Pro tip: I was boiling my pasta wrong for years until a friend in Rome pointed out my pot was way too small.

He said 'You need at least 4 liters of water for 500 grams of dry pasta, otherwise it just steams and gets gummy,' and now my spaghetti is completely different.

3 comments

3 Comments

sagep191mo ago

My buddy did the same thing with his tiny saucepan. His girlfriend from Naples saw it and just laughed for a solid minute. He uses a stockpot now.

henry3151mo ago

Oh man, that's the universal sign you've messed up, when someone from the actual region just laughs at your gear. I tried making a big batch in a small dutch oven once, and it wasn't even about the splatter. The sauce just steamed and never got that good, thick texture. It was basically tomato soup. Now I go way bigger than I think I need, every single time. The extra space lets it actually cook down right.

ryan_ellis1mo ago

Ever try to make sauce in a pan that's way too small? I did that once and it was a huge mess, tomato splatter all over the stove. I learned my lesson and got a much wider, shallow pan. It lets the sauce reduce properly without boiling over, and honestly it just works better. The right size pot makes all the difference.