Authentic Homemade Pappardelle Pasta Recipe

What does Pappardelle Mean in Italian?

The Italian word derives from the verb “pappare”, to gobble up, or eat hungrily. I know that after I make homemade pappardelle I sure want to eat hungrily!! Pappardelle pasta shapes are large, very broad flat pasta noodles, similar to wide fettuccine noodle type.

Ingredients

There are only a few simple ingredients to make the most delicious homemade egg pasta. Quality is important since there aren't many ingredients.

• Eggs (room temperature). I suggest free-range eggs that have rich yellow/orange yolks. This will add rich and beautiful color and enhance the taste of your pasta.
• Flour. I prefer Italian fine ground 00 flour or all-purpose flour.
• Semolina. This recipe doesn't use semolina in the dough. It is used for dusting the pasta once it is finished. You can use flour, but it changes the cooking a bit and can make them a little heavier, or not as light.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Tools

• Wood cutting board or counter top
• Fork
• Rolling pin OR pasta machine
• Sharp Knife
• Plastic wrap
• Tea towel (lightweight towel)
• Bench scraper (optional)
• Kitchen scale (recommended)

How to make Homemade Pappardelle Step by Step (photos and instructions)

Make the Fresh Pasta Dough

Top left to bottom right. Weigh your flour! Here is a good and inexpensive scale if you don't have one.

I like to make a large well in the flour using the bottom of the bowl or your fist*. Pour your eggs in the middle of the well. Break each egg then start to scramble the eggs. Slowly incorporate flour with the egg until a crumble mixture is achieved.

Here are the stages of your pasta dough:

1. Raw egg and flour. When you break your egg in the flour well.
2. Scrambled egg in the flour well. This is when you scramble your egg in the flour well as if you are making scrambled eggs. You will not have much flour at this point.
3. Crumble of egg and flour. This is where you start to add more and more flour a bit at a time into the scrambled egg mixture.
4. Unified dough ball. This is when the egg and flour are well incorporated and form a cohesive ball.

You can use a dough scraper to help you. Here is a good and inexpensive dough scraper Use good quality farm fresh eggs for a nice colorful dough and superior taste.

*If you don't want to mix the eggs into the flour on the counter or cutting board you can do it right in the mixing bowl. Use a fork and mix to incorporate. Once the dough reaches a crumble mixture move to counter top to start kneading.

Top to bottom. Set a timer and knead the dough for about 10 minutes until a smooth dough ball forms*. You can also place the dough in a stand mixer with a dough hook to knead.

Rest the pasta dough. Put the dough in a large clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes to overnight.

*You can also place the dough in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and knead the dough that way.

Rolling Fresh Pasta Dough

Top left to bottom right. After the dough has rested (don't forget to do your "spring back test" listed in the tips above) begin by cutting the dough into fourths, one section as needed, and covering the rest while you work with one piece of dough.

Link to the trusted pasta machine I use and love.

Flatten the pasta dough a bit with your hands and run it through your pasta machine on setting #1, or the first setting*.

Fold the ends of the rolled out dough into the middle to make a rectangle. Send it through the pasta maker again with setting #1.

Add a little semolina flour, as needed, to keep it from sticking.

*ROLLING PIN (BY HAND METHOD) If you are rolling out the dough with a rolling pin follow these steps.

Divide the dough into four sections and work with one at a time while keeping the others covered.

Use semolina to dust the top and bottom to keep it from sticking. Keep rolling out the dough in a rectangular shape until you can see your hand on the other side when you hold it to the light.

Cut as directed with instructions below and repeat with the remaining dough. Cover unused dough with plastic wrap to keep it from drying.

Top left to bottom right. Keep rolling out the dough with the pasta maker settings going from #1 all the way to #7. Dust both sides of the dough with a little semolina so it doesn't stick in the pasta machine.

Window test. You will know when it is thin enough by holding your hand to the light. You will be able to see your hand through the pasta sheet.

My favorite affordable pasta maker BEST PRICE!

