“How much pasta should I cook!” is the question that immediately comes to mind as soon as you bring water to a boil. Is the pasta dish meant to be an appetizer, main course or are you cooking for a large group? All factors that might make you hesitate. In this blog we will tell you exactly how much pasta you should use per person.
How much pasta do you cook per person?
Per person, you should cook 125 grams of pasta. We are talking about 125 grams of uncooked pasta here. This is the amount of pasta you need to cook for an adult. The amount of pasta for an appetizer is 80 grams of pasta. If there are eggs in the pasta, you can use 100 grams of pasta per person.
To determine the right amount of pasta to cook, you must first consider a number of factors. We’ll tell you more about these specific factors that determine how much pasta you should cook per person.
How much pasta you should cook depends on many factors
How much pasta you need to cook to end up with enough for your pasta dish depends on a number of factors. Is the pasta you are cooking for an appetizer, intended as a main course, for small eaters or for bigger ones, are you making it for one day or for several days?
In addition, factors such as: dry pasta, fresh pasta, or pasta with eggs in the dough also play a role when you have to choose how much pasta to use for your dish.
Pasta as a starter
In Italy, pasta is often eaten before the main course. If you’re planning a big splurge at home and want to serve pasta as an appetizer, just like in Italy, it will be a lot easier to decide how much pasta to cook. You and your guests don’t have to be completely full after the plate of pasta.
You eat the pasta as an appetizer so the idea is to leave room for the main course. It’s easy, because you never have to worry that you haven’t cooked enough pasta. As a rule, 80 grams of dried pasta is used per person. This weight is weighed before the pasta enters the boiling water.
Pasta as a main course
Outside the home, Italians often choose pasta as a starter. At home, a nice plate of pasta is often chosen as the evening meal. Quick, simple and delicious.
When you choose pasta as the main course, you must make sure that you cook enough pasta. You want to be full after your plate of pasta. If you are cooking pasta for your main course, choose to use 125 grams of pasta.
Much or little pasta sauce?
Besides the question of whether you are cooking pasta as a starter or main course, you should also consider the amount of pasta sauce you use for your pasta dish.
If you are making a pasta dish with a lot of pasta sauce, you can choose to use 100 grams of pasta instead of 125 grams. If you are making a dish using only olive oil or a little cream, for example, then you should choose 125 grams of pasta.
Different types and shapes of pasta
“But what am I going to do with all these different types of pasta!” I hear you think. Whether you choose a long type of pasta like spaghetti, or a short form like penne, it doesn’t have much influence on the amount of pasta you need to cook.
This is because it’s not about the shape of the pasta, but about the total weight you end up putting in the pan. In some pasta shapes there is a lot of air and in other shapes not at all. Air weighs nothing, so it doesn’t matter for the weight either!
If you would like to know exactly how much pasta you need to cook if you choose a specific type of pasta, we have made a list below with the quantities for each type of pasta:
How much spaghetti to cook per person
The amount of spaghetti you need to cook per person is 125 grams. When we talk about 125 grams, we mean the weight of the pasta before it is cooked. So before you start cooking, weigh 125 grams of spaghetti and then put it in the water. As a starter you can use 80 grams of uncooked spaghetti per person.
How much macaroni to cook per person
The amount of macaroni you need to cook per person is 125 grams. When we talk about 125 grams, we mean the weight of the pasta before it is cooked.
So before you start cooking, weigh out 125 grams of macaroni and then put it in the water. As a starter you can use 80 grams of uncooked macaroni per person.
How much fusilli to cook per person
The amount of fusilli you need to cook per person is 125 grams. When we talk about 125 grams, we mean the weight of the pasta before it is cooked. So before you start cooking, weigh out 125 grams of fusilli and then put it in the water. As a starter you can use 80 grams of uncooked fusilli per person.
How much penne to cook per person
The amount of penne to cook per person is 125 grams. When we say 125 grams, we mean the weight of the pasta before it is cooked. So before you start cooking weigh 125 grams of penne and then put it in the water. As an appetizer you can use 80 grams of uncooked penne per person.
How much tagliatelle to cook per person
The amount of tagliatelle you need to cook per person is 125 grams. When we talk about 125 grams, we mean the weight of the pasta before it is cooked. So before you start cooking, weigh 125 grams of tagliatelle and then put it in the water. As a starter you can use 80 grams of uncooked tagliatelle per person.
It may be that you have tagliatelle in the house where eggs are processed. This means that the tagliatelle is extra nutritious. This is of course because of the eggs. If you want to know how much tagliatelle you should cook if eggs are in it, we advise you to 100 grams of uncooked tagliatelle to keep.
How much pasta to cook for a large group?
Now that you know how much pasta to cook per person, it’s handy to be able to calculate how much pasta you’ll need for a large group of people. If we assume that you are going to cook the pasta for a main course, it is convenient to use 125 grams of pasta per person.
Of course it is not that complicated to calculate the amount of pasta you would need for a group of 8 people. But to make it easier for you, we have added up the amount of pasta per person below.
The amount of pasta per person for a large group:
Amount of pasta for 1 person: 125 grams
Amount of pasta for 2 persons: 250 grams
Quantity of pasta for 3 persons: 375 grams
Quantity of pasta for 4 persons: 500 grams
Quantity of pasta for 5 persons: (625 g)
Quantity of pasta for 6 persons: (750 grams)
Quantities of pasta for 7 persons: 875 grams
Quantity of pasta for 8 persons: (1000 g)
Quantity of pasta for 9 persons: 1125 grams
Quantity of pasta for 10 persons: 1250 grams
Of course, we could continue this list ad infinitum, but there are few situations where you need to cook pasta for more than 10 people.
One thing I do want to give you is the fact that pasta is often packed per 500 grams. Take this into account when buying pasta. If you have to cook pasta for 7 people, for example, then cook pasta for 8 people (2 x 500 gram packs). This works out better because of the packaging. And hey, this way you also have some pasta left for the next day!
Pasta with or without eggs
If you choose pasta with eggs in the dough, you must take into account that the eggs are very nutritious and satiating. So you can feel free to choose 80 grams of pasta if there are eggs in the dough.
Big or small eaters
The last thing you can take into account when wondering how much pasta to cook are your guests. How many people are you cooking for, are they adults, children or a large group.
If you are cooking for guests who can eat a lot, just go for 125 grams of pasta per person. Better too much than too little. If you have leftover pasta, you can always eat it the next day!
An overview of the amount of pasta per person
In order not to make things too complicated, we have summed up everything below. This amount is a rough guideline, but can help you with the amount of pasta you prepare.
Pasta as a starter: 80/100 grams of pasta
Pasta for main course: 125 grams of pasta
Pasta for small eaters: 80/100 gram pasta
Pasta for big eaters: 125 grams of pasta
Pasta with eggs in the dough: 100 grams of pasta
Weighing pasta with a food scale
Now that you know how much pasta to cook, all you have to do is weigh the pasta and you’re done. This way you can be sure that you are cooking the right amount of pasta.
The best way to do this is to use a food scale. Of course, a food scale is not just for weighing pasta. So once you’ve purchased one, it’ll be a pleasure for years to come!
