Is Pasta Made From Flour or Semolina (Durum Wheat)?

Most dried packaged pasta is made from semolina milled from durum wheat, while Italy's fresh pasta (pasta fresca) tradition typically uses soft wheat flour and eggs. These 2 raw materials noticeably change pasta's color, bite, and how much starch it releases into the cooking water. What does durum wheat semolina give pasta?Durum wheat is a hard, high-protein wheat variety; milling it produces coarse semolina rather than fine flour. Dough made from this semolina holds onto that slightly firm bite known as al dente once cooked, and doesn't turn mushy easily during boiling; its yellowish color also comes from the carotene pigment in the semolina. Why is soft wheat flour preferred for fresh pasta? Soft wheat flour is milled finer than semolina and carries a lower protein content; combined with egg, that gives a more pliable dough that's easier to roll out. Since fresh pasta cooks in a much shorter time than dried pasta, it doesn't need the firmness that semolina provides. How do the 2 doughs affect cooking water differently? Dried semolina pasta releases more starch into the water as it boils; that starchy "pasta water" is often used to thicken a sauce. Fresh egg pasta's cooking water clouds up less, both because its cooking time is shorter and because its flour content is lower than semolina. Some manufacturers make dried pasta from a semolina-flour blend rather than pure semolina; that lowers cost but can reduce the pasta's bite and how long it holds al dente. If the ingredient list on the pack reads only "durum wheat semolina" (semola di grano duro), that's a sign of an unblended product. Gluten-free pasta uses neither semolina nor wheat flour at all; rice, corn or legume flours are used instead, and these pastas need both a different texture and a different cooking time. Boiling gluten-free pasta as long as classic semolina pasta can cause it to fall apart. Pasta shape also has an indirect link to the semolina-flour divide: long, thin shapes like spaghetti are usually made from pure semolina, since semolina dough is firm enough to hold that shape, while sheet-style fresh pastas like lasagna or tagliatelle, made with egg, need a more pliable dough. Swapping the 2 types for each other in the same recipe can make both cooking time and texture unpredictable. Products sold as "dried egg pasta" combine these 2 traditions — they contain both semolina and egg, keeping the al dente bite while adding a richer flavor, and they usually cook a touch faster than plain semolina pasta. The ingredient list on the package shows whether these 2 ingredients are present together, indicating a blended production method; a pure semolina product will not list a second flour.