Pasta Perfetta Please!

(Gluten free, as well)

I LOVE pasta.  Yup, grew up eating it every day and still love it. But I’m very picky about my pasta. And being Italian and having grown up in Italy, I get asked about tips on pasta … a lot.  

Whether you opt for gluten free versions or want to use the original, I want to share some tips will help you make the best pasta every time.  BTW, for those of you who eat gluten free, I recently discovered a brand of gluten-free pasta that is made in Italy (it’s from Tru Roots and you can find it at Costco).  This pasta is the best of all the gluten-free versions and the closest to the real thing.  It’s really good.

So, without further ado, here is how to make the perfect pasta:

• Only use pasta that is made in Italy; any brand will do, as long as it’s “Made in Italy”.  In my experience, pasta made in other countries does not have the same quality. Italian pasta is less starchy and won’t clump together as does pasta made in North America.
• Put a bit of salt in the water both for taste and to speed up the boiling process. 
• Do NOT put oil in the water. Oil will prevent the sauce from sticking to the noodles (it is supposed to), and then you lose some of the flavour. 
• Use a LOT of water. There should be at least three times as much water by volume as there is raw pasta (i.e., three cups water for every cup of  raw pasta).
• Bring water to a full boil BEFORE you add the pasta.
• Keep the water boiling throughout the cooking process.
• Stir the pasta every few minutes to prevent it from sticking.
• Only cook as long as recommended in the package. II you like pasta al dente, cook it 30 seconds less. If you like it soft, just add one minute to the recommended cooking time. Typically the cooking time suggested on the package is accurate for ‘just right’. BTW, if you’re used to checking if your pasta is done by throwing a noodle against the wall, don’t.  That’s sacrilege!  And if you do it anyway and it sticks, congratulations.  You can throw it all away. You just wasted what might have been an amazing meal. 
• Once the time is up, stop the cooking process by draining the pasta right away. Do not rinse!
• Add your sauce (and maybe some cheese, if it goes well with it).

Let’s talk about the cheese for a moment.  When it comes to cheese, always use the real deal. Don’t opt for cheap boxed domestic kinds claiming to be ‘parmesan’. They are typically full of fillers and sugar, and there really isn’t much cheese in them. Not to mention that they smell awful.  It’s not cheese.

So what should you use? There are many options but to make it easy, here is a simple guide:

• Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano work best with white sauces
• Pecorino Romano works best with red sauces

Fun Facts:
You may be surprised to learn that, in Italy, there is no such thing as Alfredo sauce. 
There are approximately 350 types of pasta around the world {Source}
Also, most pasta sauces in Northern Italy do not use garlic.

Buon appetito!