Stopped salting my pasta water at the start, now I add it halfway and the texture is completely different

I used to dump salt in as soon as the pot hit the stove, but after reading about starch gelatinization in a serious eats thread last fall, I tried waiting until the water was at a rolling boil and it changed how the noodles hold sauce, has anyone else experimented with salt timing or am I overthinking this?

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rivera.jake1d ago

Is the texture difference mostly on the surface or all the way through the noodle? I always figured the salt was just for flavor, so I'm curious if waiting changes the outside layer enough that sauce clings better or if it's more about the bite itself. Have you tried it with a thicker pasta like rigatoni versus something thin like spaghetti, or is the change consistent across shapes?