What’s the Best Way to Cook Pasta?

Pasta noodles contain only three ingredients: eggs, water and flour. But how can you achieve a tasty result every time? Cooking pasta chemically changes how the proteins and starches interact, making the noodles sticky and springy. Therefore, what you do — or don’t do — to the cooking water can change the edible result. This video serves up four food-chemistry informed pasta pro-tips so you can serve up delectable al dente pasta instead of an unappetizing ball of overcooked noodles.

[Correction at 0:30: It should be spelled “Durum” not “Durham” wheat. Thanks to Edmund Bridge, CU SOM Mini Med and other viewers for pointing this out.]

(noscript)