social.noyu.me

this is one of many variations on “pasta with garlic and cheese” but it's one that suits my tastes. generally speaking a store-bought frozen or chilled product of that description, or one from a restaurant, doesn't have the properties i like, but this one does

‪what do i like about this?‬

‪- i don't like spaghetti and other smooth pastas. i also don't like tagliatelle if it has an overly smooth surface. coarser pasta is good‬
‪- no sauce, no cream. the seasonings(?) adhere to the pasta instead‬
‪- the garlic is brighter for being undercooked‬

also having some amount, but not too much, grated mozarella-esque processed cheese that melts into it has obvious appeal i think. i have realised with time that i don't actually like parmesan. the cheese here is subtle, the garlic takes centre stage

‪i feel like i don't really eat a diverse enough variety of things but it's cool that i do apparently have a taste i can meaningfully articulate‬

oh, this also works without garlic with just chili flakes, in a pinch. i think that works because of the olive oil. you can also remove the cheese, it's something of a bonus. but without the olive oil it's not really the same dish, it's what actually binds stuff to the pasta

@hikari you can omit the olive oil for butter on a flavourless oil but it doesn't hit the same

@hikari it you omit the cheese you effectively have what most Italian restaurants here sell as aglio e olio. Also, buy premixed cans of Italian seasoning(others also work) it's an easy way of adding a ton of flavour to everything from eggs to pasta and even rice