Handmade semolina pasta reigns in southern Italy. Unlike the silky egg noodles we tend to picture when we think of “fresh pasta,” semolina dough is made with nothing more than flour and water.
In Puglia, Calabria, and Sicily, where durum wheat thrives in the hot, dry climate, families have been shaping this simple dough into fun pasta shapes for centuries.
It’s the foundation for orecchiette, busiate, fileja, and pici—pastas that are chewy, hearty, and perfect for capturing sauces.
The magic lies in the flour.
Semolina is ground from durum wheat, which behaves very differently from the soft or hard wheats used for all-purpose or 00 flour.
With its high protein content (14–15%), durum develops a unique gluten network that’s “plastic”—it stretches, molds, and holds shape, much like playdough. That plasticity is what makes semolina perfect for hand-shaped pasta: egg dough would spring back, resist shaping, and taste rubbery when cooked.
Semolina can be confusing, though. Here’s a quick primer:
Semolina flour: coarsely ground durum wheat. Great for dusting surfaces (the grains act like ball bearings to prevent sticking without being absorbed).
Semolina rimacinata flour: re-milled, finely ground semolina. This is what you want for making pasta dough.
00 flour: soft wheat flour best used for egg-based pasta (see my homemade pasta recipe for that version).
how to make semolina pasta dough:
a few more tips for success:
- Use the right flour: semolina rimacinata for the dough, coarse semolina for dusting.
- Measure by weight: a kitchen scale gives the best consistency.
- Boiling water works best: it hydrates the flour more quickly and makes a smoother dough.
- Bowl instead of counter: I mix my dough in a bowl—it’s cleaner and works just as well as the “volcano” method.
- Let it rest: if the dough feels bumpy or resists kneading, wrap and let sit 5–10 minutes, then finish kneading.
- Storage: wrap dough tightly in plastic or a zip-top bag (press out all the air) and refrigerate up to 3 days.
Semolina Pasta Dough
Learn how to make authentic semolina pasta dough with just flour and water—perfect for orecchiette, busiate, and other southern Italian shapes.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: about 1 lb of dough
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Kneaded
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 330g (2 cups + 5 tbsp) semolina rimancinata flour
- 190g (¾ cup + 2 tbsp + 2 tsp) hot water
Instructions
- Put the semolina in a bowl and slowly pour the water in the center, stirring, until a shaggy dough forms.
- Use your hands to knead it together in the bowl a few times, then transfer to a clean work surface. Knead until the dough is smooth and silky, about 10 minutes. If dough resists, cover with plastic wrap and let it rest 5 minutes. Continue kneading until smooth.
- Cover in plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes at room temperature, or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ of recipe
- Calories: 297
- Sugar: 0g
- Sodium: 2.7mg
- Fat: 0.9g
- Saturated Fat: 0.1g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 60g
- Fiber: 3.2g
- Protein: 10g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
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