The Pasta Water Doctrine: Salt, Starch, and Science

Every Italian nonna tells you that pasta water is the secret. They are right, but not for the reason you think.

The pasta water you reserve is rich in starch because pasta sheds a film of it while cooking. That starch is what binds a sauce to pasta and gives you the glossy emulsion you see in restaurants.

The second job of pasta water is seasoning. A well-salted pot is salty like the sea. If your finished pasta tastes flat, chances are your pasta water was too fresh.

A final rule: toss the pasta in the sauce for 60 to 90 seconds before plating. This final emulsion is when the pasta actually takes on the flavor of the sauce. Plating cold pasta ruins the dish.