Basic Pasta Dough

Pasta dough made without eggs should have some semolina added to give it strength. But too much will make the dough too hard and it will break during cooking. The dough for ravioli should not be too hard. When it is hard it is easy to feed through the pasta machine but more likely to break when you cook.

If the dough breaks when you have put in the filling between ravioli squares, it's bad luck. You can't patch a bit over the top. The only solution is to take out the filling, throw away the dough and start again. Don't try to patch. The following is a basic dough, depending on what pasta you are making, depends on how you feed it through the pasta machine and how it is cut. For Lasagna, and for )Raviol.

When making any dough (for pasta and for pizza) it is important that the kitchen is not too hot and is free from draughts which can make working the dough very difficult.

Pasta Dough without eggs

Ingredients

250 grams plain flour
150 grams semolina
salt
up to 250 ml warm water

Method

Combine flour, semolina and salt and put onto a large table or bench with a well in the centre. Add a few spoons of water at a time, incorporating into the flour. Knead until it is smooth and elastic

Let the dough rest covered about 20 minutes

Break off a piece, about 1/4 of the dough and leave the rest covered.

Flatten the dough sufficiently to feed through the pasta machine (a hand driven model, not electric)

Fold and turn the dough and pass through the machine, at least four times

Repeat until all the dough is used

Cut into the shape required

Once the pasta is cut it should rest and dry out a little (approx 20 minutes) before cooking

If you wish, the cut pasta can be left to dry out completely and will keep for months. However it does become very brittle and breaks easily. Home made pasta without eggs is best used within a couple of days, for longer storage, the commercially made packets are safer to use

Cooking Pasta

A large amount of water is needed so choose a pot accordingly. Approximately 1 litre per 100 grams of pasta. Bring the water to the boil, add salt and then add pasta all at once. If you add it gradually then it will cook unevenly.

The water should come back to the boil and continue to bubble so that the pasta keeps moving and does not stick together. Stir it with a wooden spoon to ensure that the pasta seperates

Fresh homemade pasta will cook more quickly than commercial dried pasta. The cooking times given on the packet instructions are usually quite accurate so follow those. However, you need to watch and test during the cooking. Pasta should not be overcooked and should not be allowed to soften completely. It should retain some texture, remain 'al dente' ‚ to feel it on the teeth. ,

You don't need to drain pasta too much. The pasta should not be too dry. With some sauces, you can even take it out of the cooking water with tongs and toss straight into the pan. It depends on what you are making and the texture of the sauce. In most cases, you should use a colander but don't shake it too vigorously and don't leave it too long and let all the steam escape. If you drain all the water off too well you may finish up s erving 'fried spaghetti'. When the pasta dries too much, it won't absorb the sauce properly.