Recipe: Cooking large amounts of pasta.

Cooking large amounts of pasta
Source: Ellen's Kitchen

It takes 20 minutes to heat each gallon of water. Be sure to allow heating time for the water.

1 pound of pasta makes about 8 cups of cooked noodles or spaghetti. One pound of pasta makes 8 moderate servings or about 10 side servings.
Lasagna noodles are a special case, allow 1 per person. Get the noboil kind if you can, they are thinner and more like fresh, then for the best flavor, parboil for 3-5 minutes before making the casserole.

For each pound you will be cooking, bring 1 gallon of water to a full, rolling boil. Add the pasta about 1/2 lb. at a time, or in a slow steady stream if it is pourable. If the water stops boiling when you add the pasta, stir the noodles until it comes back to the boil, then count 8-12 minutes for the first pound, plus about 5 minutes for each additional pound. Drain. Serve at once, or use sauce or butter to prevent it from sticking to itself. Avoid rinsing in cold water unless you are going to use it for pasta salad.

The water in which whole-grain pasta has been cooked can be boiled down for use in stocks or sauces.