Here's a free recipe just for you, from The Pasta Course!

From The Pasta Course-

In this video I’m going to show you exactly how I make pasta dough using coarse semolina flour and water. This is a classic dough from the south of Italy. I use 100% coarse semolina flour and 48% warm water. So in simple terms for every 100 grams of semolina flour I use 48 grams of warm water. This coarse semolina flour and hydration level allows me to form shapes like cavatelli, orecchiette and many more hand formed shapes. The coarse semolina flour creates a chewy, firm and strong textured pasta which allows the final pasta hold its shape nicely after it is cooked. These characteristics allow you to make thinner hand formed shapes like orecchiette, which is a thin dome shaped pasta, compared to a thicker pasta like pici which is a thick hand rolled pasta made with fine semolina rimacinata.

Please leave any comments or questions below and share your progress in The Pasta Community Page.

Full recipe with exact measurements below

*For the most comprehensive understanding of this method, please watch the video recipe once then read the written recipe once. Then watch and read at the same time. Then make the recipe yourself while watching the recipe video once more. You’ll be able to completely understand the method while you actually make the recipe.*

Formula

Coarse Semolina, 100%

Warm Water, 48%

Recipe

Yield: 592 grams of dough

Ingredients:

Coarse Semolina, 400 grams

Warm Water, 192 grams

Method:

 - Pour the flour onto the work surface.

- Make a ‘well’ by pinching your fingers together and pushing them straight down into the flour with a circular motion. Make sure the ‘walls’ of the ‘well’ are wide enough to contain all of the water. 

- With a fork, begin to add flour from the walls to the water little by little. Make sure to keep the walls of the well wide enough to contain the water.

- Keep adding more flour until the mixture has thickened significantly.

- With a bench scraper, begin to fold and cut the rest of the flour into the mixture. At this point a rough dough should start forming. 

- Keep cutting the dough with the bench scraper and once the dough starts to come together begin folding and pressing the dough together with the bench scraper and your hands. 

- Once the dough has become one solid mass, begin kneading.

- Knead by folding the north side of the dough onto the center of the dough and push forward gently like a crashing wave.

- Give it a quarter turn and repeat.

- Repeat this motion until the dough has absorbed all of the flour. About 1-3 minutes.

- Use the bench scraper to scrape any pieces of dough off of the surface of the table and incorporate it into the center of the dough and continue to knead for another minute or so.

- Be careful to not incorporate any very dry bits of dough as they will have a harder time getting absorbed back into the dough and can create a tear in your pasta when you begin rolling and shaping pasta. 

- First Rest - after kneading for about 1-3 minutes rest the dough in a plastic bag for 10 minutes.

- After 10 minutes repeat the kneading process for 1-2 minutes.

- Second Rest - rest again in a plastic bag for 10 minutes. 

- Repeat the kneading process for 1-2 minutes. You will notice the surface of the dough becoming a bit smoother.

- Third Rest - Gently wrap the dough in plastic wrap by laying the plastic wrap down on the table, place the dough seam side up and wrap the dough gently using a pleating motion to keep the round shape. 

- Store the dough at room temperature for 1 hour before forming shapes or 24 hours in the refrigerator. 

- KEY POINT- You may find it easier to form shapes with this dough when the dough is at room temperature. A colder dough may be tougher to form shapes as the dough will be firmer. Definitely try both and see what works best for you.