10 rules for perfect pasta. By Matt Preston (2024)

FAQs

10 rules for perfect pasta. By Matt Preston? ›

In Italy, the golden rule for cooking pasta is 1, 10, 100 or 1 liter of water, 10 grams of salt for every 100 grams of pasta.

In Italy, the golden rule for cooking pasta is 1, 10, 100 or 1 liter of water, 10 grams of salt for every 100 grams of pasta.

The pasta should be “al dente”, which means it should be “firm to the bite”, yet cooked through. It's better to taste the pasta before draining it. When it's ready drain the pasta but don't rinse it with cold water. The pasta should be hot when mixed with the sauce.

Contrary to popular myth, adding oil into the water does not stop pasta sticking together. It will only make the pasta slippery which means your delicious sauce will not stick. Instead, add salt to the pasta water when it comes to the boil and before you add the pasta.

The general rule for cooking pasta in boiling water is for 1 pound of pasta, use 1 gallon of water, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of oil. For 100 servings of spaghetti, 6 gallons of water, 2 tablespoons of salt, and 2 tablespoons of oil are needed to cook 6 pounds of dried spaghetti.

The BNF, in its new guide, says the answer is 65g to 75g dry weight (180g when cooked) – or about the amount that would fit in two cupped hands.

Capellini. Capellini, or more commonly known as angel hair pasta, is one of the thinnest types of pasta with a diameter ranging between 0.85 and 0.92 millimeters. The long, delicate strands of capellini pasta are best paired with light sauces, as the noodles will get lost in something like a hearty meat sauce.

Bring water to a rapid boil before adding the pasta.

Starches absorb water instantly and you want the water temperature to be extremely hot to begin cooking the noodles properly. Noodles that are added too soon will be soggy and improperly cooked.

The rules of bon ton are clear, spaghetti should be eaten with a fork so away knife and spoon! The dish symbol of Italian life in the world has a very precise code at the table that says that eating spaghetti with a spoon is not correct.

Italian Pasta Rule #4:

Al dente – signifying “to the tooth” in Italian” – is Italians' preferred pasta texture. Generally, this means your pasta will still have a little bite when served. No matter where you travel on the Italian peninsula, you'll be hard pressed to find a mountain of gluey, starchy goop.

Why is pasta rinsed in cold water after boiling? ›

It's true that rinsing noodles or pasta after cooking halts the cooking process. “This is also known as shocking,” Tiess says. But rinsing also removes the starch water after the noodles are strained, which is what helps adhere sauce to noodles.

It's okay to put a lid on the pot while you are waiting for the water to boil. However, after it starts to boil and you add the pasta to the water, you should remove the lid to prevent the water from bubbling over.

Most dried ribbons of pasta such as linguine, spaghetti and tagliatelle take between 8-10 mins. Shorter, thicker pasta shapes like bows or penne take 10-12mins and fresh pasta such as ravioli and tortellini will be done between 3-5mins.

The Integrity of Pasta and Italian Tradition

The length of the pasta plays a critical role in how it interacts with the sauce; longer strands can better pick up and hold onto the sauce, delivering a more flavorful and cohesive bite. Breaking the pasta compromises this interaction, resulting in a less harmonious dish.

For your cooking water, use this easy to follow rule: 10:100:1000. For 100g of pasta, use 1000ml (1 litre) of water and 10g of salt. This will give you water slightly less salty than the sea which will season the pasta as it cooks.

Italian cuisine is synonymous with pasta, and it's the heart of their culinary culture. From north to south, Italy boasts a vast array of pasta shapes and recipes. The average Italian consumes a whopping 23 kilograms of pasta annually, making it the highest per capita consumption in the world.

Measuring Pasta Size

When you cook pasta, 2 ounces (56 g) of dry pasta per person is a good rule of thumb to follow. What does 2 ounces (56 g) of dry pasta look like? It depends on the shape.

Two ounces dry pasta is equal to 1/2 cup dry pasta, which comes out to be 1 cup of cooked pasta.

For the amount of cooked pasta you want, simply measure out half that amount in dry pasta. For example, a pasta serving size when cooked is one cup, so you would cook half a cup of dry pasta. This quick and simple method can vary slightly from shape to shape but will give you a near-exact pasta portion.

You will need roughly 1 cup (or 0.9 cups to be precise) of dried pasta to obtain 2 cups of cooked pasta. Generally, the ratio of dry pasta to cooked pasta is approximately 1:1.5 to 1:2, as the dry pasta tends to expand upon boiling/cooking, and it can easily double in weight.