Fresh pasta

Fresh pasta is pasta that is not dried for long storage: it keeps a high moisture content, must be kept chilled and cooks in just a few minutes. It is made at home, in pasta shops (pastifici) and in factories, and sold loose by weight or in sealed trays.

In Italy fresh pasta is covered by article 9 of Presidential Decree no. 187 of 9 February 2001. Unlike dry pasta, it may be made with soft wheat flour. Loose fresh pasta must be kept at no more than 4 °C from production to sale. Pre-packed fresh pasta must have at least 24 % moisture and a water activity between 0.92 and 0.97, must be heat-treated at least to the equivalent of pasteurisation, and must also be kept at no more than 4 °C. In the EU the label highlights the allergens: wheat, which contains gluten, and eggs if present.

Composition: in southern Italy fresh pasta is usually made from durum wheat semolina and water; in the north from flour and eggs, which makes it fresh egg pasta. The dough is kneaded, then rolled out or shaped by hand: twisted, stretched, or pressed with a thumb or knife.

Main kinds: orecchiette from Apulia, pici from Tuscany, trofie from Liguria, cavatelli, as well as fresh tagliatelle and lasagne sheets. A large separate group is filled pasta, such as ravioli and tortellini.

How to cook and serve: drop fresh pasta into boiling salted water and cook for a few minutes until tender but still springy. Orecchiette go with turnip tops and olive oil, trofie with pesto, pici with grated pecorino and black pepper, egg ribbons with butter and parmesan.

How to store: keep it in the fridge and eat it by the date on the pack; home-made fresh pasta can be frozen and cooked straight from frozen.

Why it matters: fresh pasta has a softer texture than dry pasta and takes up light sauces well, so many Italian regional dishes depend on it. It also spoils quickly, so keeping it cold and watching the use-by date matters.