What does Joy of Cooking mean by "canned spaghetti"?
My sister was browsing through her Joy of Cooking (the 1975 edition, her copy printed November 1983) and found several recipes that call for things like "1 can spaghetti: 24 oz." or "2 1/2 cups canned spaghetti". We can't for the life of us figure out what this means.
For example, here's a recipe for "Quick Spaghetti Meat Pie" (page 217):
4 servings
Preheat oven to 375°
Sauté lightly:
2 cups cubed or ground cooked meat
2 teaspoons grated onion
in:
2 tablespoons butter
Add:
1/4 cup cream
Season it with:
Salt and pepper
(1/2 teaspoon basil)
Place in a greased baking dish:
1 can spaghetti: 24 oz.
Make a depression in the center. Place the meat in it. Sprinkle the top with:
Au Gratin III, 553
Bake about 25 minutes.
When we ask our friend Mr. Google to show us what "canned spaghetti" looks like, he shows us pictures of spaghetti sauce. Is "canned spaghetti" something that (thankfully) died out sometime in the intervening 40 years since this recipe was written?
Best Answer
Canned spaghetti unfortunately is still something that can be bought at supermarkets. A common brand for canned pasta is Chef Boyardee. They have ravioli, spaghetti and sometimes even canned meatballs inside the spaghetti.
These spaghetti will have a very very soft texture similar to what you would expect the spaghetti texture to be if you overcook it by at least 10 minutes.
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Answer 2
My name is Megan Scott and I work, along with my husband John Becker, for the Joy of Cooking. The short answer is that this is one of the many reasons we revise the cookbook every 10 years or so! We don't know exactly what this recipe is referring to (and can't ask Marion Becker, who died right after the 1975 edition came out), although we assume it means a can of spaghetti in sauce, which is a horrifying thought. JoC has moved away from calling for canned goods (with notable exceptions, such as canned tomatoes), and in our next edition, which we are currently writing, we hope to get rid of them altogether. I will say, however, we don't have anything quite so heinous in the most recent edition. Just think of it as a sign of the times. Hope this helps!
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