Homemade Sourdough Pasta (Same day or Overnight)

Homemade sourdough pasta is delicious, easy-to-make pasta filled with the health benefits of sourdough starter and can be ready in just about an hour or long fermented. Can be made with an active starter or discard and used to make any sort of pasta you like, think ravioli, lasagna sheets, or fresh linguini!

Many people think that a sourdough starter is just for baking up those perfect boules of sourdough bread. Although beautiful and delicious to eat, that is just the tip of the iceberg so to speak. This sourdough pasta has been the most surprising recipe made with a starter that I have shared.

True enough, homemade pasta is not an everyday occurrence for most of us home cooks. Not unless you live in Italy or are in fact an authentic Italian woman humming around in her kitchen pressing out golden bowls of pasta on the daily. For the rest of us, this isn’t our reality. We have for years, been used to picking up packages of store-bought pasta and calling it a day.

I promise you, that once you learn how to make your own pasta, the taste and quality difference will astound you. There is nothing like fresh pasta and once you have it, it is hard to go back. Which is exactly what happened to my daughter and I. Now, pasta night starts early and we both are ready to hand crank it out and deal with the flour disaster as it is that good!

When it comes to quality, ingredients matter and I try to use the best quality ingredients I can get my hands on. Still, a bowl of pasta is a bowl of pasta. How can we make it healthier? The answer as you might have already guessed, is to add in some sourdough starter.

Fresh Sourdough Pasta Is…

• Made with simple ingredients
• Able to be eaten in an hour or overnight to allow for fermentation
• A healthier option for pasta
• An easy homemade sourdough pasta recipe
• Easily made with unfed, fed starter or sourdough discard

Ingredients

Flour-00 or all-purpose flour works perfectly for this sourdough pasta and when making regular pasta. 00 is considered the gold standard for making pasta or pizza dough try Molino Grassi or Caputo. I like to substitute it for King Arthur’s all-purpose. There is a slight difference in these two flours that you can read about here. However, either one you use for this pasta, will yield similar results.

Eggs- I use the eggs from our hens which are organic, free-range eggs, usually large in size. Egg sizes differ quite a bit and even when using eggs labeled as “large”, they can vary in content. That is why I have included the grams for accuracy. It is important to use the exact amounts when making pasta so if you have a kitchen scale, you will get the best results by using it.

Sourdough Starter- I like to use my starter when it is nice and bubbly as it will give the best flavor however, since we are not using it to rise bread, you can use the starter straight from the fridge. But make sure your starter has not been sitting for long periods without being fed as this can cause the pasta to be too sour in flavor. Not what we want in our pasta.

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive commissions if you choose to purchase through the links I provide (at no cost to you).

Tools

Pasta machine or Rolling pin

Food processor (or you can hand mix)

Directions

Food Processor- add the flour, starter, and eggs to the bowl of a food processor and blend until the dough ball just comes together.

Turn it over onto a clean work surface. Cover it with plastic wrap for 10 minutes to allow the dough to rest.

Uncover the dough and begin kneading it by pushing the palm of your hand into the dough in an upward, then outward motion. Repeat for 2 minutes. The dough should begin to feel soft. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap.

Stand Mixer- if you don’t have a food processor you can still make homemade sourdough pasta. To begin mix the eggs and starter with the paddle attachment. Then add the flour and mix until it just comes together. Place the dough hook attachment on and knead the dough on the low setting for 2 minutes. Remove the dough ball and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap.

Same Day or Overnight

At this point, you can choose to allow it to rest at room temperature for one hour then begin making pasta. Or for those who prefer the flavor to develop and want more fermentation benefits, you can place the tightly wrapped dough ball into the fridge after the 1 hour rest for up to 24 hours. Note: If doing this method you will want to allow the dough to come back to room temperature before rolling it out which will take about 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Notes

• Using active sourdough starter will yield a better flavor.
• If you can use a kitchen scale to make your pasta to ensure accuracy
• Wrap the dough ball extra tight with plastic wrap as pasta dough can dry out very easily. Double-wrap it if you need to.

Rolling Out The Pasta

There are two ways to roll out and cut the pasta. The first is with a pasta machine. Whether an electric one or a hand crank machine, both are super convenient and easy to use. The other is manually, with a rolling pin and a sharp knife. Yes, you can hand roll out your pasta sheets and cut pasta with a knife. Here’s how to do either.

