Hand-Made Pasta Dough for Pappardelle & Ravioli
There's nothing quite like the feel of fresh pasta dough coming together under your hands — silky, elastic, alive. This is the recipe James teaches in his Farmer's Market Tour class, where guests shop the morning market at Ferry Plaza and then come back to his kitchen to turn those beautiful eggs and flour into something extraordinary. Two ingredients. Pure technique.
Ingredients
- 3½ cups all-purpose unbleached flour
- 5 large eggs
Instructions
- On a marble surface or a large cutting board, create a "well" with the flour. Crack the eggs into the center.
- Whisk using a fork and then slowly combine the flour, whisking constantly (1–2 minutes). Once half or so of the flour has been incorporated, begin combining by hand.
- Once you have formed a cohesive mass, knead the dough for 6–8 minutes, pushing down and turning over. Once the texture is silky and smooth, wrap the dough in plastic and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
- Using a hand-crank or other pasta machine, roll small flattened pieces of dough through the machine starting on the widest setting. Fold the dough in half and roll through the first setting to help "knead" the dough. Do this 2–3 times.
- Next proceed to the middle setting. Finally roll the dough through the second-to-finest setting. For ravioli or tortellini, roll to the finest setting.
- Hand-cut into wide noodles for pappardelle, pass through a tagliatelle cutter, or cut into squares and make ravioli with your favorite filling. Place onto a platter lined with floured parchment paper until you are ready to cook.
Rolling the dough through a hand-crank pasta machine — start on the widest setting and work your way down
The quality of your eggs matters enormously with a recipe this simple. Farm-fresh eggs with deep orange yolks — the kind you find at Ferry Plaza — will give you a richer, more flavorful dough. And don't rush the knead: that 6–8 minutes of working the dough is what develops the gluten and gives you that silky, elastic texture you're after.
Pappardelle tossed with maitake mushrooms and market greens — from flour well to finished dish
Plated on James' Italian majolica — ready to serve
Make This With James
This pappardelle is part of the Farmer's Market Tour — shop Ferry Plaza together, then cook a seasonal lunch in James' home kitchen.
Book the Market Tour