The Pasta Colander, Slotted Spoons and Spatulas, the Cheese Grater

Some of the tools most essential to an Italian kitchen are full of holes. To begin with, there is the perforated half sphere that rests, curved side down, on little feet: the pasta colander. When pasta is done, it must be drained, tossed with sauce, and served without delay. The colander starts that process quickly and efficiently. It drains, of course, not only pasta but any other ingredient cooked in water, or in its own moisture, such as spinach. Its usefulness does not stop there. When eggplants are sliced and salted before cooking, the most convenient place to stand them to purge them of their bitter juices is around the inside of a colander. Before stuffing tomatoes, I split them in half and spread them along a colander’s inner face to let their excess moisture run off. To exploit the full versatility of the colander, it is good to have two or three of them, possibly in different sizes so they can be stacked, taking up little room.