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Fasta Pasta: Does It Really Do That?

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Nov 17, 2008 6:17 pm US/Eastern

Fasta Pasta: Does It Really Do That?

Reporting
Yvonne Zanos
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ― Looking for ways to save time in the kitchen?

How about Fasta Pasta?

It claims to allow you to cook pasta to perfection in the microwave, but does it really do that?

Doreen Vogl knows her way around a kitchen. She loves to cook and like most moms, Doreen is always looking for ways to save time. The
Fasta Pasta promises to save lots of it.

The infomercial says, "Just place the pasta in the Fasta Pasta. Fill water to water level, use cooking guide to set the time and pasta cooks perfectly in minutes."

"It definitely would make life very easy," said Doreen. "It would be wonderful for a child coming home from school. They could just throw the pasta in."

But does it really do that? Fasta Pasta has two pieces - a bottom plastic cooker and a lid for straining the pasta.

The Fasta Pasta comes with detailed cooking instructions for just about any kind of pasta you can think of. We decide to start with regular spaghetti for two. Instructions say to put your spaghetti in the big hole on top for just the right amount.

We measure the pasta, then fill up the Fasta Pasta cooker to the second water line. Instructions say to cook in the microwave for 13 minutes.
After just a couple of minutes, you can see the water boiling.

Thirteen minutes later, our spaghetti is done.

"The plastic container isn't even hot," said Doreen as she puts the lid on the container to strain. "It is actually very cool to the touch."

We rinse and drain.

How does it taste? Is the texture al dente as promised? Yes.

"It is," says Doreen. The texture is perfect. There is nothing stuck together. It is really amazing."

And it did save time. It took us 11 minutes to boil the water in the pot, another nine minutes to cook our spaghetti. That's 20 minutes of cooking compared to just 13 minutes in the Fasta Pasta.

And there is more. The infomercial promises that Fasta Pasta gently cooks and gently drains for perfect ravioli every single time.

So we move on to the ravioli, again a serving size for two. Instructions say that's 18 ravioli.

This time instructions say we are to fill the container to level three and cooking time is eight to nine minutes later.

Eight minutes later, the ravioli are cooked to perfection and not one is broken.

The lasagna works too. The only difference is that this time the container is warm to the touch. It takes about 18 minutes, not much of a time saver, but again, cooked to perfection. So does Doreen Vogl give the Fasta Pasta a thumbs up?

"It's a definite thumbs up," says Doreen, "except that I probably wouldn't use it in my house because it's made of plastic and I do not cook with plastic in my microwave whatsoever."

So Doreen says it's a great product, just not for her. Plastic in the microwave and dishwasher is a little controversial, although it does say right on the box "FDA approved for microwave use."

If that's okay with you, we think you'll love the product. The only other down side is if you have a big family, be aware, this only cooks for up to a family of four, but overall, good job Fasta Pasta, a definite thumbs up.

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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