American Sfoglino

How to Roll a Sfoglia

The goal when rolling out sfoglia is to end up with a round sheet thin enough that you can read a newspaper through it. This may sound challenging, but if you start with a properly made dough and carefully follow the steps, you will end up with a respectable sfoglia. And like anything else, with practice, the process gets easier and the results better.

There are also different degrees of thickness depending on the shape you are making. For instance, pappardelle is about twice as thick as tagliatelle. To help you visualize and measure the proper thickness for each type of pasta shape in the book, I’ve broken them down in terms of stacked Post-it^® Notes. Use the following guidelines when rolling out sfoglia:

A thickness of approximately 4 Post-it® Notes: tagliatelle, garganelli, and tortellini
A thickness of approximately 7 Post-it® Notes: strozzapreti, strichetti, caramelle, and cestini
A thickness of approximately 9 Post-it® Notes: lasagna, pappardelle, maltagliati, triangoli, tortelloni, and balanzoni

Begin by lightly dusting your work surface with “00” flour. (Reminder: be sure the surface measures at least 24 in [61 cm] deep and 32 in [81 cm] long to accommodate the rolled out dough.) To do this, take a very small handful of flour, bunch it up in your fist, and throw it against the work surface in a flurry. It will poof up and explode like a cloud of baby powder, and settle down and dust the surface evenly.

Use the same method when dusting pasta dough. When working with the dough or a rolled-out sfoglia, use flour sparingly. Flour will expedite the drying process and make the sfoglia harder to work with.

Place the dough on the lightly floured work surface and gently flatten the dough ball with the soft part of your palm to form a uniform disk with a thickness about 6 in [15 cm] wide (Fig 1–2).

Once your dough is flattened, position the mattarello at 9 and 3 o’clock and, with firm, even pressure, roll it forward, creating the top half of an oval. Bring the pin back to the center and roll back toward you, ending with an egg-shaped disk (Fig 3). Rotate the sfoglia 90 degrees and roll forward from the center again. Bring the pin back to the center, and with firm, even pressure, roll back toward you, forming a round disk (Fig 4–5).

When the sfoglia is small, use larger movements and apply even pressure with the mattarello, rolling forward from the center of the dough, then rotating the sfoglia a quarter turn with your hand. Repeat until the sfoglia measures about 14 in [45 cm] in diameter (Fig 6—10).

Now that you have a larger sfoglia, you can begin to allow the bottom fifth of it to hang off the table, toward you. This way, as the sfoglia continues to grow, you won’t overextend yourself trying to roll the top of the sheet. It also creates an anchor for the sfoglia to stretch, letting it stretch more easily, as if the entire sfoglia was on the table without sliding away.

To move the sfoglia, use the mattarello. Place the mattarello about 5 in [12 cm] from the top edge of the sfoglia and gently fold this portion toward you over the mattarello (Fig 13 and 24).

Using both thumbs, cinch the sheet tightly on the mattarello, holding it in place but not pinching (Fig 14 and 25), Tuck the top edge of the sfoglia in place, holding it with your thumb, and roll the sfoglia onto the mattarello toward you like a map rolled on a spool (Fig 15 and 26).

Give the dough a quarter turn and unfurl it flat (Fig 16 and 27). As you unfurl it, lay it flat, making sure there is no air between the sfoglia and the table. To de-gas (this pushes any trapped air out from underneath), gently roll the mattarello over the sfoglia, applying no pressure whatsoever, and then roll it back to the center (Fig 17).

Now, use the rolling method described in “Mastering the Mattarello” (see sidebar). Position your hands wide on the mattarello and guide your hands along the perimeter of the pasta, pushing toward 12 o’clock, creating a round (Fig 23). You can start working the top quarter of the clock as needed: 10, 11, 12, 1, and 2 o’clock (Fig 32–33). Roll forward with even pressure and guide it back with cupped fingers. You will roll each hour of the clock four to six times, resulting in 20 to 30 rolls for this quarter of the clock. Add additional flour only if the dough is sticking to the mattarello or the table.

Once have finished your 20 to 30 rolls, use your mattarello to turn the dough and continue the process until you reach the desired thinness for the shape you are making (see facing page).

Think of your dough like a clock on which you only ever work the hours between 10 and 2 o’clock—the top quarter of your sfoglia.

MASTERING THE MATTARELLO

Position your hands near the ends of the mattarello and loosely grip it as if your hands are the wheel well of a car and the mattarello is the wheel.

As you roll, your hands should always follow the perimeter of the dough. Your palms start wide when the mattarello is at the widest diameter of the dough and they close in as you reach the 12 o’clock position. Remember to always roll the mattarello away from you, pushing with your palms and guiding back with your fingers. And always push the mattarello in a forward motion—never in a downward motion. Also, take care not to roll your mattarello beyond the dough itself, which results in a pinched edge. Remember the uniformity of thickness is far more important than a perfectly round shape. Once you cut it, nobody will know how round it was, but they will know how uniformly thick it is—or isn’t!