Cutting Fresh Pasta Dough

Top left to bottom right.

Cut the pappardelle. Dust the top of the sheet of dough with semolina flour and loosely roll it into a cylinder. Using a sharp knife, cut into ¾-inch-wide slices (wider or thinner depending on how you like it).

Unwrap the pappardelle pasta; dust with semolina and gently toss to separate. Place on a sheet pan and cover with a tea towel until ready to cook (or freeze in freezer bags for up to 2 months). You can make them into little nests to store them, or simply put into a freezer safe bag.

What's the Difference Between "00" Flour and All Purpose Flour?

This article, Flour Types for Baking in Italy explains the difference in flours for our pasta-making purposes:

"The names "00 "and "0" flour refer to specifically Italian milled flour that is used for making pasta, bread, and pizza.

The grading system is 2, 1, 0 or 00 and indicates to how finely ground the flour is and how much of the bran and germ have been removed. 2, for instance, is wholemeal flour while 00 is the most refined of the three and has the lowest level of bran. It is similar to unbleached all-purpose/plain flour, which is a mix of hard and soft wheat, and while finer, it creates a dough that is silkier and maintains a chewiness when the pasta is cooked.

With that said, All-purpose flour is perfectly fine to use for making homemade pasta."

What is Semolina Flour?

Semolina is flour made from ground durum wheat. It's rich in protein, fiber, and B vitamins and may support weight loss, heart health, and digestion.

It is high protein content is great for improving the structure and texture of recipes like pasta and bread.

LINK TO THE SEMOLINA FLOUR I USE

Why Use Semolina for Dusting

When you work with your dough you need to use dry flour to keep it from sticking. Many use flour for this step. While this does work here are reasons I prefer to use semolina:

• Semolina is more coarse and won't stick to the pasta as much as regular flour. Semolina is great to prevent sticking but it won't 'cake' onto the pasta like flour so it keeps the pasta lighter and easier to digest without so much of the added white flour. It keeps that pasta later as an end result.
• Better for cooking. When the pasta is ready to cook it won't have an excess layer of raw flour that will cause the water to get cloudy looking. It also doesn't make for the right kind of pasta water to save as a binder for the sauce.
• Makes your pasta prettier. This is a little vanity for my pretty pappardelle, but I like them to stay nice and yellow (from the quality egg yolks) instead of being covered in a dusting of white flour.

PRO TIPS

• Weigh your ingredients! This yields to a tender and perfectly hydrated dough. Here is a good and inexpensive scale if you don't have one.
• Knead the dough. After you incorporate the eggs and flour make sure you really knead the dough into a smooth ball. We don't want clumps of flour in our dough!
• Rest the dough. Let the dough rest for 15-30 minutes in the fridge, or on the counter. During this time the water will be absorbed by the flour and the gluten strands will relax, giving a strong, pliable, roll-able dough.
  • The higher the yolk content, the more it needs to rest. When made only with yolks needs to rest for 6 hours (that doesn't apply to this particular dough since it also uses egg whites).
• Spring back test. To know if your dough has rested. This is where you press down on the dough after it has rested and it bounces back ever so slightly to show the gluten is relaxed.
• Roll out the dough. Make sure you never feed the pappardelle pasta dough through the machine when it is sticky. Always make sure you sprinkle some extra semolina flour on top and bottom before you feed it through the machine. If you are using a rolling pin the same rule applies!
• Don't overcook the pasta. You've worked so hard for this! Don't ruin the fresh pasta by overcooking it. Fresh pasta takes considerably less time to cook than dried, usually 1 to 3 minutes, so watch it carefully.
  • To test, remove a noodle with tongs or a long-handled fork and take a bite. Serve with your favorite sauce and Mangia! (Eat!) 

My biggest advice when making homemade pasta is to practice. Make it a few times and really get a feeling of the dough.

Maybe you like them a little thinner or thicker? Cut wider or smaller? Play with the dough and have fun while learning the process!