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Properly cooking pasta is one of the first steps in becoming a great cook. Thankfully, once you have appropriate instruction, it is a kitchen skill that is easy to master.
The first step in preparing perfect pasta is to know how much pasta you need to cook. One pound of dry spaghetti will feed approximately six to eight people, while one pound of fresh pasta feeds four or five. The next step is to begin boiling water. For every pound of noodles, you will want to boil four to six quarts of water. If you have too little water, your pasta will stick together. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add a pinch of salt which will bring out the flavor of the pasta. At this point, you should put the pasta into the water. Some people chose to add a teaspoon of olive oil to the water which can prevent the pasta from sticking. During the first few minutes of the pasta boiling, you should make sure to mix the pasta regularly.
It generally takes two to five minutes to cook fresh spaghetto or eight to twelve minutes to cook dry pasta. The amount of time you allow the pasta to cook for will effect its texture. For a firm or al dente noodles, the cooking time will be shorter while a softer noodle will take more time to cook. Be sure not to leave the pasta in the water too long though, as this can cause it to become mushy. There are a few ways to tell if pasta is done, but the most reliable way is to taste for yourself to see if it has the texture you personally desire.
Once you are satisfied that the pasta is cooked, pour the water and pasta into a colander, which is a bowl with holes so that the water can drain away from the pasta. You should vigorously shake the colander so that any trapped water is able to escape. Some people advise rinsing pasta to avoid the pasta sticking together, but unless you're making a pasta salad this step is unnecessary.
You now have a delicious bowl of perfectly prepared pasta.