Hand-Cut Sourdough Mafaldine Pasta

My sourdough mafaldine pasta recipe is made entirely by hand using authentic Italian 00 flour, rich eggs, and your trusty sourdough starter. We cut it into long, beautiful ruffled ribbons that catch every drop of sauce — whether you make it today or let it ferment overnight for deeper flavor.

Why You’ll Love This Sourdough Pasta 💛

To make this stunning shape, I use my master sourdough pasta dough as the base, then cut long, wide strips with a fluted pastry wheel to get those classic ruffled edges. If you’re precise, use a ruler to guide you — but if you go freeform, that’s fine too, and honestly adds to the rustic charm.

The finished texture is soft, springy, and perfectly designed to catch every bit of sauce. It pairs beautifully with a heavy Ragù Bolognese or a chunky pomodoro made with fresh tomatoes — simple to make, yet deeply impressive to eat.

Active Starter vs. Sourdough Discard 🥄

One of the best parts about this recipe is its flexibility. I tested it with both active sourdough starter and sourdough discard (100% hydration, fed with bread flour), and both worked flawlessly.

If you use active starter, the dough will get slightly puffier when rested more than 1 hour above 70°F. The key here is not to over-rest the dough, especially in warm weather — if it ferments too fast, the sheets get too soft and lose their shape, ending up with a texture like chicken skin.

Step 1: Making the Dough 🍞

Combine your Italian 00 flour, lightly beaten eggs, and sourdough starter in a food processor, and process until the dough just starts to come together. Don’t panic if it looks like doughy crumbs in the bowl — that’s exactly what we want.

Dump the crumbs onto a lightly floured surface and smush together by hand into a rough ball. Cover with an upturned bowl and let it rest for 3-5 minutes, then knead by hand for 1-2 minutes until smooth and supple.

Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and let it rest for 1 hour at room temperature, or chill it overnight for a deeper, more complex fermentation.

Step 2: Rolling & Semi-Drying 🎛️

If you chilled your dough overnight, let it rest at room temperature for 30-45 minutes before rolling. Cut it into quarters, keeping the pieces you aren’t using wrapped so they don’t dry out.

Using a KitchenAid roller attachment or hand-crank pasta machine, run the dough through settings #1 through #4 twice each, then through setting #5 once, to get a consistently thin sheet.

Crucial step: Dust your rolled sheets with semolina flour and drape them over the back of a clean chair for about 10 minutes. This “semi-dries” the pasta, turning the texture from soft to leathery, which helps the ruffles hold their shape once cut.

Step 3: Cutting the Mafaldine ✂️

If your sheet is very long, cut it in half first to make it easier to handle, then position it vertically on your board. Using a fluted pastry wheel, trim a tiny bit off each side length to create the signature ruffled edges.

Score the sheet into 1/2-inch sections with a sharp knife, then cut long strips with your pastry wheel. Arrange the finished mafaldine in a single layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan, dusted generously with semolina flour so nothing sticks.