Chef Angela Hartnett says carbonara should not be creamy(Image: Getty Images)

Top chef says you're making pasta wrong - and shares five common mistakes

Italian chef Angela Hartnett has revealed the biggest pasta mistakes people make - as she shared her Italian food pet peeves with actor Stanley Tucci.

by · The Mirror

A top Italian chef has shared five mistakes home cooks are making as they prepare their favourite pasta dishes.

Angela Hartnett owns a Michelin-starred restaurant in London where she specialises in Italian cuisine. It comes after her mother emigrated to the UK from Italy.

She has shared some of her pasta pet peeves alongside Hollywood actor Stanley Tucci on The Dish podcast. Among them include using the wrong type of pasta for your dishes.

Podcast co-host Nick Grimshaw asked the pair what "annoys them the most" about the "hot takes" on Italian food. Hartnett responded: "Cream in carbonara is one."

Angela Hartnett attending the 68th annual Women of the Year event at the Royal Lancaster London hotel in London.Picture date: Monday October 10, 2022.( Image: PA Archive/PA Images)

A traditional Italian carbonara is made using eggs and cheese, which are added to the hot pasta and tossed together to create a creamy sauce.

Tucci chimed in with "too much sauce". Other faux pas according to Hartnett included using spaghetti with bolognese - tagliatelle is preferred in much of northern Italy - pre-grated Parmesan, and pre-cooked pasta.

Hartnett recalled a time when she was younger and someone used a pre-grated version of the cheese. She said: "I remember when I was at college, someone having pre-grated parmesan in one of those plastic tubs and I was like such a snob. I was like 'oh my God'. And then people pre-cook pasta and refresh it in cold water."

Stanley Tucci doesn't like pasta with too much sauce( Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images for Harrods)

Tucci, who has published three cookbooks, appeared visibly shocked by the news. He added: "No, no, no."

The Devil Wears Prada actor has recently completed filming for a travel series around Italy titled Tucci: The Heart of Italy. This is a sequel to his award-winning show Searching for Italy, where he journeyed across the country tasting various cuisines and immersing himself in the diverse cultures.

Tucci grew up in an Italian family, with both parents hailing from southern Italy. He also spent a year living in Florence during the 1970s.