Here is my recipe for making the traditional pasta from Emilia Romagna. This is the pasta Italians like best to make because it is the best pasta. It is a pasta you can bite into and one that holds its cooking point well. Use the best free-range eggs for a stronger flavour. It is not possible to give an exact quantity for the flour because it varies according to the flour’s absorption capacity, the size of the eggs and the humidity of the atmosphere.
Makes enough pasta for 3–4 people
2 large free-range eggs
approximately 200 g (7 oz) Italian 00 flour
Put the flour on the work surface and make a well in the centre. Break the eggs into the well. Beat them lightly with a fork and draw the flour in gradually from the inner wall of the well. When the eggs are no longer runny, draw in enough flour to enable you to knead the dough with your hands. You may not need all the flour; push some to the side and add only what is needed. Alternatively you might need a little more from the bag, which you should keep at hand. Work until the flour and eggs are thoroughly amalgamated and then put the dough to one side and scrape the work-top clean. Wash and dry your hands.
Proceed to knead the dough by pressing and pushing with the heel of your palm, folding it back, giving it half a turn and repeating these movements. Repeat the movements for about 7–8 minutes if you are going to make your pasta by hand, or 3–4 minutes if you are going to use a machine. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and let it rest for at least 30 minutes, though you can leave it for up to 3 hours.
rolling out pasta by hand
Unless you have a mattarello – a long thin Italian rolling pin – and a lot of practice you will find this a difficult task. If you do not have a mattarello, roll out the dough in 2 or more batches, keeping the unrolled dough wrapped in a clean cloth. It is particularly hard in humid places or in a draughty or overheated kitchen. Here I condense a very long process into a short paragraph of instructions.
Dust the work surface and the rolling pin with flour. Stretch the dough, working away from you, while turning the widening circle of dough so that it keeps a circular shape. The sfoglia – the sheet of rolled-out dough – must be rolled out until it is no thicker than 1 mm (1/16 inch). In theory it should be transparent. This thinning process must be done very quickly, in 8–10 minutes, or the sfoglia will dry out, lose its elasticity and become impossible to roll thin.
rolling out pasta by machine
The hand-cranked type of machine is very good and inexpensive. I strongly advise you to buy one and you will be amply repaid within a few weeks. You will be able to produce good tagliatelle for 6 people in half an hour at a quarter of the price of shop-bought fresh pasta and of a quality you could never find in a shop. I prefer the old fashioned hand-cranked machine to the sophisticated but noisy electric ones, of which there are several at various prices.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions, but do remember to knead the dough by hand for at least a few minutes, even if the instructions say that the machine can do that for you.
Tagliatelle and tagliolini can be cut by hand or in the machine. There is also an attachment for ravioli which is quite good, although I prefer to make them by hand. Other shapes must be made by hand and I have explained how to make them in the relevant recipes. When making tagliatelle and tagliolini, the sfoglia – the rolled-out dough – must be allowed to hang a little to dry, or the strands will stick to each other. It is difficult to say how long it needs, as it depends on the temperature and humidity of the atmosphere, but it should be dry to the touch and just beginning to become leathery. Stuffed pasta must not be left to dry.
Lasagne are easy to prepare. Cut out the pasta into rectangles of about 12 x 8 cm (5 x 3 inches) and cook them, no more than six or seven pieces at a time, in a large shallow pan of boiling salted water to which you have added a tablespoon of oil to prevent them sticking to each other. As soon as the lasagne are cooked, lift them out of the water and plunge them into a bowl of cold water which you have placed near the burner. Fish them out of the bowl and lay them on clean tea-towels. Pat them dry with kitchen paper. When all the lasagne are done, assemble the dish.
preparation
As for the cooking of fresh egg pasta, remember that it takes far less time to cook than dried pasta.