Why is Pasta Padella so special?

Pasta Padella is made entirely in Italy, from the pasta to the individual ingredients in the sauces. The reason why it tastes so authentic is due to the ingredients being fully grown under the Italian sun, which influences the flavour you taste in our pasta and risotto.

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What does Padella mean?

Padella in Italian means cooking pan, which is what we use to cook our flash frozen pasta in. To us, padella is a symbol for cooking a quick, big meal ready to feed many. To us it means family, and not only in the immediate sense, but also an extension to welcoming those outside of the circle. Inclusive, genuine, and filled with love, we aim to grow our family business with the vision that each human being was created noble and should therefore be served as such. Padella is a symbol of unity, which starts within the family unit and extends to the rest of the world.

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Where is your pasta made?

Our pasta is made in beautiful southern Italy.

 

What is IQF?

IQF stands for “Individually Quick Frozen”, which is also known as flash-freezing. IQF foods have each individual piece of food frozen separately from all the others. So our IQF pasta does not contain a solid block of pasta with pasta sauce, but rather each piece of pasta is frozen individually and is found loose in the bag along with our small sauce cubes. This is the same for our risotto.

 

How can frozen pasta taste fresh?

Our products are made entirely free of preservatives, which frozen foods normally contain. Further, IQF foods taste fresh compared to non-IQF foods because they are frozen quickly (flash-frozen) while non-IQF foods are frozen slowly. A slow freezing process forms large ice crystals, which damage cells and tissue fibres, altering the taste of the original food. Flash-freezing, on the other hand, form very small ice crystals, which do not rupture the cell walls in the food. This method helps us maintain the original taste of our all Italian made pasta, giving you the authentic taste of Italy.

 

How big is one serving?

Each one of our pastas are packages of 600 grams of food. To give perspective, you would usually find frozen or ready-to-eat pasta in the grocery store for about 250-300 grams. So our products are more than double of what you would find in the grocery store. Italians like to eat “primi” and “secondi” and even “terzi”, meaning first, second, and third plates (or courses). These 3 courses are the basis of the Italian meal, providing a balance between carbs (primo), proteins (secondo), and vegetables (terzo). With a nice side of salad, one package of our pasta is great to be shared in two.

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How much water should I be adding?

The amount of water may depend on the strength of your stove, whether it is a gas or electric stovetop. Some of our packages currently state to add more water than needed. Please begin with using 0.5-1 cup of water, and if the sauce is too watery then allow it to cook for longer with no lid until the consistency suits your taste.

 

How should I reheat leftovers?

Add a little water when heating the leftovers, careful as to not dry out the sauce. Add extra virgin olive oil once ready to serve.

 

Should I be using hot water or cold water?

We prefer using hot water as to assist the cooking process, but cold water works well also.

 

Can I cook Pasta Padella in the microwave?

We do not recommend cooking our pasta in the microwave as our pasta requires some stirring towards the end of the cooking. It will also not taste as fresh as it does when cooked on the stove.

 

Where do you deliver?

We currently deliver across the Vancouver Lower Mainland, from Lions Bay to Langley. Anyone outside of this area wanting to try our authentic pasta, please order through Costco.ca.

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What packaging do you use for delivery?

Our local deliveries in the Vancouver Lower Mainland are delivered via our pasta freezer van. Your order will be packaged in a carboard box and with no gel packs or dry ice since we use our reefer. We will contact you to make sure someone is able to receive the order prior to delivery.

 

Do you ship across Canada?

We ship across Canada only through Costco.ca. Any orders on our website are only for local deliveries.

 

What packaging do you use for shipping?

We are proud of our environmentally conscious packaging for our shipments across Canada through Costco.ca. Most frozen food companies use styrofoam or a plastic alternative; we made it a point to find the right packaging for the sake of our planet. Our shipping packaging consists of a starch based insulation liner, which is fully recyclable with cardboard boxes. Just flatten it as you would with the cardboard box it is enclosed in. We use dry ice for these shipments to maintain excellent freezing conditions during transit.