Easy Homemade Orecchiette Pasta
This easy Homemade Orecchiette Pasta recipe is truly easy. This pasta uses only two ingredients and requires no special equipment - just a knife ๐ช (and a little time)! Orecchiette pasta is made primarily from just semolina and water. The name means "little ears" ๐๐in Italian, because that is what they resemble. The hollow cavity and rough surface are perfect for hugging sauces.
Try this recipe with our Orecchiette with Creamy Pea Sauce.
What are Orecchiette Pasta?
Orecchiette, or "Little Ears" pasta are beloved by many for its whimsical shape, and the way its unique shape perfectly hugs hearty sauces.
It's typically made just from durum wheat (semolina, or semola in Italian). Unlike many other flour-based pastas, eggs are not used in this recipe, making it vegan-friendly by default. Learn more about Semolina here.
Orecchiette are domed-shaped, often created by using your thumb to invert the curled pasta to open it up (when making it by hand). Due to the nature of how it is formed by hand, it is thinner in the middle and often has a rough surface.
Where does Orichiette Pasta come from?
The Orecchietta (singular) pasta shape hails from Puglia, Italy, although similar shapes are made throughout Italy. Puglia is a southern region, which often uses durum (semolina) in its pasta and no eggs.
Meat sauces are commonly served with Orecchiette, with Orecchiette Alle Cima de Rapa (Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe) being the traditional dish of Puglia. However, vegetable or tomato sauces work perfectly well as well.
How do you make this Easy Orechiette Pasta?
Making this pasta dough is extremely simple. It's two ingredients: durum wheat (semolina) and water.
- Mix the semolina and water
- Knead it until it becomes a smooth dough
- Rest the dough for 10-15 minutes
After that, have a seat and get comfortable if you like. The next process is very theraputic.
- Roll small portions of the dough into a rope, about 1 cm in diamater
- Cut off small 1 cm pieces
- Use a regular butter knife (serrated or smooth) to drag the small pieces across the counter or surface (preferably wooden, like a cutting board)
- The dough will wrap around the knife, creating a cavity
- Flip the dough over your thumb, creating a dome
- Let dry and then boil for just 5 minutes
This easy Homemade Orecchiette Pasta recipe is truly easy. This pasta uses only two ingredients and requires no special equipment - just a knife ๐ช (and a little time)! Orecchiette pasta is made primarily from just semolina and water. The name means "little ears" ๐๐because that is what they resemble. The hollow cavity and rough surface are perfect for hugging sauces.
This recipe is a typical measurement per person. Simply multiply for more servings.
- 100 g Semolina (Fine or Coarse)
- 40 ml Water (Warm)
- Pinch Salt (Optional)
- 1 tsp Olive Oil (Optional)
- Add semolina into a bowl, with salt, if desired. Mix and create a well in the center.
You can also do this on the counter.
- Add the warm water and olive oil, if using. Mix and knead on a clean surface until the dough is very smooth, about 3-5 minutes.
If the dough is too dry, add more water little by little.
- Cover and let the dough rest for about 10-15 minutes.
- After the dough has rested, cut a small portion and roll into a thin rope, about 1 cm in diameter.
Keep the remaining dough covered.
- With a smooth or serrated butter or dinner knife, cut 1 cm pieces from the rope of dough. On an un-floured (preferably wooden) surface, use your knife to drag the piece of dough across the surface to create the Orecchiette shape. The dough will wrap around the edge of the knife. Unwrap it and flip upside down over your thumb, creating a cavity/dome in the middle of the pasta.
See Instagram Reel included in Recipe introduction for a quick video tutorial.
- Continue the process with the remainder of the dough, working in small batches so the dough doesn't dry out.
If the dough feels too dry, wet your hands.
- Allow to dry 80-100% (about 1-2 hours) before cooking or freezing.
This will allow the pasta to keep its shape and dome. If freezing, you can freeze after it's dried.
- Cook in salted boiling water for 5 minutes, or until al dente.
If cooking from frozen, no need to defrost, just boil from frozen.
Hi, Iโm Rena! Iโm a thirty-something foodie and house-spouse living in Texas. I love sharing and developing recipes from my mixed-race family, world travels and insatiable need to try new things.
I enjoy a mix of culinary traditionalism and innovation to honor history and create my own.
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