Adventures In Whole Wheat Pasta

[plumtreeblossom]

Now that I'm off all of the prescription poisons that my former health care provider nearly killed me with, making more responsible food choices is in focus. I'm eating lots of fresh fruits and veggies (I used to eat very little of either). And cutting down on sodium hasn't been as torturous as I thought it would be.

Switching to whole grain products whenever possible is also part of this. Breads and cereals are easy -- I already like lots of whole grain products. So I was looking forward to trying whole wheat pasta for the first time. I made up a batch of the spaghetti sauce I like and cooked a box of whole wheat angel hair and packed up individual servings in tupperwares.

Um... not so much. It's not the flavor, which is fine. It's the grainy, flaccid texture. It's distinctly missing a springy bite that is my favorite part of the pasta experience. When I eat spaghetti or other long pasta, I kind of wrap it around my tongue, and that wasn't possible with the whole wheat. It just disintegrates in my mouth without even really chewing. You could seriously eat it without teeth.

Maybe angel hair was a bad pasta shape for first-time trying? I'm wondering if larger, heavier noodles hold up any better. I'm also wondering if I'm the only person in the world who has ever consider trying spaghetti sauce on brown rice.

Comments

[bitty.livejournal.com]

For pasta, we wound up going with the blends. In general we like whole grains, but the pasta wasn't cutting it. So check out some of the whole grain blends (there's a couple brands out now) and see if that's any better for you.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I will try that! I love pasta so much, and I want to find a healthier way to eat it. :-)

[thespian.livejournal.com]

cook it less. I normally go to 7 to barely 8 minutes for al dente with regular pasta, but I found with whole wheat I had to go about 6 and a half to get the texture I wanted.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I considered that when cooking. I think I got a bad brand and will try again.

[buxom-bey.livejournal.com]

I've been using the Stop and Shop store brand and have no complaints. I haven't done any thin pastas, mostly rotini and just last night I used the lasagna noodles.

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

I've been eating whole wheat pasta for 20 years, and it isn't all the same! Some brands of whole wheat pasta taste feel and taste like cardboard, and others have a fine nutty taste and a pleasant texture. So, I encourage you to try different brands of whole wheat pasta.

I've had better luck with whole wheat pasta from Trader Joe's and Whole Foods than with the stuff they carry in regular grocery stores.

[ruthling.livejournal.com]

THIS!

The trader joes brand is very good. I also like the Market Basket house brand, if they have it. Some of the others are kind of vile.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I will try the Trader Joe's! I love that place so much. :-)

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

Trader Joe's is great! We get their whole wheat English muffins, and we just love them. Whole Foods has English muffins that are only half whole wheat (half evil white flour), and I'm amazed that the fucking HEALTH FOOD STORE has English muffins that are half and half, but Trader Joe's has the real thing.

Trader Joe's produce isn't very good, so I never buy that there, but half of our other food comes from them.

[smacaski.livejournal.com]

I love the Trader Joe's brand, but if that's too whole wheat for you, the generic whole wheat you get at Shaw's is actually fairly similar to regular pasta, in terms of color and texture--definitely lighter than TJ's.

[minkrose]

The only brand of whole wheat pasta I like is http://www.hodgsonmill.com/

I love their "medium shells" with olive oil and herbs, and even my husband loves the spaghetti. Plus, I can get it at stop & shop!

[komos.livejournal.com]

Tbh, I've never had a great experience with WW pasta. You can get used to it, but the texture is forever just wrong. I'd much rather limit overall pasta intake in favor of having the real thing every now and again. Also, there are time-worn approaches to tomatoes/sauce with rice in Vietnamese, Indian, Spanish and other cuisines, so have at.

So, what's with the sodium reduction? Are you genuinely hypertensive or is it just a precautionary approach?

