How to cook pasta properly
Here is some advice for pasta that's properly cooked and doesn't stick.
573,270 4.1/5
Last modified on: May 31th 2017
For 300 g, you will need:
- 1 : 1 litre 500 ml water
- 2 : 300 g pasta
- 3 : 1 tablespoon coarse salt
- Total weight: 1,815 grams
How long does it take?
| Preparation | Cooking | Start to finish |
|---|---|---|
| 15 min. | 8 min. | 23 min. |
At what time?When will I finish if I start the recipe at a certain time?
When should I start for the recipe to be ready at a certain time?
Work this out...
When should I start for the recipe to be ready at a certain time?
Work this out...
Step by step recipe
| 1 |  | Boil a large pan of water. When boiling, salt with a tablespoon of coarse salt for 2 litres water. A large quantity of water is needed to prevent pasta from sticking on the bottom of the pan. If you like precise numbers, here is the 1-10-100 rule: 1 litre water, to 10 g salt, to 100 g pasta. |
10 min. |
| 2 |  | When water comes back to the boil, add pasta all at once. | 1 min. |
| 3 |  | You can also add a rosemary bunch in the water. | |
| 4 |  | Stir and leave to cook uncovered for the time indicated on the pasta packet (usually 8-9 minutes, but it depend on type of pasta). The best way is to taste near end of cooking. It's very important not to overcook pasta, otherwise it becomes too soft and unpleasant. Italians, pasta masters since Marco Polo, call this ideal texture "al dente". During cooking, stir once or twice to prevent pasta sticking. |
8 min. |
| 5 |  | After this time, remove pasta from water immediately and transfer to a strainer to drain, or pour the whole panful into a colander or strainer. Chefs will tell you that it's better to remove pasta from water, instead of pouring everything into a strainer, because this keeps the gluten (released during cooking) in the water instead of on the pasta, and it's this gluten that makes it sticky. |
2 min. |
| 6 |  | When pasta is drained, discard cooking water and put pasta back into the pan. | 1 min. |
| 7 |  | If you plan to use pasta right away, it's ready. If not, add a tablespoon of olive oil, mix well, cover and leave to stand, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Note: because it's kept hot and covered, pasta will continue cooking, so you should not keep it too long. |
1 min. |
Remarks
It's quite surprising to see how many ways of preparing and serving pasta there are, and at the same time how great a simple pasta dish can be: a pan of spaghetti, a dash of olive oil, some grated Parmesan, what more do we need? hummm, oh yes, a good glass of Italian wine perhaps...
Nutritional information
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How much will it cost?
For 300 g : 0.34 €
Source: Home made.
More recipes?
This recipe use (among others) | Water: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Sausage and lentils "en cocotte", Quince and apple compote, Potimarron (Japanese chestnut pumpkin) purée, Leek and potato soup, Gingerbread, ... [All] |
 | Pasta: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Tagliatelle with cockles, Mozzarella pasta bake, Pasta with mushrooms, Penne with purple artichokes, Spaghetti with mushrooms, ... [All] |
 | Coarse salt: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: French bean salad with vinaigrette , Gravlax, Burger buns, How to prepare endives , Preserved lemons, ... [All] |
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