Making Fresh Tajarin Pasta by hand with Kids

TAJARIN AL 40 TUORLI

Tajarin is the traditional pasta made in the Langhe region of Piedmont, Italy.  The pasta is made using flour and eggs.   When the pasta is cut more thickly, it is called tagliatelle.  We have enjoyed this delicious pasta in every corner of the Langhe and we are proud to have learned the art of making this pasta for ourselves.  The best way to master this simple recipe is to make it over and over again so that you become familiar with the feel of the dough.  The best quality organic flour and eggs will make this pasta even more spectacular.  Different flours dramatically affect the quantity of egg yolks.  A simple rule is that the more finely the flour is milled (0 or 00 being the finest) the more egg yolks will be required.  Traditionally the recipes calls for 40 eggs yolks to be mixed with 1 kilogram of flour.  For this recipe we made enough pasta for six servings of 80 - 100g of pasta per serving.

- 300g Monococco (Einkorn) type 2 Organic Flour and 13 egg yolks (if the dough is too dry, add a tiny amount of egg white or one more yolk)

Weigh your flour with a kitchen scale.  Egg yolks vary in size; Egg yolks here (which are a bright orange color) weigh roughly 260g or 20g per egg yolk.  Separate the eggs.  (You can save the whites in a separate bowl to be used for making meringues).  Gently work the egg yolks into the dough with a fork.  When the egg yolks are broken and integrated, knead the dough with your hands for approximately or until the dough is stiff.  Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and set on the counter at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.  Cut off approximately 1/4 of the dough and shape it into a flat rectangle.  From this point you may use a rolling pin or a pasta machine.  We use a simple hand cranking pasta machine,  gently feeding the dough through and folding each time.  Stretch the dough out to the second to last setting so that it is quite thin.  You may then roll and cut by hand making sure to dust the dough with flour so that the noodles do not stick together.  Alternatively, you may use the attachement, as we have done below, to make the perfect cuts.

Put in a container to freeze or cook immediately.  Cook for 2-3 minutes in rolling boiling water.  Toss with butter, butter and sage, or a ragu sauce.  During autumn we simply top this with butter and fine shavings of white truffles that are collected near Villa San Lorenzo.  Buon appetito!

All photographs copyright Clay McLachlan and Tamar McLachlan, 2015.