Pasta is one of those staple foods that pretty much everyone knows and loves. It’s extremely versatile too, as it comes in about a million shapes and sizes…and it’s usually relatively cheap! However, there are so many choices available of varying ingredients and quality. I grew up with enriched flour pasta, so that still holds a special place in my heart…but recently, I’ve found that semolina/durum pasta is just better. And if you have fresh dough instead of the dried boxed/bagged pasta, it truly makes all the difference. It’s definitely more work than dropping dried pasta into boiling water…but if you’ve got the time, you owe your palate this luxury!
There are many ways to make homemade pasta. Normally, we break out the pasta maker that my wife’s mom gave her a few years ago because it’s so easy. However, if you haven’t got one of those fancy contraptions, you can make the dough with a stand mixer, a combination of food processor and by hand, or purely by hand (but this last method is a pain in the bum). Since Stand Mixer and Food Processor methods are the most accessible, those are what I will highlight below in a split set of methods.
Time: 1 Hour
Ingredients (for 2 servings):
- 1 Cup of Semolina Flour
- 2 Large Eggs
- 1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
- (Keep a little water and flour on standby in case you need to increase/reduce the moisture content in your dough…humidity, size of eggs, fineness of your semolina, etc. can all throw the ratios noted above slightly out of equilibrium)
Method:
- Make your Dough
- Stand Mixer Method:
- Pour your semolina and salt into the bowl of your stand mixer.
- Crack two eggs into a bowl, and whisk/beat them. Then, pour them over your semolina.
- Attach your dough hook, and let it stir/knead for a while. You may have to turn the mixer off and redistribute with a spatula a few times as you go.
- Once the dough has come together, and all of the semolina is absorbed into a tacky dough mass, let the hook knead for another 5-7 minutes.
- Food Processor Method:
- Pour your semolina and salt into the bowl of your food processor.
- Add your eggs, and pulse to combine.
- Pulse until your dough starts to clump, and your semolina is all mixed into the mass.
- Remove your dough ball, and knead/fold/poke/prod for about 8-10 minutes.
- Stand Mixer Method:
- Wrap your dough in plastic wrap, and let it sit for about a half hour. (While your dough waits is a great time to work on your sauce or whatever you plan to mix with your pasta)
- Cut your dough into two or three pieces, and then it’s time to shape!
- On a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to begin to flatten your dough.
- If you don’t have a pasta roller (good luck to you), keep doing this until your dough reaches desired thinness.
- If you have a pasta roller, take one piece of your dough, and run it through the widest setting. Then, reduce the setting to the next widest, and run it through again. Keep doing this progressively until your dough reaches your desired thinness.
- Cut your dough to your desired shape (pictures below are for fettuccine, and I used a pizza cutter). You could also use this dough to stuff ravioli (ravioli recipe coming at some point in the future). Note: The dough will want to stick to itself, so if you’re putting all of your noodles into a bowl, give them a good flour dusting first…else, you’ll be detangling/unsticking your pasta (I fell for the trap).
- Boil some water, and toss your pasta in for about 3 minutes until it’s soft and floating.
- Plate, devour, and enjoy!
