Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta
Posted Oct 27, 2017, Updated Oct 12, 2024
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This Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta is the best homemade pasta recipe that tastes so much more delicious than boxed varieties! Use it in a delicious main dish or serve it as a yummy side dish!
I went many years in my life only eating fresh, homemade pasta from scratch.
I had more time back then (because I didn’t have any kids), and nothing beats fresh pasta. I prefer this this Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta to anything that can be found in the store (and I love using it to make recipes like this pesto pasta or this pasta primavera)
And even though it might sound intimidating, it’s really not! Making your own pasta is actually really easy and fun.
Once you eat homemade noodles it is so hard to ever eat store-bought varieties again. I got over it when I a few babies and my life forever changed (read: I didn’t have the time or energy to make everything from scratch anymore).
However, now that I have older kids who love to cook with me, we’ve started making this whole wheat pasta again as a fun way to spend time together in the kitchen.
Perfect recipe for entertaining!
Pasta dishes are great to make when you need to feed a crowd! So whenever we have friends over for a yummy Italian dinner, I usually break out my pasta machine and make this Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta from scratch. I really think it gives the meal an extra special touch.
It took me about a year to create what I believe to be the perfect Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta recipe. I tested different methods, ingredients and ratios until I got it just right. So here are a few tips and tricks to making this recipe!
How to Make Whole Wheat Pasta Dough
- Use a Food processor. In this recipe, the dough is made in the food processor, which means that it’s easy! Just process the ingredients until the dough forms a ball and then knead it until it’s no longer sticky.
- Rolling. I have a version of this pasta maker and I love it. Always start the rolling process on a thicker (lower number) setting and gradually roll it thinner until the desired thickness is achieved. My sequence is usually 2, 4, 5, 6. My maker goes up to a 7, but I prefer to stop at 6!
- Cutting. Usually a pasta maker comes with the option to cut two different sizes of noodles. I like the thicker ones (pictured here), but again it’s totally preference! You can also use a pasta cutter and cut the dough into squares by hand to make homemade ravioli!
How to cook fresh whole wheat pasta from scratch:
- Cooking. Fresh pasta cooks in a fraction of the time that it takes to cook boxed, dried pasta.We’re talking 2-3 minutes and it’s done! You’ll notice the noodles start floating to the top, and that’s when to take them out of the boiling water.
- Large batch. This recipe makes a lot of noodles. If you want less, simply halve the recipe. It makes so much you will need to cook them in batches, so do not dump out the water!
Serve
Serve this pasta in your favorite dishes. Here are some suggestions
- Serve it with marinara sauce or meat sauce.
- Add some homemade meatballs.
- Toss it in some homemade pesto sauce to make pesto pasta.
- Use it to make pasta primavera.
- Make this avocado pasta sauce or pumpkin pasta sauce and serve it as a meatless main dish.
- Serve it as a side dish to this baked pesto chicken.
FAQs about Homemade Pasta
Yes! This whole wheat pasta is loaded with fiber & nutrients and even protein. Plus it is made from scratch so it doesn’t have any preservatives or unwanted ingredients.
Yes, you can double this recipe! Use the 2X button for ingredient measurements.
Store cooked pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Yes, you can freeze the noodles before or after cooking. To do this, lay them out in a single layer on a baking sheet and flash-freeze them until hard. Then transfer them to an airtight container and freeze for up to 2 months. I prefer to freeze cooked pasta. If you freeze the noddles before they’re cooked you can put the frozen noodles directly into boiling water to cook them.
Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta Recipe: Substitutions
This is a recipe I do not recommend tampering with at all. It took me a long time to develop the perfect noodle and I wouldn’t them to not turn out amazing for you.
There are two ways you could change the recipe and still have perfect results:
- Flour. You can use only all-purpose flour for this recipe, but you may need to add a touch more than is called for. You cannot use all whole wheat flour because recipe will turn out super dense if you do.
- Olive oil. Any neutral oil works well in this recipe. Avocado and canola are two varieties I have used successfully!
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Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta from Scratch
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 4 large eggs
- 1 TBS olive oil
- 3 TBS water
Instructions
- Put all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour & salt into the container of your food processor fitted with an “S” blade.
- Pulse to combined.
- Add eggs, olive oil and water and process until the mixture just starts to form a ball.
