Fresh pasta! Such a fast way to elevate a hoe cooked meal. The texture and flavour of fresh pasta is really fantastic, it can be much better than dry pasta! It may seem quite complicated to make, but it’s actually very easy!
Why Make Fresh Pasta?
Fresh pasta certainly isn’t always appropriate or required. They are ultimately very different. Fresh pasta is made with egg and wheat flour, while dry pasta is made of semolina flour and water that is left to dry. This results in very different flavour and texture. As such, their uses are different!
Dried pasta is often used for heavier and heartier sauces. The use of semolina gives the pasta a rougher surface texture. This lets sauces cling to it a bit better. The drying also gives the pasta more structure, allowing it to hold it’s shape better.
Fresh pasta on the other hand has a lot more of it’s own flavour and tends to be smoother and more tender. As such, it works best in lighter or creamier sauces. Fresh pasta gives you a lot more flexibility though. Rolling it thicker allows it to hold it’s shape very well too! One massive benefit to fresh pasta as well is the cook time. Generally, it only takes a couple of minutes and it’s done!
How to Make Pasta Dough From Scratch
The golden rule to making fresh pasta is to follow the egg to flour ratio. Generally speaking, you should only ever need 1 egg per 100g flour. This amount will be a good serving for one person. It may be beneficial to use special tipo 00 flour, but it isn’t necessary! You can get by just fine using regular plain flour!
Firstly, you should pour your flour into a pile and make a well in the middle. Beat your eggs first and then pour them into the well. Next, you want to start to slowly incorporate the flour without making a mess! To do this, you should use a fork or small whisk to stir the eggs in the well, slowly bringing in more flour from the sides. Once your eggs have thickened enough that they won’t run everywhere, mix in the remaining flour and use a dough scraper or similar tool to roughly mix it together!
You will need to knead the pasta by hand at this point to bring it all together. This should take 3-5 minutes, after which you should have an evenly mixed and uniform dough that is slightly springy and not too sticky. If it is not coming together, add a little water. If it is very sticky, you can flour it lightly and knead more.
Rolling Out Your Pasta
Next, you will need to roll it out! This is easiest with a pasta machine, however you can also use a rolling pin if you do not have one. Start first by rolling it into a rough sheet, still relatively thick. Fold the edges in and roll again to get squarer edges. At this point, you can roll it out quicte thin, about 2mm thick! At this point you have a great single sheet, perfect for lasagna! You can then of course cut it up if you want into tagliatelle, fill it into ravioli, or anything else!
Guide to Fresh Pasta
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Pour your flour into a pile and make a well in the middle.
- Beat your eggs and pour them into the well.
- Mix the eggs in the middle, slowly bringing in flour from the edges.
- Once the egg mixture has thickened, cut in the remaining flour and make a shaggy mix.
- Knead by had for 3-5 minutes to bring together into a uniform dough.
- Cut the ball into quarters and press into circles. Roll through the pasta machine until 5mm thick. Roll the edges over to give square edges.
- Put it back through the roller and roll until it is 2-3mm thick.
- Cut into strips or any other shape you want.
- Add to salted, boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes until it starts to float to the surface. Strain and serve with your favourite sauce!
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