Fresh egg pasta dough
A firm, silky egg dough for tagliatelle, lasagne sheets, pappardelle and filled pasta, easy to roll by machine or by hand.
Make this once, then cook it into 18 different dishes.
- Time1 hr 15
- LevelMedium
- Costabout £0.53 a head
- Makesabout 900 g of dough, enough for 8 portions of pasta or two lasagnes
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Mix the 00 flour and semolina flour and tip onto a clean worktop in a mound. Make a deep well in the middle and add the eggs, extra yolks, oil and salt.
- 2
Beat the eggs gently with a fork, drawing in a little flour from the sides each time, until you have a thick, shaggy paste. Bring it together with your hands. If it is dry and crumbly, wet your fingers with a few drops of water; if sticky, add a little flour.
- 3
Knead firmly with the heel of your hand for 8 to 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth, elastic and springs back when pressed.
10 min - 4
Wrap the dough tightly in cling film or a clean bag and rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, which relaxes the gluten so it rolls easily.
30 min - 5
Cut the dough into 4 pieces and keep the rest covered. Flatten one piece and pass it through a pasta machine on the widest setting. Fold in thirds and repeat 3 times, then roll down setting by setting to the thickness you want (about 1 to 1.5 mm for tagliatelle and lasagne). Without a machine, roll with a long rolling pin on a floured surface.
- 6
Cut into tagliatelle (about 7 mm wide), pappardelle (about 2 cm), or lasagne sheets, and dust with semolina flour. Cook in plenty of boiling salted water for 2 to 3 minutes for noodles until just tender, with a little bite.
2 min 30 s
About fresh egg pasta dough
Fresh egg pasta dough is a firm dough of Italian 00 flour, semolina and eggs, rolled thin and cut into noodles, sheets or filled shapes. It is the dough behind tagliatelle, pappardelle, lasagne sheets, ravioli and tortellini, and egg pasta of this kind is especially associated with Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy.
The classic guide is about 100 g of flour for each egg. This version uses five whole eggs plus two extra yolks for colour and richness, a spoon of olive oil to keep the dough pliable, and some fine semolina for bite and easier dusting. The finished dough should feel firm and smooth, a little like stiff modelling clay, not sticky.
One batch makes about 900 g of dough, which is 8 generous portions of pasta or enough sheets for two large lasagnes. Fresh pasta cooks in 2 to 4 minutes, so the sauce should be ready first.
Tips
- Eggs vary in size, so judge the dough by feel. If it is crumbly after 5 minutes of kneading, add water a teaspoon at a time. If sticky, knead in a little 00 flour.
- Do not skip the rest. Dough that has not rested fights back when you roll it and shrinks when cut.
- Dust nests and sheets with semolina flour rather than plain flour. It stops sticking without turning gluey in the pan.
- For gluten free fresh pasta, use a gluten free pasta flour blend that contains xanthan gum or psyllium in place of both flours, add an extra yolk if the dough is crumbly, rest it 30 minutes and roll it a little thicker.
- For an egg free pasta, make a different dough: about 200 g semolina flour mixed with 100 ml warm water and a pinch of salt makes orecchiette style shapes for two.
- Use fresh eggs and keep the dough chilled if you are not using it straight away. Cook the finished pasta thoroughly.
Storing and freezing
Wrap the dough tightly and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days. Cut pasta, dusted with semolina and loosely nested on a tray, keeps for 1 day in the fridge. To freeze, freeze the nests on a tray until firm, then bag them for up to 1 month and cook from frozen, adding about 1 minute.
Dishes you can make with fresh egg pasta dough
Green Curry Prawn Tagliatelle
DFNFCannelloni al Forno di Manzo (Baked Beef Cannelloni)
NFTagliatelle alla Bolognese with Fresh Egg Pasta
NFLasagne al Forno with Fresh Pasta and Spinach
NFLasagne Bianca with Wild Mushrooms and Spinach
NFLasagne al Pesto (Genoese Pesto Lasagne)
Lasagne Bianca ai Funghi e Spinaci (Mushroom and Spinach White Lasagne)
NFTagliatelle al Forno (Baked Tagliatelle with Ragu and Bechamel)
NFTortelli di Zucca (Butternut Squash Tortelli with Sage Butter)
NFNOGPappardelle ai Funghi Misti (Wild Mushroom Pappardelle)
VDFNFLasagne al Pesto (Ligurian Pesto Lasagne with Green Beans)
Tortellini in Brodo (Emilian Tortellini in Chicken Broth)
NFQuestions
Can I make fresh pasta without a pasta machine?
Yes. Roll the rested dough with a long rolling pin on a lightly floured surface until you can see the worktop pattern through it, about 1.5 mm thick. Fold the sheet loosely, slice into ribbons with a sharp knife and shake them out.
How long does fresh pasta take to cook?
Fresh tagliatelle and pappardelle take 2 to 3 minutes in boiling salted water, and filled pasta such as ravioli takes 3 to 5 minutes. Taste one piece: it should be tender with a slight bite. Fresh lasagne sheets need only a minute or can go in uncooked with a generous, wet sauce.
Can I freeze fresh pasta dough or cut pasta?
Yes. Freeze cut pasta as loose nests on a tray, then bag it and keep for up to 1 month. Cook straight from frozen in boiling water, adding about a minute. Wrapped raw dough also freezes, but thaw it overnight in the fridge before rolling.
Is fresh egg pasta dairy free, vegetarian and nut free?
Yes, it contains no dairy, no meat and no nuts, so it is dairy free, vegetarian and nut free. It does contain eggs and wheat gluten, so it is not suitable for egg allergy, vegan diets or coeliacs.
Can I use plain flour instead of 00 flour?
Yes. Plain flour works and gives a slightly softer pasta with a little less bite. Keeping the semolina flour in the recipe helps give a firmer texture.
Why is my pasta dough crumbly or sticky?
Crumbly dough needs a little more moisture, so knead in water a teaspoon at a time. Sticky dough needs a little more flour. Large eggs vary, and the dough will also firm up as it rests, so wait for the rest before adjusting too much.
More base recipes
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.