Waiter! There's a crunch in my pasta
Cooking good pasta for an Italian is no mean feat. First, the pasta has to be of the highest quality; second, it has to be cooked for precisely the correct length of time, so that it is al dente, which means that it is firm to the bite, almost crisp, or so an uninitiated eater might observe. Italians almost always add salt to the boiling water before adding the pasta and they never throw in the pasta until everyone who is going to eat is present. Don't complain if your pasta takes a while to arrive in a restaurant - you'll need to wait the 10 to 12 minutes it takes to cook.
Italian pasta comes in a dazzling variety of shapes and sizes, ranging from spaghetti and linguine, to tube pasta such as penne and rigatoni, and shell-shaped (conchiglie), bow-shaped (farfalle, which means butterflies) and corkscrew-shaped (fusilli) confections. Dried pasta is made with high-quality durum wheat and water. Fresh egg pasta (pasta all'uovo or fatto a mano) is made with eggs and flour and is used to make stuffed pasta such as tortellini and ravioli. Cut into strips it's called tagliatelle (thinner strips are also called taglionini or tagliarini). Egg pasta is usually served with rich, creamy sauces, while dried pasta has a tomato-based sauce.
Sampling the great variety of pasta sauces you'll find in Italy can make eating a lot of fun during your trip, particularly if you are adventurous enough to try traditional local recipes in the various regions or towns you visit. In the north, dishes are rich and creamy, and often include red meat (such as the delicious ragu from Bologna, known outside Italy as bolognese), while as you head further south they tend to use more vegetables and, on the coast, lots of seafood. Freshly grated cheese is the magic ingredient for most pasta. Parmesan (parmigiano) is the most widely used, particularly in the north. Look for the name 'Parmigiano Reggiano' on the rind to ensure you're getting the genuine parmesan, because there is also the similar, but lower quality, Grana Padano. In Sardinia and around Rome there is a tendency to use the sharp pecorino, an aged sheep's cheese, while ricotta salata (salted ricotta) is widely used in the south and in Sicily.

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