Spaghetti alla Chitarra is a special kind of fresh spaghetti beloved in Italy for its taste and texture! It's a traditional pasta of the Abruzzo region of Italy (east of Rome) that is cut into a 2mm square diameter using a special 'guitar' (chitarra in Italian) pasta cutter.
1 Rolling Pin or Pasta Machine for stretching the pasta
1 large knife or pasta cutting extension
Ingredients
7ozpasta flouralternatives: all-purpose or '00'
7ozsemolina flour"semola grano duro rimacinata"; or look for semolina flour for pasta.
4wholeeggs
1pinchfine salt(optional)
Instructions
Make the Pasta
Mix the flours together in a pile on a work surface. Make a well in the center of the flour. Add the whole eggs to the center of the flour. Add the salt (optional).Begin to beat the flour into the eggs with a fork, pulling the flour in from the sides a little at a time.
7 oz pasta flour, 7 oz semolina flour, 1 pinch fine salt, 4 whole eggs
Using a stand mixer? Start with ¾ of the flour recommended and add more flour as needed. It’s better to start with too little flour than too much.
When the dough begins to look shaggy, compress the dough into a loose ball and begin to knead. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. When you push in on the dough, it should spring back.
When the fresh pasta dough is ready, cover it and let the dough rest for at least 30 minutes. Cover it with a bowl or better yet, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap.
Stretch and Cut the Pasta
Work with ¼ of the dough at a time. Keep those pieces you aren't working on covered or wrapped in plastic. This will prevent the pasta from drying out.
Place ¼ of the dough on a well-floured surface. Flour both sides of the dough. Roll or press the dough into a ¼ inch (½ cm) thick rectangle.
Pass the floured rectangle through a pasta roller, starting at the widest setting. Feed dough into machine short-side first. Then, place the dough lengthwise on the floured work surface. Fold the dough as you would a letter, starting with one side. Roll out the dough again till it is ¼ in (½ cm) thick.
The short side of folded dough rectangle should be a little smaller than the width of your pasta roller. Then, pass the pasta through the roller again.Reduce the width of the pasta roller one setting. Pass the pasta through the roller again. Always feed the pasta in short-side firstPass the pasta through the roller, each time reducing the roller width one setting. The final thickness of the pasta dough for the spaghetti should be 2 mm. Cut the sheet of pasta into lengths of 26 cm (10").
Time to cut the spaghetti! If using a traditional 'chitarra,' place a sheet of stretched pasta dough on top of the 'strings.' Firmly roll the rolling pin over the pasta, pushing it down and through the strings to cut the pasta. Sprinkle the cut spaghetti generously with semolina flour.
...Or, pass the stretched dough through an appropriately-sized pasta cutter (one that cuts pasta into 2 mm). Separate the cut spaghetti into portions and sprinkle with flour to prevent sticking.
Video
Notes
Why is the recipe in the video different from the recipe in the card?There are wrong recipes for making Italian pasta, but no one right way. Some people do prefer to add a pinch of salt to the pasta dough or a touch of oil. Our grandmas do it this way. Similarly, not everyone adds the semolina flour to the dough, though many (including commercial pasta brands) do do this in order to give the pasta that extra al dente texture. Here we share what's become our favorite recipe for making tagliatelle pasta dough. We hope you'll agree it is delicious!