Fresh Semolina Orecchiette
This semolina pasta requires just two ingredients (plus salt) and is totally worth making at home. It easily holds its shape (so get playful!) and will deliver a delightfully chewy texture when boiled.
Equipment
- Rolling Pin optional
- Pasta machine optional
- food processor optional
Ingredients
- 2 cups semolina flour spooned and levelled (about 320 g)
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 2/3 cup hot water approximately
Instructions
- In food processor, pulse flour and salt to combine. With motor running, gradually drizzle in hot water until mixture clumps together. (See Tip)
- Remove dough to work surface and knead, folding it toward you and then pressing it with the heel of your hand; rotate. Repeat until smooth without adding any flour, 2 to 3 minutes (adding flour 1 tsp at a time if sticky).
- Wrap in plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Divide dough into 8 even portions. Working with one piece of dough while keeping the rest covered, use the palms of your hands to roll it into a rope that's 1-cm (scant ½-in) thick. Cut rope into 1-cm (scant ½-in) pieces.
- Using a butter knife with the serrated edge directed away from you, press with some force and drag the dough toward you at a 45-degree angle until you reach the edge and it curls around the knife. Gently pull the dough off the knife, push your thumb against the underside and turn it inside out.
- In large pot of lightly salted boiling water, cook pasta until al dente, 2 to 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or spider, remove pasta to serving bowls. (This will ensure any excess semolina is left at bottom of pot.) Serve with a pasta sauce, like the 10-Minute Sugo or Thick & Glossy Pomodoro.
Notes
Tip: Semolina flour is a slightly grainy flour made from durum wheat and can be found in the baking section of the grocery store. It has a yellow tint, naturally turning pasta dough a sunny hue without the aid of egg yolks.
Tip: Using hot water to hydrate the semolina keeps it supple and reduces kneading time to mere minutes.
Tip: Uncooked pasta can be frozen for up to 2 weeks and then boiled from frozen and cooked until toothsome.
Tip: If you don’t have a food processor, you can make Fresh Semolina Pasta dough in a bowl. Combine the flour and salt, and then drizzle in the hot water, stirring, until the flour mixture is moistened and pebbly. Knead it in the bowl until a smooth, cohesive dough forms, about 3 minutes.