Mistake #2 Slimy Noodles That Sauce Won’t Stick To
So, now you’re using enough water and stirring your pasta. There should be no reason to add oil to the pot. Still, people persist in adding oil to pasta water in the hopes that the oil will keep the pasta from sticking together.
This isn’t true, most of the oil floats on top of the pot and gets poured down the drain. Any oil that clings to the pasta will just make it slimy and keep any sauce you are using from sticking to the noodles.
The Fix—Back Away from the Oil Can
Make sure to use plenty of water. Make sure the water comes to a rolling boil before adding the pasta. Stir until the water comes back to a rolling boil. If you follow these rules, your pasta will come out fine, so don’t waste your oil.
I agree with most of what you said, but lately I’ve been doing the trick of using less water and sometimes starting in a cold pot as mentioned on SeriousEats.com. You end up with a higher starch percentage in the water, which helps your sauce. The only downside is that you have to be attentive when the pasta is put in the pot, you can’t just throw it in and go do other stuff.