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

Ooh, you just inspired an idea! I could make brown rice arancini and use the sauce on them. :-)

The soduim reduction is happening because I rejected the horrific blood pressure meds my former PCP had me on (I was becoming deathly ill on them). Switched to a new PCP and am now taking the natural approach to reducing blood pressure. But that does mean dietary changes, and I was consuming way too much sodium. I'm not completely eliminating it and I can have a little salt, but I no longer eat the salt out of the bottom of the empty pretzel bag anymore, and such. :-)

[kalliejenn2.livejournal.com]

different brands of whole wheat pasta have different tastes/textures, so maybe you got a bad one? that said, i've never found one that has QUITE the same texture/taste as regular pasta.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

Someone suggested Trader Joe's, so I'm going to try that next. :-)

Huh...

[taura-g.livejournal.com]

I've never thought of putting spaghetti sauce on brown rice, but I imagine it would be pretty good.

Betcha cincinatti chili sauce would be pretty good on brown rice too.

I have found that I prefer shapes and tubes of whole wheat pasta as opposed to the string style.

Re: Huh...

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I had to google Cincinnati chili sauce. Yum!!

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

It's definitely the brand that matters. Try a few, even from the same market. It's not like it will put you into the poorhouse! You may even want to try different grain'd pasta: rice pasta or quinoa pasta.

Note that regular pasta comes in one pound sizes and often whole wheat/whole grain pasta comes in 12 ounce boxes.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I love rice noodles! I never thought of making them at home.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

Note that rice noodles are awesome, but "rice pasta" kinda blows.

Regarding the WW, I suspect another issue might have been that it doesn't reheat as well as white pasta, either. So if you were cooking and eating it, that's one thing, but the next day and the next, etc, it gets worse and worse. But as others have noted, this is not nearly as pronounced in the better-for-WW shapes.

[hill-the-khore.livejournal.com]

Part of me wants to echo the "buy a different brand" sentiment, but I think you should try a different shape. I eat whole wheat pasta exclusively, and the best shape that I've found (that is to say, the one that really feels pasta-y), is penne rigate (with the ridges). Just don't cook the penne too long, and it generally turns out very well.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm not even a fan of angel hair, i just grabbed it off the shelf because it was the only whole wheat pasta that Shaws had. But I'll go a-hunting in Trader Joe's an see if I can find some heavier shapes.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

You did?? Congratulations! You haven't posted in a while. I hope you'll post a pic!

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Yes, the thicker pastas work better. Whole wheat linguine gets close to acceptable.

[squibbon.livejournal.com]

I similarly dislike whole wheat spaghetti. Linguine isn't any better for me.

But I don't mind whole wheat penne or bowties at all. It might be worth trying pasta that comes in shapes besides long and skinny.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

I think it was partly a poor choice of pasta shape, and probably partly overcooking (which is very easy to do with angel-hair pasta). So I'd suggest more closely monitoring cooking times until you determine what gives an appropriate "bite" for each particular shape.

I cook whole wheat pasta all the time (spaghetti, rotini, and penne are all available at very nice prices from Trader Joe's), and I didn't have a hard time adjusting to it.

[hermitgeecko.livejournal.com]

Despite many people's attempts to convince me otherwise, I don't like whole wheat pasta. However, I have eaten spaghetti sauce over white rice repeatedly in my life, and I bet brown would be good too.

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

I use whole wheat spaghetti and cook it al dente, as I do all pasta. I too have used spaghetti sauce on brown rice and liked it, usually when I am out of pasta and want to eat tomato sauce. Italian sauce goes on almost anything - just ask an Italian, LOL!
Nice to see you are eating better.

[ayelle.livejournal.com]

In my family we ate whole wheat pasta for years and I NEVER got used to it. It is not the same. I always felt like I was choking while eating it.

However, the "Plus Pasta" blend from Barilla is just great, as long as it meets your nutritional needs. Great taste, no objectionable texture. The main difference we notice is that it is always al dente, but as long as you like al dente (I do) then that is not a problem.

[heatherp8.livejournal.com]

I, too, have decided to go with whole wheat pasta.
I, too, find it less than satisfying.
It just isn't the same as good ole white pasta.
No two ways about it.
But I'm trying to buck up and develop a taste for it.
This may take awhile. I have found that adding a can of veggie broth to the water helps.