Little things decide how pasta tastes. So it makes a big difference whether you pour cold water over pasta after cooking or not.
The most important things at a glance
How much water do you need to cook pasta?
Many pasta cooks only fill the pot with water sparingly. But if the noodles are just covered with water or sticking out of the water, they don’t have enough room to swim. So it can happen that one part is already al dente (firm to the bite), but the other part is still hard. Also, the pasta can stick together — spaghetti can become very tangled, resulting in a pasta knot. Using a wooden spoon, gently press any noodles that stick out from under the water.
Since more water also takes longer to boil, you can heat it up in a kettle beforehand. This saves both time and energy. Then put it in the saucepan – after a short time the water will start bubbling and you can put the noodles in.
Cook pasta in cold or warm water?
Noodles are always placed in boiling water. This strengthens their protein structure and allows you to keep an eye on the cooking time. In addition, noodles that are already in cold water will become soft and mushy faster on the outside – while they are still hard on the inside.
Another trick is to pour boiling salted water over the pasta and then let it simmer in the broth until al dente. This can take between seven and ten minutes. The cooking time depends on the type of pasta.
Cook pasta open or with a lid?
Leave the lid on the pot until the water boils. On the one hand, this saves energy and, on the other hand, it reduces the time until it starts bubbling. When preparing without a cover, it is best to also reduce the temperature of the hotplate.
Once the noodles are in the water, you can put the lid aside or leave it on the pot. For the taste this makes no difference. The cooking time is reduced with the lid. However, it often happens that the water boils over. Bubbling over can be prevented by using a sufficiently large pot. Alternatively, you can also place a wooden spoon or spatula across the pot – between the lid and the pot or just on the edge of the pot.
Oil and salt in the water or not?
Salt belongs in the water so that the noodles taste better. However, it should not be too much, because heavily salted pasta affects the taste of the pasta sauce. A teaspoon of salt per liter of water is a good guideline.
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Whether you salt the water before or after it has reached the boiling point does not affect the taste. If you add it later, the water will start to boil slightly earlier and you will prevent the salt crystals from leaving unsightly stains on the bottom of the pot.
However, you should avoid oil, as it wraps itself around the noodles and forms a smooth film on them. This means that the sauce can no longer stick properly.
This way the pasta doesn’t stick together
If you stir the noodles with a cooking fork or wooden spoon from time to time while cooking, they won’t clump together. Then you can do without oil, butter or other additives.
