't let me stop you from believing. I suppose in the end we all enjoy a bit of harmless superstition.