Basic Pasta Dough Recipe Recipe 455 Food

EASY HOMEMADE PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Beat flour, eggs, olive oil, and salt together in a bowl. Add water, 1 teaspoon at a time, to flour mixture until a smooth and very thick dough forms.
• Turn dough out onto a work surface and knead for 10 minutes. Let dough rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Divide dough into 8 balls and use a pasta machine to roll and cut dough into desired pasta shape.

BASIC FRESH PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Mound the flour in the center of a large, wide mixing bowl. Dig a well in the center of the mound and add eggs and yolks. Using a fork, beat together the eggs and begin to incorporate the flour, starting with the inner rim of the well. The dough will start to come together in a shaggy mass when about half of the flour is incorporated.
• Use your fingers to continue to mix the dough. Press any loose bits of flour into the mass of dough. If needed, add another egg yolk or a tablespoon of water to absorb all of the flour. Once the dough comes together into a cohesive mass, remove it from the bowl.
• Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 4 to 5 more minutes until the dough is smooth, elastic and uniform in color. Wrap the dough in plastic and set aside for at least 30 minutes (and up to 4 hours) at room temperature.
• Line three baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly dust with semolina flour. Set aside.
• Cut off a quarter of the dough. Rewrap rest, and set aside. Use the heel of your hand to flatten the dough into an oval approximately the same width as your pasta machine, about six inches. Set the rollers to their widest setting and pass the dough through.
• Lay the dough out onto a lightly floured cutting board or countertop and neatly press together into halves, so it's again about the same width of the pasta machine. Feed the pasta through again at the widest setting. Think of these first rollings as an extended kneading. Continue to fold the dough in thirds and roll it until it is smooth, silky and even-textured. Do your best to make the sheet the full width of the machine.
• Once the dough is silky and smooth, you can begin to roll it out more thinly. Roll it once through each of the next two or three settings, adding flour as needed, until the dough is about 1/4-inch thick.
• Once the pasta is about 1/4-inch thick, begin rolling it twice through each setting. As you roll, lightly sprinkle all-purpose or 00 flour on both sides of the pasta to prevent it from sticking to itself.
• Roll out pasta until you can just see the outline of your hand when you hold it under a sheet, about 1/16-inch thick for noodles, or 1/32-inch thick for a filled pasta. (On most machines, you won't make it to the thinnest setting.)
• Cut pasta into sheets, about 12 to 14 inches long. Dust the sheets lightly with semolina flour and stack on one of the prepared baking sheets and cover with a clean, lightly dampened kitchen towel. Repeat with remaining dough.

FRESH PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Mound the flour on a clean work surface. Hollow out the center making a well in the middle of the flour with steep sides.
• Break the eggs into the well. Add the salt, and olive oil to the hollow center and gently mix together with a fork. Gradually start incorporating the flour by pulling in the flour from the sides of the well. As you incorporate more of the flour, the dough will start to take shape.
• With your hands or a bench scraper continue working the dough until it comes together. If the dough is too dry, add a little water; if too wet or sticky, add a little flour.
• Begin kneading the dough and keep kneading until it becomes smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. At this point, set the dough aside, cover it with plastic, and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes. You can store the dough in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, but allow it to return to room temperature before rolling it out.
• Divide the pasta dough into 4 even sections. Keep each section covered with plastic wrap or a clean towel while you work with each one. Flour the dough, the rollers of a pasta roller (or your rolling pin), your hands, and the work surface.
• If using a pasta machine: Flatten 1 of the of the dough pieces between your hands or with a floured rolling pin until it forms a thick oval disk. Dust the disk, the roller, and your hands with additional flour. Flour a baking sheet to hold the rolled out finished pasta.
• With the roller on the widest setting, pass the pasta through the machine's rollers a few times until it is smooth. Fold the dough over into 1/3, and continue to pass through a few more times until the pasta is smooth again. Begin adjusting the pasta machine settings to become thinner, passing the dough through a few times at each setting.
• If rolling the pasta by hand: Flatten a dough piece into a thick oval disk with your hands. Flour a baking sheet for the rolled out finished pasta. Place the oval dough disk on a floured work surface, and sprinkle with additional flour. Begin rolling out the dough with a floured rolling pin working from the center of the dough outwards, constantly moving the dough and lifting it to make sure it's not sticking.
• Flavor and color variations:
• Cook's Note: All color additions should be added to eggs before incorporating into the flour. Keep in mind that you will need to add a little bit of flour to your basic pasta recipe to compensate for the additional liquid added
• Spinach Pasta Dough (green hue): Blanch 8 ounces (about 3 cups) spinach leaves. Puree in a food processor or blender until smooth. Press the spinach puree through a small strainer or chinois, removing the liquid before mixing with the eggs. Add 3 tablespoons spinach puree to the eggs before mixing. If the dough feels too sticky, add additional flour until a soft, silky dough is achieved.
• Tomato Pasta Dough (orange hue): Add 2 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste to the eggs before incorporating into the flour.
• Beet Pasta Dough (pinkish-red hue): Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roast 1 large beet in aluminum foil, about 45 minutes, or until tender. Peel the beet and puree in a food processor. Add the beet puree (about 4 tablespoons) to eggs before incorporating into the flour.
• Herb Pasta Dough (speckled): Mince 1/2 cup fresh herbs and add to eggs before incorporating into the flour.
• Squid Ink Pasta Dough (black hue): Add 1 tablespoon squid ink to the eggs before incorporating into the flour.

