Cooking pasta seems simple at first glance. However, it turns out it's easy to make mistakes. So how do you cook pasta to bring out its best flavor? I invite you to read this short article, where I'll share with you some tried-and-true tips for perfectly cooked pasta.
Pasta dishes reign supreme in our kitchens. And no wonder! They're simple, quick, and incredibly tasty. Above all, however, they allow for the freedom to combine flavors and ingredients to suit our tastes.
Watch a video on how to cook pasta
3 steps to perfectly cooked pasta
Cooking perfect pasta requires following 3 basic rules that will help you avoid the most common mistakes.
Step one: choosing the right pot
Pasta likes a lot of water, so a larger pot is better than a smaller one. Otherwise, the pasta will steam rather than cook. This is also a safe option for those just starting out in cooking. Why? Because a large pot that isn't completely filled with water will help prevent boiling over and, consequently, cleaning the stove.
Step 2: Boiling and salting the water
Pour about 70% water into a pot and bring it to a boil. Always add pasta to boiling water, never to cold water. Another important rule: salt the pasta only when the water is boiling. This way, the water boils faster. You save time and energy!
Once the water is boiling, it's time to add the salt. We're not sparing any salt. So how do we get the proportions right? Let me explain:
Add about 7 grams of salt per liter of water. The water should taste salty when you taste it – otherwise, the pasta will have no flavor.
The water is now boiling, salted. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions. If you're using it for a sauce, it's best to cook the pasta al dente or even a minute less.
And here's another important note:
We don't add any olive oil or cooking oil to the water to prevent the pasta from sticking together! Believe me, it doesn't help. The olive oil won't mix with the water anyway; it will just float on the surface.
The pasta should be rough and porous, so the sauce sticks to it. Nobody likes it when the sauce runs off the pasta… So, simply add the pasta to boiling, salted water. That's really all it takes!
Step 3: Straining the pasta
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Once the pasta is ready, strain it through a strainer. And here's a warning! It's easy to make perhaps the biggest and most common mistake, which I also made once: tempering the pasta and rinsing it with cold water. Unfortunately, this process washes out the starch, and with it, about 70% of the flavor . So please don't do this! Unless you have bad pasta, in which case it's a good solution.
Done! Follow these tips, and I guarantee your pasta will always be perfect, like something from a top-tier Italian restaurant.
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