# Using the boiling water from an electric kettle



## g1gi (Jul 30, 2015)

Say I want to cook some pasta that requires me to bring water to a boil and then boil the pasta for a certain amount of time.  Boiling on my electric stove top takes a while, so I thought about getting an electric kettle to expedite that process.  While the water is boiling in the kettle, should I be heating up the sauce pan I'm going to use to cook the pasta, or should I wait until the water gets into the saucepan and then turn on the electric stove top to keep the water boiling?


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## chefross (May 5, 2010)

Hello and welcome to ChefTalk.

Water takes as much time as it needs to boil, whether you use an electric kettle or simply a pot of water on the stove.

Patience.  

Also....you don't need a full pot of water to cook pasta.

All you need it just enough to cover by an inch or so.

Always bring the water to a boil first and add enough salt to the water so it is as salty as sea water.


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

My Mother uses this method and I can tell you from having witnessed it, it saves a heck of a lot of time.  The electric kettle boils water in a minute flat!  Depending on how much pasta you need to cook you may need a couple of batches of kettle boiled water.  I personally wouldn't feel the need to heat up the pot but you can, why not?

I disagree with Chefross about the amount of water it takes to boil pasta.  More water is better.  Crowding a pot of water with pasta makes the noodles extremely starchy and prone to sticking together.


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## chefross (May 5, 2010)

Koukouvagia said:


> My Mother uses this method and I can tell you from having witnessed it, it saves a heck of a lot of time. The electric kettle boils water in a minute flat! Depending on how much pasta you need to cook you may need a couple of batches of kettle boiled water. I personally wouldn't feel the need to heat up the pot but you can, why not?
> 
> I disagree with Chefross about the amount of water it takes to boil pasta. More water is better. Crowding a pot of water with pasta makes the noodles extremely starchy and prone to sticking together.


The newest information coming out about cooking pasta debunks your theory.

Harold McGee is the author of *Keys to good cooking*

http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/05/how-to-cook-pasta-salt-water-boiling-tips-the-food-lab.html


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Chefross said:


> The newest information coming out about cooking pasta debunks your theory.
> 
> Harold McGee is the author of *Keys to good cooking*
> 
> http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/05/how-to-cook-pasta-salt-water-boiling-tips-the-food-lab.html


It all depends. Believe me, I try to use as little water as I need. This is fine for short noodles, it's easy to get away with. Try doing it with linguini and you'll have a hot mess on your hands, I know cause I've tried it. The ends of my linguini noodles (or any long pasta) stick together and stay hard.

Knowing first hand how small most electric kettles are the OP will need more than one boiling to cover any noodle.


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## cerise (Jul 5, 2013)

Do you have a microwave?


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