Fresh Egg Pasta (Made Using a Pasta Machine)
Making homemade pasta may sound daunting, but it's actually very easy once you get the hang of it, and it is well worth the effort. After the first few times, you may well come to the conclusion that's actually less of a pain to throw together a batch than to run out to the supermarket to buy dried pasta. It's very important to let the dough rest for 45 minutes or so before you roll it out – if you don't, the pasta may be tough. If it springs back when you touch it, it’s ready to roll.
You don't need fancy equipment; we make ours on an old-fashioned, 6-inch Atlas pasta machine — the kind you can pick up at for $30 to $50. (Lots of people use a stand mixer with a pasta attachment, but we;ve never tried that, as we enjoy rolling out pasta using the Atlas and have never been moved to purchase a stand mixer. But that’s a whole 'nother story.) When you're first starting out, it's helpful to have someone to catch the dough as it comes out of the pasta machine, as you'll be cranking with one hand and feeding dough in with the other. When you're more experienced you'll be able to do it all yourself.
If you want to make fresh pasta without using a pasta machine — instead rolling out the dough with a rolling pin — use this recipe (same ingredients, different technique).
Makes enough pasta to serve 5 or 6 as a main course or 8 to 10 as a middle course.
Ingredients
350 grams (just over 12 ounces, about 2 3/4 cups) 00 or unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
4 large eggs
Instructions
Tagliatelle drying
1. Place the flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Crack the eggs into the well, making sure to capture every drop of the whites. Using a fork, gently beat the eggs, drawing the flour in from the sides of the well. Continue doing so until the eggs are incorporated into the flour. Continue beating with the fork until the dough starts to come together.
2. Turn the dough – along with the stray bits – onto a lightly floured board, and push the bits into the dough as much as possible. Knead the dough a few minutes, until all the bits are incorporated and the dough is uniform and pretty smooth. Form it into a ball, wrap it in plastic film and let it rest at room temperature for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
3. Lightly flour a couple of sheet pans, then set up your pasta machine next to a lightly floured board. Cut a piece of the dough about the size of a ping-pong ball and push it through the the No. 1 roller setting on the machine, in which the rollers are farthest apart. Fold the dough into a rectangle or square and feed it through again. Repeat once or twice, then set the machine on setting No. 2. Feed the dough through, catching it with one hand and cranking with the other. Lightly flour the dough if necessary. Continue rolling through the progressively higher settings until the dough is as thin as you want it. It will get longer and longer the thinner it gets; if it becomes too long to work with, cut it half. After you put the dough through setting No. 6, it will be thin enough to use for linguini, tagliatelle, fettuccine, pappardelle or lasagne. Lay it gently on one of the floured sheet pans to dry a few minutes while you roll out of the rest of the dough. If you’re making lasagne noodles, they are ready to cook.
4. Once the pasta sheets are dry to the touch (but not dried out), they’re ready to cut. For tagliatelle, fettucine or linguini, put the long pasta sheet through the appropriate cutter blade on the pasta machine. Gently gather the strands and arrange them softly in a nest on the floured sheet pan. For pappardelle, fold the pasta into quarters or so – without pressing; you don't want it to stick together – and use a knife to cut the pasta into noodles about 3/4-inch thick. Unfold them gently and arrange them gently and loosely on the floured sheet pan. Continue with the rest of the dough.
6. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted boiling water for about 2 or 3 minutes – until it has the right texture: firm and springy, but no longer doughy. Drain or transfer to warm sauce and serve immediately.
Fresh Egg Pasta
Ingredients
- 350 grams (just over 12 ounces, about 2 3/4 cups) 00 or unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
- 4 large eggs
Instructions
- Place the flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Crack the eggs into the well, making sure to capture every drop of the whites. Using a fork, gently beat the eggs, drawing the flour in from the sides of the well. Continue doing so until the eggs are incorporated into the flour. Continue beating with the fork until the dough starts to come together.
- Turn the dough – along with the stray bits – onto a lightly floured board, and push the bits into the dough as much as possible. Knead the dough a few minutes, until all the bits are incorporated and the dough is uniform and pretty smooth. Form it into a ball, wrap it in plastic film and let it rest in the refrigerator at least 45 minutes.
- Lightly flour a couple of sheet pans, then set up your pasta machine next to a lightly floured board. Cut a piece of the dough about the size of a ping-pong ball and push it through the the No. 1 roller setting on the machine, in which the rollers are farthest apart. Fold the dough into a rectangle or square and feed it through again. Repeat once or twice, then set the machine on setting No. 2. Feed the dough through, catching it with one hand and cranking with the other. Lightly flour the dough if necessary. Continue rolling through the progressively higher settings until the dough is as thin as you want it. It will get longer and longer the thinner it gets; if it becomes too long to work with, cut it half. After you put the dough through setting No. 6, it will be thin enough to use for linguini, tagliatelle, fettuccine, pappardelle or lasagne. Lay it gently on one of the floured sheet pans to dry a few minutes while you roll out of the rest of the dough. If you’re making lasagne noodles, they are ready to cook.
- Once the pasta sheets are dry to the touch (but not dried out), they’re ready to cut. For tagliatelle, fettucine or linguini, put the long pasta sheet through the appropriate cutter blade on the pasta machine. Gently gather the strands and arrange them softly in a nest on the floured sheet pan. For pappardelle, fold the pasta into quarters or so – without pressing; you don't want it to stick together – and use a knife to cut the pasta into noodles about 3/4-inch thick. Unfold them gently and arrange them gently and loosely on the floured sheet pan. Continue with the rest of the dough.
- Cook the pasta in plenty of salted boiling water for about 2 or 3 minutes – until it has the right texture: firm and springy, but no longer doughy. Drain or transfer to warm sauce and serve immediately.