Reheating Frozen Pasta Fast Requires A Touch Of Olive Oil

The best part of cooking some meals is freezing leftovers for a second helping, and many baked pasta dishes readily fit that bill. We often look for the fastest way to reheat those delicious creations when hunger strikes, but know that a microwave can quickly ruin a meal. To find out the best way to reheat frozen pasta, we sought guidance from an expert.

Antonio Morichini is the chef and owner of New York's Via Vai. His restaurant specializes in creating authentic, contemporary Italian cuisine, so there aren't many folks more qualified to give advice about reheating a portion of tasty baked pasta. Morichini's method for heating it directly from the freezer is simple and effective: "If it's an emergency and frozen pasta needs to be reheated, I recommend defrosting it and heating it in a pan with a little olive, covered over a low flame," he said. "When the pasta is almost fully reheated, remove the cover, turn the flame higher and sauté with a little more olive oil if needed."

By covering the pan, you keep moisture inside. Turning the heat up at the end helps the olive oil create deliciously crispy edges that make it seem like it's been cooked for the first time. Whether you used a canned soup in place of a pasta sauce for baked ziti or crafted a five-layer lasagna, any frozen baked pasta dish can be made ready to eat quickly with a bit of oil ... as long as it is stored correctly.

Before you can reheat any food, you typically have to cool it down. If you opt to keep a baked pasta dish in the freezer to increase its longevity, there are specific steps you will want to employ when storing it, according to Morichini. He said, "For storing baked pasta dishes, I recommend tightly wrapping individual slices or portions of baked pasta in plastic wrap and placing them in a container in the freezer." This double-layered protection will prevent the dish from getting freezer burn or otherwise suffering a loss of quality.

Of course, not every hunger pang is an emergency, and a little bit of forethought changes the way you would want to reheat a baked pasta dish. As Morichini explained, "When planning on reheating, it would be best to defrost the portions needed and reheat in a sheet pan in the oven." For the freshest taste, that five-layer lasagna will reheat best in the oven covered in foil to retain its moisture. If you really want it to come out tasting like new, top it with some extra pasta sauce and cheese before you pop it in the oven. However, if you forget to let your pasta dish thaw beforehand and hunger hits you out of the blue, the stovetop technique utilizing olive oil Morichini recommends will get you fed on the fly.