​

1. Don’t crowd your pasta. Choosing the right size pot at the start will set you up for success at the end (the most important part: the eating!).

2. Use plenty of water —  this helps your pasta to cook evenly and prevents it from sticking to itself or the pot.

3. Salting your water like the sea will give you flavour from the inside out. Don’t worry, very little of the salt will end up on your plate.

4. MYTHBUSTER: It’s a common misconception that adding oil to pasta water will prevent any sticking. Oily water equals greasy pasta, which will make it harder for your delicious sauce to stick.

5. A rapid boil and a gentle stir are all that’s needed to break your pasta up nicely when it’s placed in the pot.

6. Only cook pasta ¾ of the way to achieve al dente perfection.

7. Always reserve water! The starchy liquid can be the perfect solution to sauces that are drier than desired. Our chefs recommend home cooks keep at least a cup.

8. Drain and add to the sauce to finish cooking, not the other way around. Adding a dash of your cleverly reserved water during this step will help marry the sauce to the pasta.