Make a batch of Italian angel hair pasta (known as capelli d'angelo) from scratch using just 4 ingredients. This simple handmade pasta recipe is made with eggs and 00 flour.
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When it comes to making pasta, there are so many fun shapes! Angel hair pasta (called capelli d'angelo in Italian) is a classic cut of pasta that everyone should learn how to make from scratch.
After going to culinary school in Italy, I can teach you all of the best tips and tricks for making pasta dough at home.
This recipe uses an egg-based dough that is then rolled and cut into thin angel hair pasta. Although this recipe does require a pasta machine, it's well worth the investment if you enjoy making fresh pasta.
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What You'll Learn In This Recipe
- How to make classic Northern Italian pasta dough with eggs.
- Helpful tips and tricks for ensuring your pasta turns out perfectly every single time.
- The importance of using certain types of flour.
Ingredients You Need
You'll only need a few key ingredients to make delicious Italian angel hair pasta from scratch.
- 00 soft wheat flour: 00 flour has a smaller grain size compared to other types of flour. This will result in a light and tender pasta. Don't use all-purpose flour.
- Eggs: I highly suggest using a digital food scale to weigh out the eggs. When measuring the whole eggs, whisk the whites and the yolks together then measure on a digital scale.
- Salt: Give your pasta some flavor with a small amount of fine sea salt. Do not use large granules, otherwise, it will not distribute evenly throughout the pasta.
- Semolina flour: Semolina flour is used to keep the pasta from sticking to one another.
How To Make This Recipe
Here's a step-by-step guide to making angel hair pasta dough and shaping it.
1. Add 00' flour, whole eggs, egg yolks, and fine sea salt to a mixing bowl.
2. Using clean hands, mix the ingredients together just until a shaggy dough forms.
3. Pour the shaggy dough onto a clean work surface and gently knead/pat the excess flour together to form one solid dough.
4. Shape the pasta dough into a square. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow it to rest until you touch the dough and it has slightly softened.
5. After about 30 - 35 minutes, you'll notice that the dough has softened and the flour has absorbed the liquid from the egg and egg yolks.
6. Cut the dough into 3 equally sized pieces. I love using a bench scraper for this step.
7. Use your hands or a rolling pin to slightly flatten the pasta dough so it can fit into the widest setting of the pasta machine. I also like to dust each side of the pasta with semolina to ensure it doesn’t stick.
8. Pass the pasta dough through the widest setting on the pasta machine.
9. Fold each side of the pasta to the middle.
10. Then, pass the pasta dough through the widest setting again.
11. Reduce the pasta machine width setting by one, then continue to pass the pasta through the machine. Continue flattening the pasta, reducing the setting by one, until it reaches a medium setting, about 1 mm thick (for me setting 7).
12. Finally, use the pasta machine attachment to cut the pasta into thin angel hair (around 1 mm thick).
Dust the pasta with semolina flour to prevent sticking, then shape the pasta into a nest before placing it on a sheet tray filled with semolina flour.
Expert Tips
- It's best to weigh out the ingredients using a digital kitchen scale. The pasta dough recipe will turn out better because the measurements will be more accurate.
- It's really important to fully scrape out the containers (especially the container with the egg) so all of the ingredients are used when mixing the pasta dough. The eggs help to hydrate the dough, so pay attention when measuring and mixing the ingredients.
- Don't roll the pasta until it's too thin or it will cook too quickly and become very mushy.
Recipe FAQs
It takes a while to fully knead the flour and eggs together - just have some patience. I like to use the heel of my hand to push the flour into the dough and knead it into one cohesive piece.
If you find that the dough is very sticky and you're having a hard time rolling it out, use semolina flour to lightly dust the outside of the pasta. This will help with sticking.
Yes, this pasta dough can be made 1 day in advance and kept in the refrigerator until you're ready to roll out the dough. Allow the dough to come to room temperature so it's easier to handle.
Yes! You'll want to allow the angel hair pasta to dry out at room temperature until they've fully hardened. Place fully dried pasta in an airtight storage container for up to 3 months.
More Italian Pasta Recipes
There are many other pasta shapes you should learn how to make! From tagliatelle to pasta sheets, learn to master these recipes:
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Capelli d’Angelo (Italian Angel Hair Pasta)
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons 00' soft wheat flour
- 1 ounce whole eggs (about ½ large egg)
- 0.7 ounce egg yolks (about 1 - 2 egg yolks)
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- semolina flour for dusting
- coarse sea salt for cooking
Instructions
- Add 00' flour, whole eggs, egg yolks, and fine sea salt to a mixing bowl. Using clean hands, mix the ingredients together just until a shaggy dough forms.
- Pour the shaggy dough onto a clean work surface and gently knead/pat the excess flour together to form one solid dough.
- Shape the pasta dough into a square. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest until you touch the dough and it has slightly softened, about 30 - 35 minutes.
- Cut the dough into 3 equally sized pieces. Use your hands or a rolling pin to slightly flatten the pasta dough so it can fit into the widest setting of the pasta machine. Dust each side of the pasta with semolina to ensure it doesn’t stick.
- Pass the pasta dough through the widest setting on the pasta machine. Fold each side of the pasta to the middle, then pass the pasta dough through the widest setting again.
- Reduce the pasta machine width setting by one, then continue to pass the pasta through the machine. Continue flattening the pasta, reducing the setting by one, until it reaches a medium setting, about 1 mm thick (for me setting 7). You can add additional semolina flour throughout this process if the dough starts to get sticky.
- Use the pasta machine attachment to cut the pasta into thin angel hair (about 1 mm wide).
- Dust the pasta with semolina flour to prevent sticking then shape the pasta into a nest before placing it on a sheet tray filled with semolina flour.
- Boil a pot of water and generously season with coarse sea salt. Cook pasta for 30 seconds - 2 minutes, until slightly softened. Finish cooking with sauce of choice.
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