Common cooking mistakes we all make that ruin pasta and pizza

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

According to a study, Italian food is the most popular cuisine in the UK. A recent YouGov survey showed that over half of Brits taking part (51%) think of it is as our favourite food. This is perhaps obvious when you think about how many Italian restaurants dot our high streets, and how many of us cook Italian dishes every night (Credits: Getty Images)

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

Sadly for us, though, many of our homemade attempts at pasta do not match up to the delicious dishes being served up in restaurants and Italy itself, and would even 'offend Italian chefs'. Read on to to find out how you can improve your pasta cooking and bring some of authentic Italy to your dinner table, according to expert pasta and sauce makers Napolina (Picture: Getty Images)

1) Putting oil in pasta water

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

Lots of us are guilty of putting oil in our pasta water in the belief it will stop pasta from sticking together. Italians do not do this - as water and oil do not mix, the addition of oil to the water will only coat your pasta and cause pasta sauce to slide off. Instead, stir the pasta immediately after submerging it into water to stop it sticking to the bottom of the pot (Picture: Getty Images)

2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

Wait, before you cheese lovers start to panic, this rule is a bit complicated. Whether to eat pasta with cheese depends on the pasta dish in question. Most of the time, the pasta sauce has been seasoned enough already and it is not customary to add cheese at the table. This is especially true for seafood pasta dishes. For other dishes, however, like carbonara, an extra sprinkling of cheese is customary. As a rule of thumb, do not add cheese unless the chef is offering it, or you might anger them (Picture: Getty Images)

3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

Some things are better in pairs. Ant and Dec. Cheese and crackers. Strawberries and Cream. But not, according to Italians, garlic bread and pasta. Whilst they do eat garlic rubbed on toasted bread, ciabatta is used, not a baguette, and it is commonly eaten with tomatoes. This is called bruschetta. It shouldn't be served alongside a main meal, but rather as an antipasti (Picture: Getty Images)

4) Adding cream to carbonara

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

This might be a controversial one, but Italian’s do not eat cream with their carbonara. The traditional recipe does not call for it. Instead, carbonara is made with eggs, cheese, pancetta and black pepper (Picture: Getty Images)

5) Eating bread before a meal

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

When in a restaurant, many of us enjoy tucking into the complimentary bread basket as we wait for our food. Not in Italy. Bread is meant to be eaten with other food, but not pasta. The exception to this rule is bruschetta, which is eaten as an antipasti, and eating focaccia you buy in a bakery (Picture: Getty Images)

6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

You won’t find Italian’s tucking into a stuffed crust pizza - and if you’re looking to enjoy authentic Italian Pizza, you shouldn’t either. Pizza where the crust is stuffed with cheese, usually mozzarella, was invented by Pizza Hut in 1995. It’s so American it was marketed in a commercial with Donald Trump (Picture: Getty Images)

7) Not eating pasta al dente

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

Eating mushy pasta is a culinary crime in Italy. Instead pasta is typically eaten al dente - with a little bite. The reasons for this are plentiful. It tastes better than overcooked pasta, has a nicer texture, holds sauce better and is even easier to digest (Picture: Getty Images)

8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

You might find yourself blushing in recognition for this one, as breaking spaghetti is a common pasta mistake. It makes it easier to put in the pan, after all. But Italians never break spaghetti when cooking it, and there’s a simple reason why. Spaghetti is supposed to be wrapped around your fork to be eaten, as it stops sauce coming off it. Broken spaghetti cannot do this, so stop (Picture: Getty Images)

9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

Chopped tomatoes is a staple of Italian recipes. But for some dishes, mostly those that require a smooth tomato sauce with no tomato pieces, Italians use passata. This leads to a thicker texture and more intense tomato flavour. We’ll be adding some to our basket during our next trip to the supermarket (Picture: Getty Images)

10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

1) Putting oil in pasta water, 2) Covering pasta dishes in cheese, 3) Serving garlic bread as a side with pasta, 4) Adding cream to carbonara, 5) Eating bread before a meal, 6) Eating stuffed crust pizzas, 7) Not eating pasta al dente, 8) Breaking spaghetti before cooking, 9) Not using passata to make pasta sauce, 10) Putting more than three toppings on pizza

As a rule, traditional Italian pizzas do not have more than three toppings on them. This is because Italian pizzas typically focus on quality ingredients and showcase flavours through fewer toppings. Why wouldn’t you want to give fresh, local produce a chance to shine? In contrast, America developed the idea of putting a wider range of toppings on their pizzas (Picture: Getty Images)

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