Homemade Pasta Dough In the Food Processor

Homemade pasta dough is really simple to make in the food processor. The dough comes together in minutes and is so easy to work with. Fresh pasta is unbeatable and now you can make it at home anytime.

Homemade Pasta dough in the food processor

Making pasta from scratch has always seemed like such a grandiose accomplishment to me. In my opinion, if you’ve mastered that great art, you deserve to hang up a flag next to your front door proclaiming that you have successfully stepped over the line of home cook to “esteemed and awesome chef”.

I came across this recipe on America’s Test Kitchen many years ago and I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to make. Their recipe was very unconventional, but two things caught my attention.

#1. I trust their recipes. I have been a loyal America’s Test Kitchen follower for more than a decade. It is my most trustworthy source for great recipes and cooking info.

#2.    They promised homemade pasta without a machine. If I can get away with not buying an extra gizmo for my kitchen, I certainly will. I already use my food processor in countless ways, so it’s another great way to put it to good use.

The results just blew me away. It was SO much easier than I had imagined. It took me less than 5 minutes to make the pasta dough and about 20-30 minutes to roll it out and cut it. Wow! Lest you doubt the quality, let me assure you, the texture and taste was phenomenal.

We still love this pasta dough many years later and it’s one of my boys’ favorite dinner EVER. I don’t make it too often, but when I do, it always becomes a special occasion.

Ingredients:

  • all purpose flour – using all purpose flour makes this pasta dough really doable, since it’s a pantry staple.
  • eggs (whole eggs + egg yolks) – the use of additional egg yolks makes the pasta dough really easy to work with. It’s smooth and pliable and the yolks give it a pretty golden color.
  • olive oil
  • salt, for cooking the pasta dough
  • simple serving idea: sauteed garlic + fresh parsley
Ingredients for homemade pasta dough

Video of How To Make Homemade Pasta Dough in the Food Processor:

How to Make Homemade Pasta Dough:

  1. In the food processor, combine the flour, whole eggs, egg yolks and olive oil.
  2. Mix to combine until all the ingredients are incorporated and come together into a ball.
  3. If the dough is sticky and tacky, add a little bit more flour, mix again, until it doesn’t stick to your hands.
  4. Roll the pasta dough into a log (about 6 inches). Wrap it in plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours.
  5. Divide the dough into 6 parts.
  6. Roll each section into a rectangle, on a lightly floured surface, about 6 inches wide and 20 inches long. (Keep the dough you aren’t rolling out covered so it doesn’t dry out.)
  7. Set the pasta sheets aside to dry for at least 15 minutes before cutting. Place the sheets of pasta dough in a single layer while they are drying, not on top of each other, or they’ll stick together.
  8. Fold up the pasta, starting with the short side.
  9. Slice across to make long strands of pasta. Lightly unfurl the pasta with your fingers. Repeat with each sheet of pasta dough.
How to make homemade pasta dough in the food processor step by step tutorial

Cooking and Serving the Pasta

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, stirring to untangle and cook for 3-5 minutes only, until the pasta is cooked through.
  2. Save 1/2 – 1 cup of the pasta water to thin out the pasta/sauce later.
  3. Drain the pasta, add some butter or olive oil, tossing to combine.

One of the easiest ways to serve this pasta is to saute some garlic in olive oil while the pasta is cooking.

Add some chopped fresh parsley and add the cooked pasta. Mix to combine, adding some of the pasta water to loosen the pasta a bit.

How to cook and serve homemade pasta.

You can also squeeze in some lemon juice for more flavor and/or garnish the pasta with finely grated Romano or Parmesan cheese. It’s so tasty with this light and aromatic sauce, it will be just as delicious with it or without it.

Other Options:

Homemade pasta served with garlic and parsley

Helpful Tips and Frequently Asked Questions:

What makes this pasta dough so great?

First of all, the food processor makes the process quick and fool proof.
Second of all, the extra egg yolks make this pasta dough very smooth and pliable.

How to make pasta dough without a pasta machine?

This is just the recipe for that. All you need is a counter top, a rolling pin and a knife:). Just roll out the pasta dough on your countertop.
Don’t use too much flour to roll out the dough. A light dusting is enough, but add more as you lift it up and roll it out more or when flipping the dough over.

How thick/thin should you roll out the pasta dough?

You should be able to see the outline of your hand when you hold it up. If you use the exact rolling out instructions in this recipe, it will be the perfect thickness.

