Skip to Content
Recipes

How to Make Grano Duro Pasta Dough

Italian culinary expert Amy Riolo, shares her recipe for making a traditional pasta dough at home using hard wheat or "grano duro."

By Amy Riolo

12:00 PM EDT on September 16, 2023

Basic Pasta Dough.

Pasta dough process. Photo by Francesco Sapienza, courtesy of Pasta Corner.

Grano Duro pasta dough is used to make taglierini, pappardelle, fusilli, orecchiette, cavatelli, lagane, spaghetti, ziti, and many other traditional pasta shapes.

Pasta in most Southern Italian regions is generally made with grano duro durum wheat flour, “hard wheat,” which is higher in protein than other kinds of wheat and is considered a whole wheat product because it contains the germ, bran, and other parts of the wheat grain. During the milling process, durum wheat can be ground into semolina, and semolina is sometimes used to make these shapes as well. This dough is not used for stuffed pasta recipes

Semolina, einkorn, spelt, and other heirloom varieties of wheat can be used when making this pasta.

Originally, Grano Duro pasta dough was made with only flour and water, but nowadays many Italian chefs include eggs. If you prefer to make this type of pasta without eggs, you can use 3 cups of durum wheat flour plus 1 1/2 cups tepid water along with 2 tablespoons of lukewarm water and 1 teaspoon salt as ingredients.

[Note: Appetito may earn commissions from products featured in links to this story.]

Grano Duro Pasta Dough

Grano Duro Pasta Dough

Recipe by Amy Riolo
0.0 from 0 votes
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

25

minutes
Cooking time

5

minutes

Ingredients

  • 2-3/4 cups 2-3/4 durum wheat flour, plus additional 1 cup for work surface

  • 4 4 jumbo eggs (10 ounces total)

  • 1 teaspoon 1 salt

Directions

  • Place the flour in a mound on a clean, dry work surface.
  • Make a hole in the center and break the eggs into the middle.
  • Using a fork, carefully mix the eggs together and incorporate a little flour into the eggs at a time.
  • Add the salt, and mix well by hand to form a solid dough.
  • Lightly flour the work surface, and knead and fold the dough energetically until it forms a smooth ball.
  • Using your hands or a floured rolling pin, flatten out the dough to form a 10-inch diameter disk.
  • Cover and set aside to rest for 30 minutes.
  • Scrape up and discard any unused bits of dough.
  • Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to form a rectangle about 12-inches long. Cut the rectangle into four equal pieces.
  • Roll each piece on a lightly floured surface until it is 1/8 -inch thick.
  • Cut pasta sheets into desired shapes called for in your recipe.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @appetitomagazine on Instagram and hashtag it with #italianfoodanddrink

Like this recipe?

Follow @Appetitomagazine on Pinterest

Follow us on Facebook!

Follow us on Facebook

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Appetito

Postcards from Parma: An Ode to ALMA

Our contributor from Parma reflects on her four years working for an Italian culinary school on the dawn of her next adventure.

April 21, 2025

Donatella Boutique Hotel & Restaurant Arrives in Miami Beach This May

The Donatella Boutique Hotel & Restaurant arrives in Miami Beach this May offering hyper-personalized luxury.

April 21, 2025

How to Make Pasta and Beans

This variation on the classic pasta e fagioli is from the Veneto and calls for "badly cut" pasta.

April 17, 2025

Appetito’s Editor-in-Chief Shares His Easter Menu on Good Day New York

Appetito's Editor-in-Chief Andrew Cotto appeared on Fox5's Good Day New York to share his Roman Easter menu.

April 17, 2025
See all posts