Basic pasta dough recipe

Ingredients

Makes 1 recipe of pasta dough.

This is the basic pasta recipe we use at the resort for all of our filled pastas. We are including two methods.

The traditional one is the “well method.” The faster method uses an electric mixer to bring the dough together. The mixer will also do some of the kneading for you. The colour of the final dough will depend on the brightness of your egg yolks. Free-range chicken eggs tend to have beautiful bright orange yolks.

Traditional method

Pour the flour onto a clean work surface. Make a well in the centre of the mound of flour. Make sure the well is big enough to hold the eggs and olive oil without the liquid spilling out.

Working from the centre, use your fingers to slowly incorporate the flour into the egg mixture in the centre of the well. Make sure you incorporate the flour from the centre outwards, so the well doesn’t break. Once the eggs have absorbed all the flour, it will look like a shaggy dough.

Bring everything together and start kneading the dough with the palms of your hands. Keep kneading in a forward motion until the dough becomes silky and smooth. This will take 5 to 7 minutes. Once the dough is kneaded, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least 45 minutes before you begin rolling it out.

Fast method

Combine all the ingredients in the bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer. Process with a dough hook attachment until the mixture comes together to form a ball. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured work surface.

Knead the dough for 4 to 5 minutes to develop the gluten in the flour. Wrap well in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least 45 minutes before rolling out the dough.