Fresh pasta dough

A classic Italian fresh pasta recipe you can make by hand or with the aid of some convenient machines. The fresh pasta can be cut by hand into wide ribbons of pappardelle, fed through the pasta cutter into tagliatelle or spaghetti, or made into delicious lasagne or ravioli.

Ingredients

• 400g/14oz ’00’ flour, plus extra for dusting
• 4 free-range eggs
• semolina flour, for dusting
• 1 tbsp salt

Method

1. Put the flour in a mound on a large clean work surface. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs. Gradually draw the flour into the eggs with your hands to create a dough. The dough will become less sticky as it comes together.

2. Form into a ball and knead for around 8 minutes until smooth, elastic and when you drag your thumb across the dough it doesn’t tear. Place in an airtight box and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

3. Alternatively, put the flour in a food processor. Add the eggs and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (it shouldn’t be dusty, nor should it be a big, gooey ball). This only takes a minute. Tip out the dough and knead to form into a ball shape. Knead and set aside to rest as above.

4. Divide the dough into four equal pieces and place one piece on a work surface dusted with semolina. Make sure the other dough pieces are covered with a damp tea towel to prevent them from drying out. Roll the dough into a rectangle that is about 5mm/¼in thick.

5. Feed the pasta through a pasta machine on the widest setting. Fold and feed through again. Repeat the process four or five times.

6. Pass the dough through the pasta machine rollers, decreasing the setting grade by grade to the desired setting (either the penultimate or final setting, depending on your preference). If the sheet of pasta becomes too long to handle easily, cut it in half. Ideally, by the end you should be able to see your fingers through the pasta. (You can roll pasta by hand with a rolling pin, but it will certainly give you a workout!)

7. Cut the pasta dough into your desired shape using a pizza wheel or pasta roller and a ruler. Alternatively, dust each sheet with semolina and fold in both ends to the centre of the sheet, repeating until you have a small paperback-sized parcel.

8. Use a sharp chef’s knife to cut it into strips. Immediately unfold and untangle the sheets and swish in more semolina while you cut the rest. Or simply feed the pasta sheets through one of the cutting attachments on the machine.

9. To cook, fill a large pot with boiling water (it will take a couple of kettle’s worth), add the salt and bring to the boil.

10. Add the pasta and cook for around 2 minutes, or until it floats to the surface. Drain thoroughly (reserving a mug of pasta water in case your sauce needs a little loosening) and serve with your sauce of choice.

Fresh pasta dough