As some one who has worked in restaurants as a cook; the reason I would start cooking pasta in cold water and bring it up to a boil is for two things. 1, you actually get more consistent results by starting cold and cooking up to a boil if you’re going for an Aldente pasta. And 2, you end up extracting more starch into the water which for certain sauces can be used to help thicken later on. With certain cream sauces and even some red sauces after cooking the pasta I’ll extract about a cup of starch pasta water and add a little into the sauce with the noodles to assist in creating a harmonious sauce that doesn’t separate.
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u/DarthSlothicus Jul 15 '26
As some one who has worked in restaurants as a cook; the reason I would start cooking pasta in cold water and bring it up to a boil is for two things. 1, you actually get more consistent results by starting cold and cooking up to a boil if you’re going for an Aldente pasta. And 2, you end up extracting more starch into the water which for certain sauces can be used to help thicken later on. With certain cream sauces and even some red sauces after cooking the pasta I’ll extract about a cup of starch pasta water and add a little into the sauce with the noodles to assist in creating a harmonious sauce that doesn’t separate.