Home › Home & Kitchen › Kitchen & Dining › Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets › Colanders & Strainers How to Drain Pasta Published: July 9, 2026 · Updated: July 9, 2026
Set a colander in the sink first, scoop out a mug of the starchy cooking water to save, then pour the pot away from you into the colander and give it a shake. Don't drain it bone-dry or rinse it — a little clinging water and starch help the sauce coat the pasta — unless you're making a cold pasta salad.
Recommended Colander in the sink, save a cup of pasta water first, pour away from you, and don't rinse — Draining pasta well is quick but there are a couple of things worth getting right. Before you drain, scoop out a mug of the cloudy cooking water and set it aside — that starchy water is the secret to loosening and emulsifying a sauce so it clings, and it's gone the moment you pour it down the drain. Put the colander in the sink so it's ready, then lift the pot with both hands using oven mitts and pour it steadily away from you, so the billow of hot steam goes away from your face rather than into it. Give the colander a gentle shake to drop most of the water, but stop there: pasta doesn't need to be bone-dry, and a little water left clinging actually helps the sauce grip. Don't rinse hot pasta under the tap — rinsing washes away the surface starch that sauce needs and cools the pasta down — the one exception being pasta destined for a cold salad, which you do rinse to stop it cooking and clumping. Ideally, tip the drained pasta straight into the waiting sauce (or lift it across with tongs or a spider), add a splash of the reserved water, and toss so every strand is coated.
