Homemade Pasta

Ever considered making your own pasta at home? You definitely should! It seems intimidating but is super simple to make. It adds that elegance and something special to any meal you may be making. This recipe requires minimal equipment in lieu of a pasta machine. 

Equipment:

• bench scraper

• rolling pin

• pizza cutter or sharp knife

• ruler (optional)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups “00” flour or unbleached all purpose flour + more for kneading

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• 8 large egg yolks

• 1/4 cup filtered water

• semolina flour, to prevent sticking

Procedure: 

1. In a large bowl, mix flour and salt together. In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolks and water.

2. Pour flour onto a clean work surface. Make a ‘well’ in the center. SLOWLY pour the egg yolk mixture in the well and use a fork to bring some of the flour into the center of the well.

3. Incorporate most of the flour until it becomes thick and paste-like. Put the fork aside and start using a bench scraper (or your hands) to fully incorporate the egg mixture with the flour. Keep folding the dough on top of itself to mix thoroughly. Warning: this will get messy and slightly frustrating but keep patient, you got this! To prevent dough from sticking from the bench scraper (or your hands), dust lightly with flour. You want to achieve a smooth, round ball shape. If the dough feels too wet, lightly dust more flour over the top and keep kneading the dough until you get a soft, smooth ball. See pictures below.

4. Once you’ve reached the desired shape, place the dough into a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let it rest for 30-45 minutes.

5. While the dough rests, dust a baking sheet tray with semolina flour. Set aside.

6. Lightly flour a clean work surface with semolina flour to prevent sticking. Place dough on the surface and begin to roll it out trying to achieve a square shape. You can get technical with measurements if you’d like but I don’t feel it’s necessary. Roll out till your desired thickness, something like pie dough crust. It’s handmade pasta so be super rustic with it. :)

7. Once dough is rolled out, square off the edges with a pie cutter or knife. Feel free to use a ruler here to keep it even.

8. You can begin cutting your desired pasta shape. I roughly measure here to get an idea of thickness (see pictures below) but do what works best for you. Dust semolina flour over the sliced shapes. Gently move them onto the dusted sheet tray to prevent sticking. Keep repeating until all the dough is used up.

Notes:

• To cook: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Heavily salt the water until it tastes like ocean water. Put pasta in the water and cook for roughly 1:30-2 minutes. When the pasta floats to the top, that is a good indication it is done. Strain and serve with your favorite sauce!

• To save for later: Either freeze for a few months or keep covered and stored in the fridge for 1-2 days. Make sure to add semolina flour to the noodles to prevent sticking. It makes it much easier to work with.