It's an easy and comforting weeknight staple, but have you been cooking your pasta to perfection?
One chef believes there's a very specific formula for cooking pasta, including how much salt you add and how to make the perfect sauce.
Scott Conant, who runs New York's Fusco restaurant and is often dubbed 'the Maestro of pasta', shared his guide to making perfect 'pantry pasta' with My Domaine.
Picture: Scott Conant
Scott Conant, who runs New York's Fusco restaurant and is often dubbed 'the Maestro of pasta', shared his guide to making perfect 'pantry pasta' with My Domaine.
Scott's ultimate secret to the perfect pasta with tomato sauce is adding a splash of the pasta water to the tomato sauce to give it the perfect flavour. He also says it's essential not to boil your pasta to the bite. Instead, add it directly to the sauce with a few minutes to spare to give it a silky texture and the perfect cook.
Scott begins his video tutorial by taking a tight handful of Bucatini pasta, which he says is the perfect amount for one person.
He then pops it in boiling water for just under 10 minutes - the optimum time for cooking this type of pasta.
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Meanwhile, he fries some sliced garlic with a handful of crushed red pepper, a handful of sliced tomatoes and a pinch of salt.
He notes that as the tomatoes begin to melt and the pectin is released, you should add a spoonful of the pasta cooking liquid to get the sauce going.
He then covers the pan and waits for it to bubble, explaining: 'Thanks to the addition of the pasta water it's salted well but not too much; it's more like broth. As you cook it and it reduces, it doesn't become too salty.'
After adding a handful of basil, he adds the drained pasta to the sauce, along with one more spoonful of pasta water and mixes it until he hears a 'sloshy sound'.
Adding one more pinch of salt, he serves the pasta and notes: 'It's just about simplicity.'