- Dump dough onto a floured surface and knead until it is firm and not sticky (about 4-5 minutes).
- Place dough ball on a well-floured surface and cover it with a bowl. Let it stand for at least 1 hour.
- Separate your dough into 8 equal pieces.
- Roll a piece of dough using a pasta maker into a rectangular sheet. Start at a low thickness setting (I usually start at 2) and increase until the dough has reached your desired thickness (I prefer a “6” on my pasta machine, which goes as high as 7).
- Once you have a thin rectangular sheet, pass it through the pasta cutter attachment of your pasta maker, using whatever shape noodle you prefer.
- Hang on a rack or set on a cooling sheet to harden.
- Repeat with remaining portions of dough until you have used them all.
- Allow the pasta to air dry for at least 15 minutes and up to 12 hours (to prevent it from clumping together while it’s cooking).
- When you’re ready to cook, bring water to a boil using a large pot,
- Cook half of the pasta for 2-3 minutes (the noodles will float), in the boiling water.
- Use tongs to remove the cooked noodles and place them in a colander to drain, but DO NOT DISCARD WATER! Save the water and cook the second half of the noodles.
- Drain and serve!
Video
Notes
Ingredient Substitutions:
- Flour. You can use only all-purpose flour for this recipe, but you may need to add a touch more than is called for. You cannot use all whole wheat flour because recipe will turn out super dense if you do.
- Olive oil. Any neutral oil works well in this recipe. Avocado and canola are two varieties I have used successfully!
Store
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.Freeze
You can freeze the noodles before or after cooking. To do this, lay them out in a single layer on a baking sheet and flash-freeze them until hard. Then transfer them to an airtight container and freeze for up to 2 months. I prefer to freeze cooked pasta. If you freeze the noddles before they’re cooked you can put the frozen noodles directly into boiling water to cook them.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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If the pasta is not going to be all used up right away, can it be portioned out and frozen ?
Dolores, Yes! You can freeze it. We shape/cut the pasta out and instead of drying it, we freeze it. Make sure the finished pasta dough has enough flour to not stick to itself. We put in little piles of uncooked pasta on a cookie sheet and stick the whole thing in the freezer. When frozen (after an hour or overnight or whenever you remember it’s in the freezer, haha), we take the cookie sheet out and put all the frozen pasta together into a big zip lock bag and back in the freezer. You can put frozen pasta directly into boiling, salted water and the cooking time will be the same or maybe add a minute or two more.
I’ve made this twice and am making it again today. I need to cook healthier and this pasta tastes great even if you don’t care for whole wheat pasta. I served it to a book club and they loved it. Definitely making it ahead produces better results
Do you have a recipe starting from grinding whole wheat berries?
Hey Ed! I haven’t ever made my own flour by grinding my own wheat, I’m Sorry!
Do you think a standard kitchen aid will work in place of a food processor? I like to knead my dough in there so it’d be nice not to dirty two dishes!
Dorothy, used my Kitchenaid with dough hook for the mixing for that very reason… Fewer dishes/equipment to wash! Worked great and pasta was excellent! Good luck!!
So glad you loved it!
Do you think I could freeze the dough if I don’t want to use it all? If so would it be better to roll and cut the dough before or after?
The entire family LOVED this pasta. Thank you for the great recipe and simple directions. I have made my own pasta before, but this was my first attempt at whole wheat. I never thought to use a food processor to blend ingredients. Super idea and made it so much faster and easier for me. I am definitely going to try more of your recipies. Thank you!!
Thank you so much Jan! I’m so glad you all loved it! Nothing beats homemade!!!
I’m so happy to find this recipe I’ve had homemade pasta once and I can not wait to try this!! But I don’t have a pasta maker can I use a rolling pin and should I still let it air dry to make ravioli? Also can I freeze them instead of cooking all at once?
Sounds fabulous! My queue of things to make keeps getting longer.
Seriously nothing beats fresh homemade pasta!! It’s fun to do with kids or a friend too!
Feel free to share more content like this ! HUgs
I can 100% agree with you Laura that even though I didn’t grow up with fresh pasta, one time I had it, and nothing else compares. These noodles are absolutely BEAUTIFUL! I love how you always put so much love into food. Your children are going to remember the work and love you put into the fellowship and food for a LONG time to come.