Making Fresh Pasta - Whole Eggs vs. Yolks Only

[Seven S]

What difference do you find when making fresh pasta dough from yolks only versus using whole eggs?

Other than the color being yellower and the taste slightly ¨eggier¨, what differences do you find using one versus the other - for example, is it tougher to knead, does it need to rest more, etc. Any other info relevant to this is welcome.... thanks!

[cjs]

Wish I could give you an opinion, but I've only always used yolks, so can't compare. Someone will be along shortly I'm sure with lots of opinions. Just wanted to welome you to the forums.

[BreezyCooking]

While I'm opposite to cjs, as in I've only used whole eggs, since I've never used just yolks, I can't give you a comparison. My dough is always nice & soft, not too sticky, & the pasta turns out fine. I would think just yolks would yield a firmer dough, but like I said, have no personal experience using just yolks.

[Andy M.]

Seven S:

Looks like you need to conduct an experiment!

[Seven S]

my experiment has been conducted and yolks only makes the dough yellower, much tougher to knead, eggier, firmer to the bite and tastier... well, and more exppensive! all things considered i preferred the yolks only, after the initial tougher kneading, the actual rolling of the sheets with the pasta machine was easier as it always stayed firmer and less sticky and easier to work with.... in the cooking, they preserved their firmness making it very al dente when cooked, they had more taste and the yellowish tinge looked more beautiful than with whole eggs.... thomas keller in the french laundry cookbook has an excerpt on making dough with lots of egg yolks if you care to read it.... thx for all the answers

[Shunka]

I make noodles both ways and like them pretty much equally. It all depends on my mood at the time of whether I use just yolks or the whole egg.

[amber]

Originally Posted by Seven S

my experiment has been conducted and yolks only makes the dough yellower, much tougher to knead, eggier, firmer to the bite and tastier... well, and more exppensive! all things considered i preferred the yolks only, after the initial tougher kneading, the actual rolling of the sheets with the pasta machine was easier as it always stayed firmer and less sticky and easier to work with.... in the cooking, they preserved their firmness making it very al dente when cooked, they had more taste and the yellowish tinge looked more beautiful than with whole eggs.... thomas keller in the french laundry cookbook has an excerpt on making dough with lots of egg yolks if you care to read it.... thx for all the answers

Thanks for the tips. I've only used whole eggs, and it was sticky when rolling out the sheets so I had to add more flour. Would you have to add more egg yolks since you dont have egg whites in your recipe? For example, if your recipe calls for 3 whole eggs, how many egg yolks would you add?

[Michael in FtW]

When I've watched Carlo Middione and Biba Caggiano make homemade pasta they generally used whole eggs - but when they used yolks only, or additional yolks, they said was for strength and texture.

Here is a little help in figuring out how to sub whole for whites or yolks:

for Large eggs: 1 cup = 4 whole eggs = 8-10 whites = 12-14 yolks.

So, for the same volume of yolks to 3 whole eggs, it would be 3-4 yolks.

for other sizes, or a great discussion on eggs, check out the Baking911 egg page.

[skilletlicker]

Originally Posted by Seven S

my experiment has been conducted and yolks only makes the dough yellower, much tougher to knead, eggier, firmer to the bite and tastier... well, and more exppensive! all things considered i preferred the yolks only, after the initial tougher kneading, the actual rolling of the sheets with the pasta machine was easier as it always stayed firmer and less sticky and easier to work with.... in the cooking, they preserved their firmness making it very al dente when cooked, they had more taste and the yellowish tinge looked more beautiful than with whole eggs.... thomas keller in the french laundry cookbook has an excerpt on making dough with lots of egg yolks if you care to read it.... thx for all the answers

Thank you for the thread and the report on the experiment.

[TATTRAT]

All Yolks=Egg Noodles, like for stroganoff and such.

Wohle egg, oil and flour is basic pasta.

[Seven S]

thanks for all the follow ups.... i will include some other background info... i work in a small italian restaurant in central america where we make pasta from scratch daily. when deciding on a pasta recipe, i chose mario batalis basic pasta recipe which calls for 3 1/2 cups fllour and 5 whole eggs which was the one i was using. the restaurant where i work is also a bed & breakfast and i was fortunate to have chef angelo troiani from "il convivio troaiani" (http://www.ilconviviotroiani.com/eng/home.htm - a michelin rated restaurant in rome) stay with us for a week. i had the privilege of sharing my kitchen with him a couple of days and i was trying to extract as much info as i could from him and when we touched on the topic of pasta, he was the one who suggested the use of pasta using just the yolks, said he uses this at his restaurant... he didnt give me a recipe but he said roughly that for every one egg, use two yolks - when i tried it it didnt quite work out but i realize that perhaps the eggs he uses in italy are not JUMBO and im guessing the eggs i use have a higher proportion of albumen than yolk per egg.... in the end, i end up using around 12 yolks for the recipe above, but then i started analyzing that maybe the whole metric vs imperial systems in measuring the flour by volume (cups) rather than weight (grams) was throwing it off....ummm, well, i end up adjusting it as needed by feeling it out

[chefany87]

i used to be a sous chef at a fine dining Italian restaurant, so my chef turns to me and says, "you know how to make ravioli right?" we compared pasta recipes, his was in a standing mixer with just egg yolks and i did mine by hand with whole eggs. after time had sunk in and him trying to pass his dough through the machine, he turned to me and said, ok, you got this now, and threw half of his dried up dough in the trash. mine, had stood up just as long and i didnt have to throw half my pasta away and i was able to complete the task. so what i learned today was that using whole eggs creates more moisture, longevity, and overall elasticity. his dough, of corse, made a richer dough, but drier in the end. unless you are trying to make "egg pasta," use whole eggs, you'll come out with a better yield and more cost effective. mind you he used around a dozen egg yolks: 2 cups flour, and i used 3 cups flour to 4 whole eggs. the dough wasnt sticky, i sprinkled flour on the machine but thats all it needed.

[GLC]

I've always used whole eggs when I make egg pasta, but I've also seen people using egg whites along, the egg whites subing for water. Whites are, o course, 90% water, but the proteins in the albumen must have some effect. I'll have to try them now. Somehow, it feels like it would be a "slicker" dough.

[CharlieD]

I always make eggless dough so I have no idea what agg or youlk would do to my pasta. But wow, this is one old thread. How did you even dog this out Any? Thanks.