SC - OOP - Pasta salads?

[Phil & Susan Troy]

Philippa Alderton wrote:
> 
> If you want a fancy pasta salad, you can start with your favorite cooked
> pasta (I like sea shells, radiatore, or the spirals), add green peas
> (either fresh and steamed or frozen and thawed), black olives (drained, and
> chopped or sliced), carrots (jullienned and steamed or boiled to just
> tender), chopped scallions, and your sundried tomatoes (chopped). Mix well,
> using a 50/50 mix of a quality mustard and either yogurt or sour cream.
> Garnish around the edges with alternating quarters of hard boiled eggs and
> quartered pickled artichoke hearts. If you want a bit more color, dust with
> paprika.
> 
> Phlip
> Caer Frig
> Barony of the Middle Marches
> Middle Kingdom

Speaking as an old buffet chef, from a tradition where food is fresh, never
prepared far in advance, and no leftovers are used for any purpose, all that
having been said, I'll say that it _is_ possible to prepare pasta salads in
advance under the right circumstances (I seem to recall you're doing some
catering, so the temptation may well be strong).

In this case, some simple rules to follow are to avoid mixing or contact
between acids (vinegar, lemon, etc.) with any green vegetable or herb. Also,
in the case of sun-dried tomatoes especially, and fresh tomatoes to a lesser
extent, they will discolor most of the pasta they come in contact with. Same
thing for dried fruits like raisins. 

I've found suitably wrapped advance prep of individual ingredients, to be
assembled on site, invaluable. This would include things like sundried
tomatoes in oil, fresh tomato dice in a draining container, or between several
sheets of paper towels, ditto chopped herbs, with drainage on the bottom and
damp paper towels over the top, etc.

Adamantius
Østgardr, East
 -- 
Phil & Susan Troy

troy at asan.com
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