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Tagliatelle cacio e pepe lifted out of the pan.
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5 from 18 votes

Buttery Smooth Tagliatelle - Cacio e Pepe

Tagliatelle is easy to make at home and delicious when prepared with the iconic Cacio e Pepe sauce. Freeze any leftover tagliatelle for later.
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes
Servings 3 people
Cost $6/ 4€

Equipment

Ingredients

For the Pasta Dough

  • 300 g flour, tipo 00 or all purpose flour
  • 140 g whole eggs (3 eggs)

For the Sauce

  • 60 g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
  • 2 g black pepper, rough grind
  • 43 g unsalted butter
  • 1 clove garlic
  • ½ pc lemon, juiced
  • sea salt to taste
Metric - US Imperial

Instructions

To Make the Pasta Dough

  • Make a well with the flour and put the eggs inside.
    Making a well in the flour.
  • Slowly mix the eggs into the flour with a fork until a shaggy dough is made.
    Mixing the eggs slowly into the flour.
  • Work the dough on a sturdy surface to develop the gluten. Wet your hands to bring it together until a smooth dough is formed.
    Cover the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for at least 1 hour or overnight in the fridge.
    The finished pasta dough on a board.
  • Set up the pasta roller and flour it well.
    Setting up the pasta machine.
  • Roll out the dough until it fits easily into the largest setting of the machine.
    Rolling the dough until it fits into the pasta machine.
  • Feed the dough into the machine, flour both sides and decrease the number on the pasta machine after each roll until 4 sizes down.
    Rolling out the dough on the pasta machine.
  • Fold the pasta in half.
    The folded pasta in half.
  • Cut the tips on the edges (this will help it fit back into the roller nicely).
    The pasta with edges cut off.
  • Tuck the tips back into the dough and fold over the other end to make a straight edge.
    Folding the pasta again.
  • Set the roller back to the largest setting and repeat this process 2-3 times or until the pasta is elastic and strong.
  • Finish rolling out the dough to a thickness that's not too thick but not too thin. If you're not sure, compare it with some dried pasta for reference.
    The finished pasta rolled out.
  • Cut the pasta into sheets.
    The pasta cut into sheets.
  • Roll the sheets through the tagliatelle attachment on your pasta machine.
    Alternatively, you can cut them by hand by rolling them in thirds and slicing about 6mm thick.
    Cutting the tagliatelle by hand.
  • Flour the pasta heavily and store what you'll use that day on a tray in the fridge and freeze the rest in sealed containers.
    The fresh tagliatelle on a tray.

For the Cacio e Pepe

  • Fill a large pot about halfway with salted water (it should taste as salty as the sea). Bring to a boil.
  • Once boiling, add the fresh pasta and cook for 2-3 minutes.
    If using store-bought pasta, cook according to package instructions.
    The cheese grated through a fine microplane.
  • Melt the butter with a little clove of crushed garlic. 
    The butter melted in a pan with one clove of garlic.
  • Add 1-2 ladles of the starchy pasta water and reduce. The more pasta water you can get into your sauce the better, but be careful not to water down the sauce too much.
    The butter with starchy pasta water in it.
  • Once the pasta is cooked, add it to the butter/water and continue cooking for 1 minute in the pan, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. 
    Cooking the pasta in lot of starchy pasta water.
  • Turn off the heat, add the lemon juice, black pepper, ¾ of the cheese and a bit of fresh butter. 
    Adding the butter, cheese, lemon juice and black pepper.
  • Toss until creamy.
    Check the seasoning for salt, acidity and make sure the pasta is still quite saucy as it will continue to thicken even after plating. Add more pasta water if necessary.
    The finished tagliatelle in the pan.
  • Garnish with the rest of the cheese, tons of cracked black pepper and serve right away. Enjoy!
    Tagliatelle cacio e pepe in a pan with a plate on the side.

Notes

Using fresh floury pasta instead of store-bought pasta will make a much better sauce.
Fill a large pasta pot about halfway to make the pasta water extra starchy.
If you're buying fresh pasta you'll want about 100-130g per person for main course portions. For dried pasta such as spaghetti, 50-70g is suitable for a main course. 
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