How to color pasta with juice is something I have been learning about recently, and I would love to share this easy secret with you. So yes, from now on you won't have to pay extra for stored-bought colored pasta... or even spend time making your own pasta from scratch with special colorings.
Simply obtain any regular dry pasta you prefer from the supermarket and color it yourself using vegetable juice. This is an ingenious technique similar to that of boiling pasta in wine. You can use beets, red cabbage, spinach or any other leaf vegetable, bell peppers, etc. The most important thing is to use sufficiently concentrated vegetable juice.
Coloring pasta with juice is a technique that not only infuses subtle flavors but also makes the dish more beautiful and fun. Ready to get started?
Well, without further ado, here is how to color pasta with juice...
How to color pasta
- First, make the beet juice. Blend beet chunks and 1½ quarts of water in a blender until smooth. Strain juice and discard beet pulp. Reserve the beet liquid/juice.
- In a medium to large pot, bring the remaining 3 quarts of water and 1 Tablespoon of salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook for about 2-3 minutes or until bendable. At the same time pasta is cooking, bring 4 cups (or 1 quart) of the reserved beet juice, a sprinkle of salt, and vinegar to a boil over medium-high heat in a large sauté pan.
- Using tongs or a pasta strainer, lift out partially cooked pasta from the pot and place in the sauté pan with the boiling juice. Cook pasta until al dente, stirring frequently, over medium-high heat. You may need to add another cup or two (or ¼ to ½ quart) of the remaining beet juice to finish cooking the pasta. Once pasta is cooked, strain.
- You can sauté strained pasta with oil and/or butter, garlic, herbs, cheese, and pretty much anything else that you want.
Variations
You can use red cabbage, spinach or any other leaf vegetable, bell pepper, carrots (although color won't be vibrant. Definitely, not a fave ingredient to color pasta), etc to color pasta. The most important thing is to use a concentrated vegetable juice to achieve a vibrant color.
Storage
Store colored pasta leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Freeze pasta al dente (only) for up to 30 days.
How to Color Pasta with Juice
Equipment
- pan
- strainer
Ingredients
- 5 medium beets washed, peeled, and cut into chunks
- 4½ quarts water divided
- 1 tablespoons salt plus more to sprinkle
- ½ pound store-bought dry pasta of your choice
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar to intensify and freshen the color
Instructions
- First, make the beet juice. Blend beet chunks and 1½ quarts of water in a blender until smooth. Strain juice and discard beet pulp. Reserve the beet liquid/juice.
- In a medium to large pot, bring the remaining 3 quarts of water and 1 Tablespoon of salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook for about 2-3 minutes or until bendable. At the same time pasta is cooking, bring 4 cups (or 1 quart) of the reserved beet juice, a sprinkle of salt, and vinegar to a boil over medium high heat in a large sauté pan.
- Using tongs or a pasta strainer, lift out partially cooked pasta from the pot and place in the sauté pan with the boiling juice. Cook pasta until al dente, stirring frequently, over medium-high heat. You may need to add another cup or two (or ¼ to ½ quart) of the remaining beet juice to finish cooking the pasta. Once pasta is cooked, strain.
- You can sauté colored, strained pasta with oil and/or butter, garlic, herbs, cheese, and pretty much anything else that you want.
Recipe Notes
- OTHER JUICES: You can use red cabbage, spinach or any other leaf vegetable, bell pepper, carrots (although color won't be vibrant. Definitely, not a fave ingredient to color pasta), etc to color pasta. The most important thing is to use a concentrated vegetable juice to achieve a vibrant color.
- STORAGE: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Freeze pasta al dente for up to one month!
Nutrition
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Please note that health-focused and diet information provided on easyanddelish.com is for educational purposes and does not constitute medical advice, nor is it intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. Consult with your doctor or other qualified health professional prior to initiating any significant change in your diet or exercise regimen, or for any other issue necessitating medical advice.
Chris @ The Café Sucré Farine says
Very cool! I had no idea you could do this. What a fun presentation for a dinner party!
Judit + Corina @Glamorous Bite says
Such a vibrant and exciting way to have a pretty pasta! Thank you for sharing, we do love red beets.
Dioneia says
do you do this with other vegetables? would it be the same way!?
Denise Browning says
Dioneia: I tested with both red beets and carrots. As you can see in the pictures, it worked very well with red beets -- as works well with red wine. But I have to say that the experiment with carrot juice was disappointing. It did not turn a vibrant orange color, no matter how concentrated was my carrot juice.
I think it will also work well with basil juice for a green color and red cabbage juice for a dark red.
You can also test a small amount of pasta with concentrated green bell pepper juice but I am not very sure if the color would be a light or dark green.
Deb|EastofEdenCooking says
Fantastic tip! What a grand idea to make pasta dish special.
Abbe @ This is How I Cook says
This is one of those great ideas-why didn't I think of it before things!
John@Kitchen Riffs says
What a fun idea! So clever -- didn't know you could do this. Really like this -- thanks so much.
Sarah at Journeys of The Zoo says
Do you think if I cooked the beets first that I could then make something with the pulp later (or afterwards if they're raw)? Beets are a Family favorite (I grow them in my garden) and I'd hate to waste any. Love the vibrancy of the colors and your pictures are beautiful.
Visiting from this weeks Tasty Tastebugs Linky at Peek N 2 Paradise.
Besos, Sarah
Journeys of The Zoo
Denise Browning says
Hi, Sarah! Thanks for stopping by.
In order to color pasta, the vegetable has to be raw otherwise color of the pasta will be faded.
What you can do is make the juice with the raw beets and strain. All the juice will be used to boil pasta and the shredded pulp that rests in the strainer can be boiled in a separate water or steamed to be used in salads or other dishes. If you don't want to cook the pulp, you can put it to dry instead and use it as a condiment for sautéed rice and other dishes.
Wishing you an awesome week! xx
Rekha says
This is awesome Denise! I am going to try this today 🙂
Denise Browning says
Enjoy!!!!
Liz says
Denise, this is brilliant! I love the vibrant color from using beets---I must try this, too!
Juliana says
This is such a great idea Denise...not only beautiful colors but flavors as well...great post!
Enjoy the rest of your week my dear 🙂
Anna @ shenANNAgans says
Such a cool idea, I would not of thought to do this, some because I'm a bit lazy and some because you buy a broad range of coloured pastas at my farmers markets. I will bookmark this beauty, sure makes the pasta pop. 🙂
Mi Vida en un Dulce says
Interesting idea, like it as it gives fun to the pasta, and doing it with vegtables is great. So we just neeed to add some olive oil and parmesan cheese and we can have a great meal!!!
Shashi at RunninSrilankan says
I adore your use of beets to color this pasta - such a gorgeous color!
Gourmet Getaways says
Wow, what a lovely, handy tip we got from you here, Denise! There's so much colours and flavours to play with in the vegetable world. Thanks for sharing!!
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
Sugar et al. says
Wow! This is just brilliant Denise! A great way to make meals colorful and healthy at the same time. I am crazy about beetroot and this pasta is going to made in my house soon.
Little Cooking Tips says
What a wonderful idea! Thank you Denise! The best part is that this way you can also add flavors to the pasta! Can't wait to try this:)
xoxoxo
Ash-foodfashionparty says
I love love working with beets and such a nice trick to enhance the pasta Denise. I truly believe in natural coloring and this is gorgeous my dear.
xx
Raymund says
This is a really nice tip, thanks for sharing this
Hadia says
Denise, this is truly a fantastic tecnique that I never thought of before! Absolutely creative!
Hadia says
Excuse me, I mean technique.