There's nothing wrong with dried pasta — it's cheap, versatile, and provides an easy base for an endless variety of tasty meals.
On the other hand, homemade pasta takes a little extra effort, but fresh noodles can elevate your signature pasta dish into something special.
Here is how to make noodles.
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon salt
Wash hands thoroughly. Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl and form a mound with a large well in the center. Crack eggs into the well, add water and olive oil, then gently beat with a fork to roughly combine wet ingredients. Use the fork to slowly pick up more flour with the wet ingredients, until a paste forms. Set the fork aside and use hands to thoroughly combine all ingredients until a shaggy dough forms. You can continue to knead by hand for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or transfer dough to a stand mixer with a dough hook or high-powered food processor to knead for you. The finished dough should be smooth and elastic, with no dry or crumbly spots. Wrap in plastic and leave at room temperature for 30 minutes, then refrigerate for at least two hours (or up to two days).
To use, unwrap dough and let rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. Cut into halves or quarters, dust with flour and stretch with a rolling pin or pasta roller. Cut noodles as desired with a sharp knife or pasta cutter, then dust with additional flour before coiling noodles into nests or hanging to dry.
To cook, drop noodles in boiling water for about 90 seconds and drain.
Pasta dough tips:
* Try swapping half a cup of the all-purpose flour for semolina flour for a classic nutty flavor and chewier texture.
* Don't stress about messy dough at the beginning — just keep kneading.
* Add a few drops of water if the dough seems too dry after a few minutes, or a sprinkling of extra flour if it's too wet.
* Do a few practice batches before you plan a fresh pasta dinner for a crowd. The dough isn't difficult, but it can take some time to figure out how YOU like to do it.
* Homemade noodles freeze well — coil flour-dusted noodles into nests, place on parchment-lined tray, cover with plastic, and freeze. Frozen noodles can be re-packaged into sealed bags.
