I have a dedicated stainless steel pasta pan (well I assume that is what IKEA intended it for). It comprises of a pan, unventilated lid and a perforated liner which is designed to be lifted up by the handles at the end of cooking time to allow the water to drain from the food. This is why I am not 100% convinced it is designed just for pasta, as it could also be used to cook and drain vegetables, meat etc.
While I love the convenience, pasta always takes longer to cook even when the water is boiling vigorously. Tonight was a case in point, the linguine stated 11 minutes to "Al dente" on the packet but in reality it took 17 minutes to reach the correct texture.
This trait is identical irrespective of pasta brand, some take a couple of minutes extra, some much longer. Watching the pot boil with the lid off is also very different from a regular pot, while a normal pot would just boil and boil, this one boils, cools down off the boil then returns to the boil again, almost in a cyclical fashion. This pattern is not noticeable with the lid on, but this doesn't speed up the cooking time by much.
Can anyone explain this erratic behaviour?
(Edited to add removing the insert has no effect and we are in the UK).