La albahaca combina muy bien con el tomate, y mi abuela dice que así la pasta sabe mejor.

Spanish uses the definite article much more often than English, especially when talking about things in general.

So in this sentence:

• la albahaca = basil, as an ingredient in general
• el tomate = tomato, as an ingredient in general
• la pasta = pasta, as a type of food

In English, we often say Basil goes well with tomato, but Spanish normally prefers La albahaca combina bien con el tomate.

This is very common with foods, body parts, school subjects, and other general categories.

Here, el tomate is being used in a generic way, meaning tomato as an ingredient or flavour, not one specific tomato.

Spanish often uses the singular definite article for general statements:

• El tomate es saludable
• La cebolla combina bien con...
• El café me gusta mucho

So el tomate here means something like tomato in general.

You could also hear los tomates in other contexts, but that usually sounds more like actual tomatoes as countable items rather than the ingredient or flavour category.

The verb is combinar, and here it means to go well with, to pair well with, or to match well with.

The structure is:

• X combina con Y = X goes well with Y

So:

• La albahaca combina con el tomate

The phrase muy bien strengthens it:

• combina muy bien = goes very well together / pairs very well

This use of combinar is very common with food, clothes, colours, and styles.

Because muy is the word used to modify adjectives and adverbs.

Here, bien is an adverb, so you say:

• muy bien

not

• mucho bien

A useful rule:

• muy
  • adjective/adverb
    
    • muy bueno
    • muy bien
• mucho
  • noun, or as an adverb with some verbs
    
    • mucho tiempo
    • come mucho

So combina muy bien is correct.

Here, que means that and introduces what the grandmother says.

• Mi abuela dice que así la pasta sabe mejor

This is the normal Spanish structure after verbs like:

• decir
• pensar
• creer
• saber

English often drops that:

• My grandmother says pasta tastes better like that

But in Spanish, que is usually kept:

• Mi abuela dice que...

So it is a very important linking word in reported speech and opinions.

In this sentence, así means like that, that way, or in that way.

It refers back to the idea of combining basil with tomato. So the sense is:

• with basil and tomato together
• prepared that way
• in that combination

So mi abuela dice que así la pasta sabe mejor means that, according to her, pasta tastes better when it is done that way.

In other contexts, así can also mean things like:

• so
• therefore
• like this / like that

But here it clearly refers to the way the food is prepared or combined.

Yes, saber can mean to know, but it also has another common meaning: to taste.

With food as the subject, saber usually means to taste:

• La pasta sabe mejor = the pasta tastes better
• Esto sabe raro = this tastes strange
• Sabe a limón = it tastes like lemon

This is different from conocer, which is used for knowing people, places, or being familiar with something.

A quick contrast:

• sé la respuesta = I know the answer
• conozco Madrid = I know Madrid
• la sopa sabe bien = the soup tastes good

Because saber mejor specifically talks about flavour.

• saber mejor = to taste better

If you said está mejor, that would usually mean it is better now in a broader sense, depending on context. If you said es mejor, that means it is better in a more general or abstract way.

But when talking about food and flavour, saber is the natural verb:

• La pasta sabe mejor así

That means the improvement is in the taste.

Because the sentence expresses general truths and a habitual opinion, not a one-time event.

• La albahaca combina muy bien con el tomate
  This is a general statement about food pairing.

• Mi abuela dice...
  This can mean my grandmother says or my grandmother always says.

• La pasta sabe mejor
  This is presented as a general claim about how it tastes when prepared that way.

Spanish often uses the present tense for these broad, timeless statements, just like English does.

Not always. In many cases, Spanish would omit the comma before y:

• La albahaca combina muy bien con el tomate y mi abuela dice que así la pasta sabe mejor

That version is also perfectly natural.

The comma in your sentence creates a slight pause and helps separate the two clauses:

• La albahaca combina muy bien con el tomate
• mi abuela dice que así la pasta sabe mejor

Because the second clause has a different subject, mi abuela, some writers choose to add the comma for clarity or rhythm. So it is not the only correct option, but it is understandable and natural enough.

No, Spanish word order is fairly flexible, but the chosen order is very natural.

• así la pasta sabe mejor

This puts así early, so the sentence highlights the way it is prepared.

Other orders are possible, for example:

• la pasta sabe mejor así

This is also very common and may sound even more direct in conversation.

Both are correct, but the emphasis changes a little:

• Así la pasta sabe mejor = prepared that way, the pasta tastes better
• La pasta sabe mejor así = the pasta tastes better this way

So the original word order is natural, but not the only possibility.