Food - Drink
How Much Water You Should Really Use To Cook Pasta?
By GILLIE HOUSTON
When it comes to the meal that Italy is perhaps best known for — pasta — Italian cooks follow a variety of stringent standards for creating the perfect pot, ranging from the right cooking time and water temperature to the amount of salt and water. So, how much water should be used to make the perfect serving of pasta?
With cooking pasta, the quantity of water is key to preventing the pasta from overcrowding or clumping up in the pot. According to the experts at Eataly, the high-end Italian marketplace, a good rule of thumb for the ratio of water to pasta is 4 quarts of boiling water for each pound of pasta.
However, celebrity chef and Italian cooking expert Lidia Bastianich stands by using 6 quarts of water per pound of pasta, but noted that reducing the amount of water to 4 quarts still produces an acceptable dish. The quantity fluctuates between 4-6 quarts of water depending on the cookbook, chef, or pasta box being consulted.