If you love pasta, learn how to make delicious, nutritious, homemade meals. Cooking a pasta dish in your own kitchen not only allows you to limit the amount of fat and salt it contains but also controls portion sizes.
Pasta contains carbohydrates, which are a source of energy. They do not cause large fluctuations in blood sugar because they have a low glycemic index (GI). The GI classifies the effects of food on blood sugar. Pasta has a lower GI than bread or rice.
They are also fat-free, low in sodium, and often enriched with Thiamine (vitamin B1), Riboflavin (vitamin B2), Niacin (vitamin B3), Folic acid, Iron
Pasta also has many advantages: it is cheap, quick to cook, but above all, it is often associated with a “pleasure” or “source of comfort” meal. But if eating pasta may not be very healthy,
With endless recipe ideas and super high nutritional value, pasta is a healthy and exciting choice. Plain pasta is fat-free and low in sodium. However, when you put in the sauce, you add salt and fat at the same time. Prefer tomato sauce more. Adding protein and vegetables makes pasta a side dish to the main meal, but you need to be careful with portion sizes.
THE DISADVANTAGES OF OVERCOOKED PASTA
Pasta is starchy foods and more precisely, slow starch sugars that they have. Cooking pasta for too long releases this starch which transforms the favorite food of Italians into quick sugars. The downside to fast sugars? Pass directly into the blood causing a spike in blood sugar and a feeling of hunger quite quickly. In addition, when pasta is overcooked, its texture is more gelatinous and more slippery. Certainly facilitating their absorption but forming a mass in the stomach that is difficult to digest.
THE ADVANTAGES OF “AL DENTE” PASTA
By respecting the cooking time of each variety of pasta (each package indicates the appropriate cooking time), pasta cooked “al dente” remains in the state of slow sugars and allows glucose to gradually gain the blood, without the formation of fat reserves or blood sugar spikes. Firmer in texture, they then require more chew, also become more consistent in the stomach, and above all prevent the formation of this blood sugar spike, without the feeling of hunger or cravings, the cause of weight gain.
HOW TO COOK “AL DENTE”?
To cook your pasta “al dente”, heat it in a large volume of water and take it out, a good minute before the cooking time indicated on the packaging. The dough must be crunchy to the bite. It must be firm to heart when tasted by biting with its front teeth. And visually if in its center a small white point firm to the heart, they are “al dente”!
Share this:
Super Easy Mediterranean Chicken Pasta
Description
This complete casserole meal is incredibly easy to prepare and super tasty. Putting the recipe together makes a moderate amount of pasta per person with lean chicken and a good serving of veg, which is a good thing, as many people tend to eat large portions rather than reasonable portions of pasta. very high in carbohydrates.
Ingredients
Instructions
-
Cut the zucchini lengthwise into slices and cut them into semi-circles. Cut the tomatoes and red pepper into large cubes. Finely chop the garlic. Reserve it all.
-
Cut the chicken breasts into small pieces (about 1 to 2.5 cm, each). Reserve.
-
Pour olive oil into a large saucepan, put on high heat, and heat for a minute or two. Stir in the chicken and sauté for about 10 minutes until lightly browned. Stir from time to time.
-
Place the prepared zucchini, tomatoes and red peppers in the same saucepan. Sprinkle with basil, oregano, rosemary, sea salt, and black pepper. Stir and sauté for five to seven minutes over medium heat until the vegetables are tender but still crunchy. Leave the vegetables in the pot, but remove them from the heat.
-
Meanwhile, bring the chicken broth to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the pasta and use a spoon to push the pasta down so that it is submerged in the broth to ensure even cooking. Reduce heat to medium and cook according to package directions and until pasta is just al dente as it will be heated again in the next step. Stir during cooking to prevent pasta from sticking.
-
Remove 1 cup (250 mL) of the broth from the pot of pasta into a medium bowl and set aside. Stir in the cornstarch and whisk until no lumps remain.
-
Add the pasta with the remaining liquid and cornstarch mixture to the chicken and vegetables. Stir and cook over medium heat for a few minutes or until the sauce thickens.
-
To serve, sprinkle with grated Parmesan.
