Many theories exist around the world on how to cook your pasta. Here is what the Italian experts say:

• Use an aluminum pot for boiling pasta if possible. The water will boil faster.

• The water must be at a rolling boil before dropping the pasta in.

• Use 5 litres (5 quarts) of water for every 1/2 kilo of pasta (1 pound approx.).

• Add up to 2 Tbsp. of salt to the water for every 1/2 kilo (1 lb.) of pasta.

• Use sea salt where possible.

• Be careful to use LESS THAN 2 Tbsp. of salt if you know that your sauce will be salty (e.g., contains bacon, salty cheeses, pesto).

• Add the salt JUST AFTER having dropped the pasta in. Don't put the salt in before the water boils.

• Add 1 Tbsp. of olive oil to your boiling water if you are cooking a type of pasta that sticks together easily (e.g. lasagna/cannelloni sheets, orecchiette, large flat pasta). Most other types of pasta won't stick together provided that you...

• Always stir the water AS SOON AS you dump the pasta in. Stir two or three times throughout the cooking to avoid the pasta sticking to each other, or to the bottom of the pan.

• Besides following the timing instructions on the package, it is useful to know how to identify when the pasta is done cooking: take out one piece of pasta about a minute before it would be theoretically be done. Blow on it or run it under cool water and then bite it in half. Look at the cross-section where you bit it. If you can see a thin white line in it, it probably needs about 30 more seconds of cooking. If there is no white line, quickly strain it because it's done! (Note: if you are cooking fresh pasta, i.e., not dried, then you probably won't see a totally white line, but you will see a thick floury part in the middle. This should become just tender enough so your teeth can bite through it with a little resistance, without it being chewy).

• Keep in mind that from the time the pasta is strained to the time it is served, it continues "cooking" a little more, so it's important to strain it before it gets mushy.

• For certain types of pasta (e.g. linguine, tagliatelle, other long flat pastas) they can easily over-cook. Therefore, you can dump a glass of cold water into your boiling pot as soon as you know the pasta is done. That way it won't overcook by the time you get it through the strainer.

Enjoy perfect pasta!