The One Tool You Need to Make the Best Pasta Dishes at Home, According to L’Artusi’s Executive Chef

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Aside from high quality ingredients, this is what you need.

If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what chefs, bakers, baristas, and other industry pros use at home. Not the fresh produce and the high-quality proteins, but the pots, pans, and gadgets that make their home kitchens run smoothly. In our ‘Try This at Home’ series, we asked Joe Vigorito — the executive chef at L’Artusi in New York City — about the one kitchen product they think every home cook should own. 

Pasta is a fickle food. When it's done right, it's texturally and emotionally satisfying. But the silky, rich sauce, perfect al dente bite, and textural additions in the dishes we have at restaurants are difficult to nail at home.

Simplicity is the core of Italian food, according to Joe Vigorito, the executive chef of New York City’s famed L’Artusi restaurant. However, he also says, "simple isn't easy." One example is Vigorito's acclaimed pasta, which blends the best ingredients with the right tools to bring his techniques to life. That's why he reaches for All-Clad cookware: “It’s what I use at home,” he says.

To buy: All-Clad D3 12-Inch Stainless Steel Skillet with Lid, $120 with coupon (originally $130) at amazon.com

Vigorito prefers All-Clad’s 12-inch pans because of their quality stainless steel material. “It’s the way it heats evenly, there’s no hot spots on it,” he says.

Three of the cookware brand’s stainless lines that you’ll want to check are the D3, D5, and Copper Core collections. The D3 line is the perfect place to start if you’re just getting into stainless steel cookware. It has a tri-ply design, meaning aluminum is sandwiched between stainless steel for even heating and optimal retention. The D5 line has a stainless steel core and alternates between aluminum and stainless steel for an upgrade on its heating abilities. For the fastest heating, along with maximum heat distribution, the Copper Core line is the way to go. You’ll get the conduction of copper without the hassle of maintaining it, since the pan is coated in stainless steel.

“[We’re] not trying to reinvent the wheel. Italian food isn't about bells and whistles,” Vigorito says. “As long as you have great ingredients, you take care of those ingredients and you take care of the process, you end up with a superior product in the end.”

To buy: All-Clad D5 12-Inch Stainless Steel Skillet, $249 at amazon.com or williams-sonoma.com

So grab those key ingredients —  Italian DOP San Marzano tomatoes, the really good finishing extra virgin olive oil from Italy, a big hunk of DOP Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino, and fresh, locally sourced ingredients for your proteins, herbs, and garlic — to take your dish up a level.

Vigorito also appreciates the All-Clad pans’ 12-inch diameter is just enough room to fit a batch of pasta, and the wide-open shape with protective walls makes it easy to do the finishing technique he calls aeration. That’s when he’ll pick up the pan and flip the pasta with the sauce and some very well-salted pasta water. “It does go a long way,” Vigorito says. You’ll also want to add a little cheese at the end of this stage off the heat, too.

To buy: All-Clad Copper Core 12-Inch Stainless Steel Skillet, from $270 at amazon.com or williams-sonoma.com

In terms of cost, the D3 line is on the lower end at less than $200, where the D5 and Copper Core pans will run above $200. They’re all investment-worthy though, especially since they’ve landed themselves in so many professional chef’s homes, like Vigoritos.

Regardless of what you pick up, whether D3, D5, or Copper Core, the 12-inch skillet might just be the key to nailing the velvety pasta dishes we’ve been craving since our last venture to New York City’s restaurants like L’Artusi. With a bundle of fresh ingredients and Vigorito’s aerating technique, we’ll all be well on our way to feeding ourselves those same cravy-worthy dishes. 

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