Rich Egg Yolk Pasta Dough
Michael Symon's Egg Pasta Dough (Cut Wide for Braised Dishes)
Ingredients
Group 1: The Dough
- 2 cups '00' flour or all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 10 large egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- Water as needed
Group 2: To Finish
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- Flaky sea salt
- Fresh flat-leaf parsley roughly chopped — optional
Instructions
Make the Dough
- Combine the flour and egg yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the olive oil.
- Mix on low speed until the dough begins to come together. If the mixture looks too dry and crumbly, add water one teaspoon at a time until the dough begins to form.
- Once the dough has come together, switch to the dough hook. Mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth, elastic, and clears the sides of the bowl — about 4–5 minutes. If it is still sticking to the sides, add a small amount of flour; if it seems stiff and dry, add water a teaspoon at a time.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, shape into a ball, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. The dough will relax and become noticeably easier to roll.
Roll, Cut & Cook
- Divide the rested dough into thirds. Keep the pieces you are not working with wrapped so they do not dry out.
- Flatten one piece with your palm and run it through a pasta machine on the widest setting. Fold the sheet in thirds and run it through again. Repeat 2–3 times until the sheet is smooth.
- Continue passing the dough through progressively narrower settings until you reach the desired thickness — setting 4 or 5 on a standard machine for wide noodles suited to a braise. The sheet should be thin but not translucent.
- Cut the sheets into wide noodles approximately 2 cm (¾ inch) wide, using a knife or pizza wheel. Drape the cut noodles over a dowel or lay flat on a lightly floured tray.
- To cook: bring a large pot of generously salted water to a rolling boil. Add the noodles and cook for 2–3 minutes, tasting at 2 minutes — they should be tender with a slight resistance at the center. Drain, reserving a cup of pasta water.
- Toss the drained noodles immediately with a tablespoon of butter and a splash of pasta water if needed to prevent sticking. Season with flaky salt. Serve at once alongside the Coq au Riesling.
Notes
Attribution: This pasta dough is Michael Symon's Egg Pasta Dough — 2 cups '00' flour, 10 large egg yolks, 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, and water as needed, mixed in a stand mixer. Anne's modification: cut into wide noodles rather than fettuccine or ravioli, to suit the Coq au Riesling braise.
Why 10 egg yolks: Symon's recipe uses only yolks — no whole eggs — which produces a dough that is noticeably richer, more golden, and more silky than standard egg pasta. The extra fat from the yolks gives the noodle a luxurious texture that holds up particularly well under a cream sauce. This is not a substitution you want to shortcut.
'00' flour vs. all-purpose: '00' flour is milled more finely than all-purpose and produces a smoother, more tender dough. If you cannot find it, all-purpose works — the texture will be slightly less silky but the result is still excellent. Do not use bread flour; the higher protein content makes the dough too elastic and difficult to roll.
The rest is not optional: 30 minutes at room temperature allows the gluten to relax fully. Dough that has not rested will spring back when you try to roll it. If you are making this ahead, wrap tightly and refrigerate for up to overnight — bring back to room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling.
On thickness: For pairing with a braise, setting 4 on a standard pasta machine gives a noodle with enough body to absorb the sauce without going soft. Setting 5 or 6 produces a thinner noodle better suited to fettuccine or lighter sauces.
Make-ahead: Cut noodles can be dried completely (1–2 hours until fully dry to the touch) and stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days, or frozen on a tray and then bagged — cook from frozen, adding 1 minute to the cooking time.
Wine Note: Fresh egg pasta is a blank canvas — the wine pairing belongs to the sauce or dish it accompanies, not to the noodle itself. If you are serving this alongside Coq au Riesling, see that recipe for the pairing guidance. If you are serving the noodles simply — tossed in butter, with perhaps a grating of Parmesan and a handful of herbs — the wine follows the butter. A good Burgundian Chardonnay or a white Burgundy from the Mâcon is the natural choice: the richness of the egg yolk pasta echoes the wine's body, and the butter connects them. For a cream or mushroom sauce, the same logic applies. For a tomato-based sauce, reach for a medium-bodied red — a Barbera, a lighter Côtes du Rhône, or a good Beaujolais cru. The pasta will follow wherever the sauce leads.
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