What happens to boiled pasta if you use too little water? There are almost always guidelines on pasta packages for the amount of water you should use when boiling.  Sometimes I'd like to use a pot that's on the smaller side, and that got me wondering; what actually happens to pasta if you use too little water (assuming it's at least fully submerged)?
See: 


What is the correct water to pasta ratio?
How much water to put in my pasta pot?


Short answer:  if you stir once or twice at the beginning to prevent sticking, and all of the pasta is submerged, you can very successfully make pasta in a reasonably small quantity of water.

Here is a direct link to the Serious Eats article both of the answers above cite.