BASIC PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• On a clean dry work surface, make a mound of the flour and, using your fingers, make a well in the center of the mound. Using a fork, break the shell of the eggs one by one and drop the eggs into the center of the well you made of the flour. With the fork, beat the eggs together. Again using the fork, slowly begin to fold the flour in towards the center of the well to incorporate the flour into the beaten eggs. As you mix the flour with the beaten eggs, it will begin to form a doughy mass. Work this mass using your fingers until it begins to lose its moist and sticky character.
• When the mass begins to feel uniformly dry, begin to work the dough using both hands: kneading with the palms of both hands, pushing from the center of the ball of dough outwards and folding the near edge inwards to begin the kneading cycle again. The kneading stage should take about 10 minutes by hand.
• After the dough has been fully kneaded, it is time to thin the dough into sheets suitable for cutting. A manual pasta machine works wonders at this stage. Cut the ball of dough into three equal pieces. Form these pieces, by hand, into equal rectangular shape to be passed through the rollers of the pasta machine. Set the cylindrical rollers at their widest opening, put a piece of dough in the space between rollers and crank the handle to pass the dough through. As the sheet of pasta comes out the bottom of the rollers it should be set on a dry cotton towel to rest while you begin on the next piece. Repeat the thinning process with the remaining pieces of pasta, thinning and then setting aside, consecutively so that each piece of pasta is equally rolled out. When all the pasta has passed through the first rolling stage, set the machine to the next setting to begin rolling the pasta thinner. Start the rolling process again, beginning with the first piece of dough and continue with the remaining pieces. As each is rolled thinner set it aside and continue onto the next.
• As you return to the first piece of dough, set the cylinders one setting closer. Continue in this fashion until the pasta dough has been rolled out as thinly as possible.
• As the sheets of dough rest, keep them on a cotton towel, to prevent sticking to the work surface. When they are all rolled out you are ready to cut the pasta into the desired shape. They can be cut using the cutting wheels of the rolling machine or by hand using a knife.

BASIC PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Place the flour, semolina and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse several times to combine the ingredients.
• Add the egg all at once and process for 30 seconds, drizzling the oil through the opening in the lid. The dough should look like coarse, wet sand.
• Dust a work surface generously with semolina.
• Transfer the dough to the work surface and bring it together in a ball.
• Knead the dough for a good 3 or 4 minutes, using the heels of your hands to push it away from you again and again, and occasionally rotating the dough 180 degrees. The dough should appear smooth and silky when you are done; it should not be sticky.
• Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for 20 minutes.
• Set up the pasta maker next to a work surface.
• Sprinkle a rimmed baking sheet liberally with semolina.
• Sprinkle the work surface with semolina. You'll need to keep it dusted with semolina at all times so the pasta doesn't stick as you roll and cut it.
• When ready to roll out the pasta, cut it into quarters. Work with one quarter at a time and keep the remaining portions wrapped.
• Use your fingers to work the dough into a rough 3-by-4-inch rectangle. (The dough should have the texture of Play-Doh.).
• Use the heel of your hand to flatten the dough to a thickness of 1/2 inch.
• Pass the dough through the highest (thickest) setting of your pasta machine.
• Fold it into thirds, as you would a business letter, then flatten it to 1/2 inch and pass it through the machine again. Fold, press and roll one more time.
• Set the rollers on the next-highest setting and pass the dough through twice. (You don't have to fold it.).
• Continue to lower the setting one increment at a time, passing the dough through twice each time, until your dough reaches the desired thickness.
• Setting 3 is good for fettuccine and lasagna sheets.
• Setting 2 is good for filled pastas, such as tortellini, ravioli and agnolotti, or for thinner lasagna sheets.
• Use plenty of semolina to keep the dough from sticking to itself as it falls into accordion folds while coming out of the rollers.
• If you're making filled pastas, make them as you go, one sheet at a time. (If you roll all the sheets beforehand, they will dry out and might tear as you try to work with them.).
• If you're not making filled pasta, use a knife to slice the sheets into lasagna noodles or use your machine's cutters to make fettuccine or spaghetti.
• Use plenty of semolina as you stack lasagna noodles (alternate the layers lengthwise and crosswise) or form piles of cut pasta, fluffing them with semolina so they remain separate.
• Transfer the finished pasta to the prepared baking sheet as you work.
• TO FREEZE: When you have finished rolling and cutting all the pasta, transfer the baking sheet to the freezer for an hour or two, until the pasta is frozen. Wrap it in plastic or store in resealable food storage bags and freeze for up to a month. (It is a good idea to weigh the pasta and freeze it in portions.).
• MAKE AHEAD: The dough can be made a few days in advance, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen. The uncooked pasta can be frozen in portions for up to 1 month.
• NOTE: Depending on the humidity, the size of your eggs and the brand of flour you are using, you might have to adjust the amount of oil you add to achieve the desired texture. Weighing the flour and the eggs rather than relying on our uneven American measuring methods leads to more consistent results.
• NOTE: To make saffron fettuccine, combine the oil with a half-teaspoon of saffron threads in a small bowl and microwave on HIGH for 30 seconds. Allow the oil to cool, then add it and the threads to the dough.

