Handmade Tagliatelle
This is pasta stripped to its base essentials. You are building a dough that feels like a firm earlobe and finishing it with a texture that clings to sauce better than anything pulled from a cardboard box.
The dough needs time, not just muscle.
If you try to roll the dough immediately after kneading, it will fight you by shrinking back. Let it rest under an inverted bowl to keep the surface from drying out.
- Large wooden cutting board
- Bench scraper
- Rolling pin (long and thin)
- Sharp knife
What goes in.
- 400g00 flour
- 4large eggs
- pinchsea salt
Checking the Knead
After ten minutes of kneading, pinch off a small piece of dough and stretch it. If it forms a translucent, thin membrane before tearing, the gluten is sufficiently developed.
The method.
Form the well
Mound the flour on your board and create a deep, wide crater in the center. Crack the eggs into the well and beat them with a fork, gradually pulling flour from the inner walls until the mixture becomes a thick paste.
Knead
Use your bench scraper to fold the remaining flour in. Once a shaggy ball forms, use the heel of your hand to push the dough away from you, fold it back over, and turn. Do this for 10 minutes until the surface is uniform and firm.
Rest
Wrap the dough tightly in plastic or cover it with a bowl. Let it sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
Roll
Cut the dough into quarters. Use your rolling pin to flatten one piece at a time, working from the center outward. Rotate the dough constantly until it is about 1/16th of an inch thick.
Cut
Lightly dust the sheet with flour. Roll it up loosely into a cylinder. Use a sharp knife to cut 1/4-inch ribbons. Unravel them immediately and toss with a little extra flour.
Other turns to take.
Spinach Tagliatelle
Blanch 100g of fresh spinach, squeeze out every drop of moisture, and blend into the eggs before mixing with flour.
When it doesn't go to plan.
Use a wooden surface if possible; the slight texture helps the dough grab and stretch rather than slide.
If the dough feels too dry, wet your hands with water rather than adding more liquid to the mix.
Cook in a large pot of aggressively salted boiling water; the pasta is done when it floats and loses its raw bite, usually in under 3 minutes.
The ones that keep coming up.
Why is my dough shrinking back while I roll?
The gluten is too tight. Stop rolling, cover it, and let it rest for another 15 minutes.
Can I use all-purpose flour?
You can, though the texture will be slightly chewier rather than silky. If using all-purpose, mix in a tablespoon of semolina flour if you have it.
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