Truth or myth: Pasta should always be cooked al dente or firm to the tooth.
The source of this myth seems to be transcontinental confusion. The American way of serving fully cooked pasta with sauce dolloped on top is different from the Italian way of serving pasta and sauce combined. In Italian recipes, the pasta is cooked twice: first in boiling water, and then again with seasonings or sauce, so leaving it slightly undercooked — al dente — in the first stage makes sense. You can always add more sauce or cooking water to finish cooking the pasta, but you can’t go back if it’s overcooked.
