No-Egg Pasta Dough

Yield: 3 cups/6 servings

Pasta made with eggs is usually found in the northern regions of Italy, while egg-free pasta is primarily found in Southern Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia.  Each region is known for particular shapes and recipes, many of which can be made with this egg-free version.

I love a rich pasta made with eggs, but you can get a similar result by switching them out with a touch of extra virgin olive oil.  The oil adds flavor and a suppleness to the dough.  

Turmeric adds a beautiful yellow hue, that will intense slightly as it sits.  It won’t contribute to the flavor, since it’s such a small amount.  

You can use this dough in any way you would use pasta dough containing eggs.  The rice flour is used to stop the pasta shapes from sticking together while they are waiting to be cooked.  It doesn’t get absorbed by the pasta the same way additional all-purpose flour would, and it doesn’t cloud the cooking water quite as much when boiling. But feel free to just use AP flour if you don’t want to bother buying rice flour.

3 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup filtered water

3 Tbsp evoo – the good stuff!

1/8 tsp turmeric powder – optional

Rice flour – optional/for rolling out the dough

1.     In a food processor place the flour, then the rest of the ingredients.  Process until it looks like breadcrumbs.

2.     Gingerly tip dough out onto your dry worksurface.  Bring it together and knead a few times to make a ball.  If you find the dough to be too wet, sprinkle with an additional tablespoon of flour while kneading, but, to be honest, you probably won’t need to. 

3.     Wrap in the plastic and flatten into a pudgy disk and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes, or so.

4.     Once it has rested, the consistency should be smoother.  Work with half, or even a quarter of the dough at a time for easier handling. 

5.     I like to use rice flour when rolling out the dough to stop it from sticking to my work surface.  I also sprinkle it over the raw pasta shapes to keep it from clumping together.  

6.  I use a Kitchen Aid standing mixer pasta attachment to roll out the dough, but feel free to use a hand-crank machine.  You can also do it by hand with a rolling pin, but that’s too much work for this lazy cook.

7.     To cook the pasta, bring a large pot of water to the boil.  Add a handful or two of kosher salt to flavor the water.  It should taste like the sea.  Once the water is boiling, turn down the heat slightly so it doesn’t boil over.  Carefully add the pasta in batches and cook for a few minutes until it bounces to the surface.  Boil for an additional minute or two and then remove using a slotted spoon.  Transfer directly to your plate and top with chosen sauce.