FRESH PASTA

Steps:

• Put the flour in a food processor with ¾ of your egg mixture and a pinch of salt. Blitz to large crumbs - they should come together to form a dough when squeezed (if it feels a little dry gradually add a bit more egg). Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface, knead for 1 min or until nice and smooth - don't worry if it's quite firm as it will soften when it rests. Cover with cling film and leave to rest for 30 mins.
• Cut away ¼ of the dough (keep the rest covered with cling film) and feed it through the widest setting on your pasta machine. (If you don't have a machine, use a heavy rolling pin to roll the dough as thinly as possible.) Then fold into three, give the dough a quarter turn and feed through the pasta machine again. Repeat this process once more then continue to pass the dough through the machine, progressively narrowing the rollers, one notch at a time, until you have a smooth sheet of pasta. On the narrowest setting, feed the sheet through twice.
• Cut as required to use for filled pastas like tortellini, or cut into lengths to make spaghetti, linguine, tagliatelle, or pappardelle. Then, dust in semolina flour and set aside, or hang until dry (an hour will be enough time.) Store in a sealed container in the fridge and use within a couple of days, or freeze for 1 month.

EASY-AS-PIE PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Add flour, eggs, yolks, olive oil, and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Process until dough comes around the blade of the processor, and continue to blend. Add additional flour, a half tablespoon at a time, until dough is smooth and still slightly tacky, about 1 minute. If dough is dry, add water, one teaspoon at a time.
• Wrap dough in plastic wrap and let rest at least 1 hour at room temperature. If resting longer than 4 hours, transfer to refrigerator, where dough can rest up to 12 hours. Remove from the refrigerator 1 hour before rolling.
• Unwrap dough and divide into 6 roughly equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, press into a rectangular shape with your palms, and then roll to a dimension of 9" x 12". Dough should be very thin.
• With the long side perpendicular to you, fold pasta sheet at 3″ intervals to form a flat roll. Use a sharp knife to cut into ½-inch wide noodles. Gently use unfurl the pasta, toss lightly with flour if necessary to keep from sticking, and place on a baking sheet, lightly covered with a clean kitchen towel, until ready to cook. Repeat with remaining dough.
• To boil noodles, bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add noodles, gently stir, and cook, 2 minutes. Drain and serve with your favorite sauce.

PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Put all ingredients in food processor and pulse until dough pulls away from sides of container and forms ball.
• Knead 5-10 times on surface lightly coated with flour used in dough.
• Cover with damp towel and let rest for 30 minutes.

SIMPLE PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• In food processor, or by hand if you don't have a food processor, mix the flour and salt.
• Add eggs, and process (mix) until just starting to come together.
• Turn out onto a floured bench and knead until satiny, smooth and a bit springy.
• This will take 5-10 minutes.
• It should not be sticky.
• If it's sticky, knead in a little more flour.
• Wrap with plastic wrap and leave it on the counter to rest for an hour.
• The dough will then be ready to roll either by hand or in a machine.