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In cooking, al dente (/ælˈdɛnteɪ/, Italian: [al ˈdɛnte]; lit. 'to the tooth') pasta or rice is cooked to be firm to the bite. The term also extends to firmly-cooked vegetables.

In contemporary Italian cooking, it is considered to be the ideal consistency for pasta and involves a brief cooking time. Molto al dente is the Italian term for slightly undercooked pasta.

When cooking commercial pasta, the al dente phase occurs right before the white of the pasta center disappears.

Undercooking pasta is used in the first round of cooking when a pasta dish is going to be cooked twice.

Nutrition

The American Diabetes Association says that al dente pasta has a lower glycemic index than pasta that is cooked soft.

See also

Al dente at the Wikibooks Cookbook subproject The dictionary definition of al dente at Wiktionary

• Culinary arts
• Food science
• Molecular gastronomy
• Q texture

References

1. "Online Etymology Dictionary". Etymonline.com. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
2. ^ Hazan, Marcella (20 July 2011). Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan - Google Books. ISBN 9780307958303. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
3. "Al dente: definition of al dente in Oxford dictionary (American English) (US)". Oxforddictionaries.com. 11 August 2014. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
4. ^ Sinclair, Charles (January 2009). Dictionary of Food: International Food and Cooking Terms from A to Z - Charles Sinclair - Google Books. ISBN 9781408102183. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
5. Cooking glossary: Al dente. Waitrose. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
6. Moliterno, Gino (11 September 2002). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Italian Culture - Google Books. ISBN 9781134758777. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
7. Capatti, Alberto; Montanari, Massimo (13 August 2013). Italian Cuisine: A Cultural History - Alberto Capatti, Massimo Montanari - Google Books. ISBN 9780231509046. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
8. "Penne a la vodka Recipe Text | Rouxbe Cooking School". Rouxbe.com. Archived from the original on 16 April 2010. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
9. "Glycemic Index and Diabetes: American Diabetes Association®". Diabetes.org. Archived from the original on 31 October 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2014.

• Cooking
• Pasta
• Italian cuisine
• Italian words and phrases