How many fresh noodles do you need per person?

Fresh pasta weighs more than dried pasta when uncooked because it contains more water from the start. This is why different quantities apply to fresh pasta than to dried pasta.

As a main course, you usually serve 150 to 200 grams of fresh pasta per person, i.e. 200 to 250 grams after cooking. Together with a rich sauce, this is the typical portion size of 400 to 550 grams for a meal.

In this article, you will learn how to calculate the right portion size for fresh pasta.

Quantities for fresh pasta at a glance

In Italy, pasta is traditionally served as “primi piatti”, the first course, so to speak. The meal starts with an “antipasti” starter, followed by the first and second courses “secondi piatti” and finally a dessert “dolci”.

Served in this way, a small amount of between 50 and 100 grams of fresh pasta is sufficient.

To calculate the right amount of pasta for a main course, I used the information provided by Apotheken Umschau in this article:

A hot meal weighs between 400 and 550 grams.”

Apotheken-Umschau, Simone Herzner, Updated on 20.12.2016, This is how large typical portion sizes are.

I have therefore calculated as follows: With 175 grams of fresh pasta, you get about 225 grams of cooked pasta. If you add the same amount of sauce, the total meal is about 450 grams (without side dish or dessert).

This information is roughly in line with my own experience. However, it should be noted that the right amount depends on various factors:

  • The hunger
  • The age
  • The size
  • The court
  • The dough ingredients

To name just a few.

To allow for these factors, I have given a margin for the appropriate amount of fresh pasta in the following table.

Here you can see the recommended quantities for up to eight people:

PeopleAs a first courseAs a main course
175 – 100 gram150 – 200 gram
2150 – 200 gram300 – 400 gram
3225 – 300 gram450 – 600 gram
4300 – 400 gram600 – 800 gram
5375 – 500 gram750 – 1000 gram
6450 – 600 gram900 – 1200 gram
7525 – 700 gram1050 – 1400 gram
8600 – 800 gram1200 – 1500 gram

Not all dishes require the same amount of pasta

To illustrate the differences in the amount of pasta required between dishes, here is an example:

Tagliatelle alla Bolognese is a popular Italian dish with tagliatelle and a delicious ragù alla Bolognese.

Ragù is prepared in large quantities and served generously with pasta. It is also a very hearty and fatty side dish with meat, bacon, tomato, vegetables and more.

In view of these facts, a small amount of 150 grams of fresh pasta is enough for this dish, even if you are very hungry. The side dish (Bolognese ragù) is filling.

Spaghetti aglio e olio , on the other hand, is a much lighter dish (although dried pasta is usually used for this). As the spaghetti is the main ingredient here, more is needed. While 150 grams of fresh pasta would be sufficient for the Bolognese, 200 grams would be appropriate here.

Some types of pasta are more filling

Another factor that influences the amount of fresh pasta required is the type of pasta. This refers to the ingredients that make up the pasta dough.

With homemade pasta in particular, it is possible to make the pasta dough from alternative types of flour such as wholemeal, spelt, lentils or chickpeas.

Some of these basic ingredients are rich in fiber and other substances that make you feel full more quickly.

Especially for:

  • Wholemeal pasta
  • Lentil noodles
  • Pea noodles
  • Chickpea noodles

If this is the case: Compared to fresh egg noodles, the same amount in grams will fill you up faster.

In general, you can subtract about 10 to 20 percent of the “normal” amount when using such pasta.

The same principle naturally applies to all accompanying ingredients, such as sauces and side dishes.

Conclusion

Finding the right amount of fresh pasta is an individual process that depends on many factors such as the size of your appetite or the type of dish. The information in this article is only intended to serve as a guide and simplify the estimation process.

It’s a good idea to round up the information so that everyone is always full, unless you’re planning a delicious dessert! And if you still have some left over, you can easily keep fresh pasta.

You can find more articles on this topic here:

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