Homemade Pasta

There’s real magic in the fact that fresh pasta needs only two things: flour and eggs. No machine, no special gear, just your hands, a rolling pin, and a little patience.

You pile the flour, crack the eggs into a well in the center, and gradually whisk them together until a shaggy dough forms. Five minutes of kneading turns it smooth and elastic, which is where the gluten develops the chew good pasta is known for.

The 30-minute rest under a towel matters more than it looks: it lets the gluten relax so the dough rolls out thin without snapping back.

Roll it into a thin sheet, then cut ribbon strips about an eighth-inch wide, the width of fettuccine. Cook in well-salted boiling water and don’t rinse, so the surface starch helps your sauce cling.

Toss it with a simple marinara, brown butter, or just good olive oil and parmesan.

Pro Tips

• Use bread flour for structure; its higher protein gives the strips a satisfying bite.
• Knead until the dough is smooth and springs back, since under-kneaded dough tears when rolled.
• Dust with flour as you roll and cut so the strips don’t stick to each other.
• Salt the cooking water generously and never rinse the cooked pasta, so sauce grips it.

Variations

• Stir a little semolina into the flour for a firmer, more rustic texture.
• Cut wider for pappardelle or thinner for tagliarini.
• Work in a spoon of spinach puree or a pinch of squid ink for colored pasta.