How to cook homemade pasta dough:

Use a large pot of generously salted water. The pasta needs a lot of salt and you can’t add salt later. The pasta also needs a lot of space to move around as it cooks in the boiling water.
Don’t over cook the pasta! It cooks much faster than store bought boxed pasta. Fresh pasta only needs 3-5 minutes to cook through.

Can you freeze homemade pasta dough?

Yes! Roll out the pasta dough, cut it, unfurl it so it’s not stuck together. Freeze on a floured, parchment lined baking sheet or a floured cutting board for about 20-30 minutes. Transfer the pasta into a ziptop bag or airtight container.
You can freeze pasta dough for at least 1 month and up to 3 months.

Homemade Pasta Dough in the Food Processor

Olga Klyuchits
Try making homemade pasta dough in the food processor. It makes the process so easy and it turns out so soft, pliable and easy to work with. It tastes delicious when cooked and has an incredible texture.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Course Side Dish
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • salt to season the pasta cooking water
  • butter or oil when serving the pasta
  • fresh herbs optional to garnish the cooked pasta

Instructions
 

  • Add the flour, whole eggs, egg yolks and olive oil to the bowl of a food processor. Mix to combine until the dough comes together in a ball. It should be soft but shouldn’t stick to your fingers.
  • Wrap the dough in plastic wrap or parchment paper, shaping it into a 6 inch log. Set is aside at room temperature for at least 1 hour or up to 4 hours.
  • Divide the dough into 6 parts.
  • On a lightly floured surface, take one piece of dough (leaving the rest of the dough wrapped in the plastic wrap, so it doesn’t dry out) and with your fingers, pat the dough into about a 3 inch square.
  • Roll out the dough into a 6 inch wide and 20 inch long sheet of dough. You should be able to see the outline of your hand when you hold it up. Try to use as little flour as possible when rolling it out. The dough is very easy to work with and is soft and pliable, so you shouldn’t have any problems.
  • Place the rolled out pasta sheet onto a lightly floured sheet of parchment, or your table surface, etc.
  • Repeat with the other 5 pieces of dough. Place each rolled out sheets of dough in one layer to dry for about 15 minutes. Don’t put them on top of each other or they will stick together.
  • When the dough has dried for at least 15 minutes, roll in up starting with the short side, and use a sharp knife to cut across the rolled up pasta sheet, to get strands of pasta.
  • You can cut the pasta into thinner or thicker strands, or keep the pasta dough in sheets and use it for lasagna or make ravioli with it.
  • Lightly unfurl the pasta with your fingers.
  • You can freeze the pasta like this, by freezing it for about 20 minutes and then placing it into a ziptop bag or a sealed container.
  • To cook the pasta, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
  • When the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook on high heat for about 3 -5 minutes.
  • Drain the pasta, saving about 1/2 – 1 cup of the starchy water to thin out your sauce if you need to loosen the pasta a bit later.
  • At this point, you can use any sauce to the cooked pasta, gently tossing to evenly distribute the sauce. Add some of the reserved pasta water, to loosen the pasta a bit. Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
  • Garnish the pasta with fresh parsley or other fresh herbs. You can also garnish it with grated Parmesan cheese.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

19 Comments

    • olgak7

      Nataliya,
      You just throw in the frozen pasta into the salted boiling water and cook for 3-5 minutes, not too much longer than fresh pasta. It cooks SUPER FAST, so watch it carefully.

    • olgak7

      Nadia,
      You can try mixing it by hand, although I can’t promise that it will turn out well, since I haven’t done it by hand myself. This dough is different than regular pasta dough, and I think that if you mix it by hand you may add too much flour to it, since it’s pretty sticky.

  • Rojer

    I was all set to try this for my wife on Valentines day but chickened out when I didn’t know which amounts of flour to trust; the 10 oz. from the Test Kitchen show or the 2 cups from your posting. When I went to their web site with the recipe they had already fuzzed it out unless you pay. I just might try both some day, thanks for wonderful site!

  • ron flinders

    I made the homemade pasta and was somewhat disappointed in the results. Instead of ending up with dough, it turned out to be a pea size mix. I corrected by adding a little additional egg white. I have corrected the recipe to read 6 eggs and 2 1/4 cups of flour.

  • Zoya

    Hi, this pasta looks delicious! I was just wondering what is the mail difference between making this pasta with whole eggs or mostly with egg yolks?
    Thank you

    • olgak7

      For this recipe, you need additional egg yolks so that you will be able to roll it out easily by hand without a pasta machine, Zoya. Egg yolks have a higher fat content than whites, so that’s why you’re using extra yolks.

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