I love making homemade pasta dough when I have time. It’s actually simple to do and not super time-consuming either. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t make it on a Tuesday night when I need a speedy dinner but making it every now and again on a weekend, when you have time to enjoy it, there’s something so soothing about it.
This is a simple recipe with just flour and eggs which makes the most perfect silky pasta every time.
This recipe is only for the pasta dough, it’s a basic recipe, but it doesn’t have any details on the pasta shapes and sauces. If you want to make some fun shapes, try my garganelli or triangoli. Sauces - world is your oyster. What about pistachio pesto or amatriciana? Or try the easiest tomato sauce?
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Why you will love this recipe:
- It is a simple dough to make and just requires some patience.
- It is so versatile. You can make any shape you like from this dough.
- You can prep ahead and batch-make the homemade pasta, then keep it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Ingredients:
Full recipe can be found in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, just scroll down!
Semolina flour - this helps stop the pasta dough from sticking. As it’s more coarse, it doesn’t get absorbed into the dough as much as the 00 flour.
Eggs - use free-range large eggs if you can. I always choose ones stamped with the British Lion mark.
00 flour - this is a finely ground high-protein flour which is ideal for making pasta.
Here's how to make Easy Pasta Dough:
Here's a step by step guide for what you need to do, but you can find the full recipe at the bottom of the page for detailed instructions.
Step 1: Make The Dough
ONE: Tip your pasta flour onto a clean surface and use the base of a mixing bowl to make a well in the centre. Crack in the eggs.
TWO: Use a fork to break them up so the yolks and white are well combined. Begin to let in a little flour at a time.
THREE: Whisk to incorporate, bring more flour into the dough as you go. Be careful the egg doesn’t spill over the edge!
FOUR: Once you have a thick egg mix, use a bench scraper or your hands to bring in the rest of the flour until the mixture comes together in a shaggy dough.
FIVE: Knead the dough for around 10 minutes until all the flour is well incorporated and you have a smooth, tight ball. If you press the dough with your finger at this stage, it will spring back. This is because the gluten has not relaxed enough.
SIX: Wrap the dough in cling film, then set aside to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Once the dough has rested, if you press with your finger, it should hold the imprint. This means it has rested enough as the gluten relaxes.
Step 2: Shape The Dough
SEVEN: It will be more yellow, smooth and tight once rested.
EIGHT: Cut the dough into quarters, covering any with clingfilm that you aren’t working with to prevent it drying out.
NINE: Working one piece at a time, flatten the dough on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle shape and pass it through the widest setting of your pasta machine.
TEN: Fold both ends in to meet in the middle so you have a rectangle shape again, then pass back through the machine. Repeat this process a further 2 or 3 times, until your dough feels really smooth. Now, pass the sheet through the second-widest setting once, dusting it with a little flour if ever it feels sticky. Repeat this until you reach the second or third-narrowest setting.
Cooking Tips:
Clean work surface - Roll and knead on your work surface for best results. Just make sure it's clean and dry beforehand. Any water can change your pasta dough.
Resting the dough - If you press the dough with your finger once you have kneaded but pre-resting, it will spring back. This is because the gluten has not relaxed enough. Once the dough has rested, if you press with your finger, it should hold the imprint. This means it has rested enough as the gluten relaxes.
Don't let the dough dry out - Between rolling each quarter of the dough out, make sure you cover it with clingfilm or even with a dampened tea towel to stop it from drying out. If it dries out, it hardens.
Mixing by hand rather than with a food processor - mixing by hand is my preferred method, which is not typical for me, as I love my food processor. But using your hands gives you total control over the dough. Lots of variables can affect pasta dough. The exact weight of eggs, if it's a hot day, a dry day, or a wet day. This all affects pasta dough so this recipe does require using your common sense. Look for the tell tale signs and then if it needs more flour, add it. If it needs more moisture, add it.
Frequently Asked Questions
00 flour is a finely ground Italian flour. Double zero is the most finely ground of the flours and then 0, 1 and 2 flour all turn more coarse. 00 flour has high protein content which is often used then to make flour and pasta. You can get it in most big supermarkets now in the UK.
You could make pasta with just a rolling pin but I will concede it is a lot of effort and more time-consuming. The best tool to have is a pasta machine. It's manual and has a metal crank that allows you to effortlessly roll pasta out until it's very thin and ready to be shaped.
Storage & Freezing/Make Ahead Instructions
Yes you can freeze shaped pasta dough. I would freeze it shaped over freezing dough. To freeze shaped pasta, open freeze on a tray for 20 minutes, then transfer to a sealed container or freezer bag for up to 3 months. Cook straight from frozen.
The dough wants to be used quickly. It shouldn’t rest for longer than 1 hour ideally. You could make it, wrap it in clingfilm and pop in fridge but it will be harder to work with as time goes on. It should be room temperature when rolling.
You could roll the pasta, shape it and then once shaped, it is best cooked within 24 hours (keep in a sealed container in the fridge if shaping more than 1 hour before cooking). However, it freezes really well for up to 3 months (see notes for guidance). Plus, you can add straight to boiling water - no need to defrost.
Other recipes you might enjoy:
If you want some ideas of how to use the fresh pasta, I would recommend you make garganelli, delicately ridged tubes, or triangoli, little folded pasta into a traingle shape. If you don't fancy making your own pasta, try my chorizo & prawn pasta, creamy chicken pasta or my mushroom pasta.
Made this recipe and loved it?
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How To Make Easy Pasta Dough
Ingredients
- 400 g ‘00’ flour plus extra for dusting
- 4 eggs
- Semolina flour to dust
Instructions
- Tip your pasta flour onto a clean surface and use the base of a mixing bowl to make a well in the centre. Crack in the eggs, then use a fork to break them up so the yolks and white are well combined. Begin to let in a little flour at a time, whisking to incorporate and being careful the egg doesn’t spill over the edge! Once you have a thick egg mix, use a bench scraper or your hands to bring in the rest of the flour until the mixture comes together in a shaggy dough.
- Knead the dough for around 10 minutes until all the flour is well incorporated and you have a smooth, tight ball. If your dough ever starts to feel dry, wet the tips of your fingers under the tap and continue to knead. Wrap the dough in cling film, then set aside to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- Cut the dough into quarters, covering any with clingfilm that you aren’t working with to prevent it drying out. Working one piece at a time, flatten the dough on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle shape and pass it through the widest setting of your pasta machine. Fold both ends in to meet in the middle so you have a rectangle shape again, then pass back through the machine.
- Repeat this process a further 2 or 3 times, until your dough feels really smooth. Now, pass the sheet through the second-widest setting once, dusting it with a little flour if ever it feels sticky. Repeat this until you reach the second or third-narrowest setting - how thin you roll it depends on how you will cut or shape the pasta, a filled pasta requires a thinner dough.
- Transfer the rolled out sheet to a tray dusted with flour - use semolina if you have it as the dough won’t absorb this. Keep the pasta covered so it doesn’t dry out. Repeat with the remaining dough, then cut or shape the pasta as desired.