Hand Crank Pasta Maker

Before starting, allow the dough to come to room temperature, this is a very important step so please don’t skip it.

1. Cut the pasta ball into four equal pieces. Take one of the wedges out and cover the remaining three with the plastic wrap.
2. Make sure to have extra flour handy as you will need to feed it through the machine to keep the dough from sticking.
3. Flour the sheet attachment, and place the setting on the thickest setting. On my pasta machine, this is #4. I feed it through #4 down to #1 twice on each setting. Refer to your pasta machine’s instruction manual to find the correct settings.
4. Take the wedge and smash it flat a little with your hand (as shown) to sort of pancake it so that it will feed through the machine.
5. Begin, turning the hand crank at the same time as feeding the wedge into the machine. You may need someone to help you the first few times you do this.
6. Turn it and press the dough until it passes all the way through. Feed it through each setting twice.
7. Hang the pasta sheet on a rack, or the back of a chair or I use my oven handle. Flour the handle a little before hanging to ensure the sheet doesn’t stick.
8. Continue to press the three other wedges in the same way making sure to cover the remaining wedges with the plastic wrap so they don’t dry out.
9. When all sheets are done being pressed, choose the pasta shape or cut you would like.
10. It helps to keep a baking sheet or large plate nearby to place the cut pasta.
11. Flour the machine and turn the crank to feed the first sheet through the slot of the desired shape.
12. Catch the pasta on the bottom. Sprinkle it with flour (semolina suggested)
13. Repeat the steps until all four sheets are cut into pasta.
14. Cook the pasta as instructed below.

Rolling Pin Method

Again, allow the dough to come to room temperature before beginning. This is especially important for hand rolling as nothing is more frustrating than hand-rolling dough only to have it keep snapping back. Avoid this and ensure it is at room temperature.

1. Cut the dough ball into four equal parts.
2. Lightly flour the rolling pin and work surface to avoid any sticking.
3. Take one of the wedges and leave the others in the plastic wrap to avoid drying out.
4. Flatten the wedge with your hand place it on the board and begin rolling it out into a long rectangular shape.
5. Pick the dough up and flip it over from time to time as you roll it out. This helps to keep it from sticking underneath.
6. Roll the sheet out until it has reached your desired thickness. Hang the sheet on a rack, back of a chair or on an oven handle. Flour the handle before hanging to prevent sticking.
7. Continue rolling out the remaining wedges, making sure to cover the others with the plastic.
8. When all four sheets are rolled, allow them to dry slightly ls a few minutes before cutting.
9. To cut, fold the sheet gently, like a piece of paper only don’t press the creases. Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut the desired thickness for the pasta. Unwrap the pasta strands and sprinkle with flour. Place on a baking sheet or plate.
10. Continue cutting the sheets in this same manner until completed.

Cooking Sourdough Pasta

When cooking fresh pasta, there is a little bit of a learning curb but it’s not complicated. It’s just not the same as boiling dried pasta. Except it takes much less time and you want to cook it al dente (soft but with a bite). Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil, and salt the water generously. Toss the pasta in and allow it to cook for just a couple of minutes.

The pasta floats when it’s ready but don’t just wait for this indicator. Use a slotted spoon to test a noodle if this is your first time cooking them. That way you know for sure. The worst thing would be to go through all this trouble and have your pasta go to mush. So test it after a 1 minute or so of boiling. The cooking times will also vary slightly with the cut of pasta. Strain the pasta and toss it into your favorite sauce.

Note: If using the pasta sheets for lasagna, you do not need to cook the noodles first before layering the lasagna. Use them as is to layer and bake the lasagna. The pasta will cook in the baking dish with the sauces.

Recipes to Try Sourdough Pasta In

• Lasagna with Béchamel
• Classic Carbonara
• Pasta Pomodoro

Troubleshooting

Pasta dough is crumbly and dry

This means there wasn’t enough egg, you can sprinkle small amounts of water onto the flour and work it into the dough. A teaspoon of water at a time. Be careful not to add too much. A teaspoon of water can do wonders. 

Pasta sheet keeps sticking to the pasta roller

You can pat the dough with a little flour and make sure the press has some flour on it before running the sheet through. Another reason for sticking is choosing the wrong setting. Make sure you run the sheet through the widest setting first and then gradually go down to the thinnest. Please note that pasta machine settings might be different but the process for rolling will be the same. Refer to the instruction manual to find the right-numbered setting for your pasta maker.

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