20gTurkish sweet red pepper paste (tatlı biber salçası), or more tomato paste
400gtomato, peeled and chopped
1tsppul biber (Aleppo pepper)
½tspdried mint
1lboiling water
160gpasta, fresh from recipe below, or 100 g/3½ oz dried pasta
salt and pepper
Pasta dough
100gwhite flour, preferably pasta flour
1egg
1-2Tbspwater
1pinchsalt
How I make it
Start by making the pasta dough. Mix the flour with a pinch of salt. Crack in the egg. Mix well, adding water by the tablespoon until you have a firm dough. Knead the dough until fairly smooth, 3-5 minutes. I usually do this by hand, but you can also use a mixer. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap (or equivalent) and leave in the fridge for half an hour.
Meanwhile, heat a thick bottomed pot over medium heat. Fry the meat and onion in butter and olive oil until the onion is translucent and soft, but not coloured, 8-10 minutes. Stir regularly to avoid burning.
Add the garlic, tomato paste and sweet red pepper paste. Fry for another couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the tomatoes, pul biber and dried mint. Bring to the boil and leave to simmer for 4-5 minutes.
Add the water, mix well and leave to simmer for 10-15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
While the soup is cooking, roll the pasta as thin as you prefer. I like this one roughly the thickness of lasagna sheets. You can do this manually with a rolling pin, or with the help of a pasta machine. If using a pasta machine, run it through at setting zero 8-10 times, folding it in half between each turn, then up the setting by one each time until you're happy. I usually stop at 4 or 5. Whichever your method, make sure to use plenty of flour to avoid the pasta dough sticking to your surfaces.
Cut the pasta into 1-2 cm (½-¾ in) squares. They don't need to be completely uniform or even very pretty.
Add the pasta to the soup while stirring the soup well. Leave to simmer until the pasta is cooked and floats to the surface, 2-3 minutes. If using dried pasta, add another 100 ml (⅖ cup) of liquid and check the packet instructions for cooking times. If you like, you can also add already cooked pasta, in which case you just need to heat it through. When the pasta looks cooked, take off the heat and leave for a few minutes.
Scoop the soup into bowls and scatter a little freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley before serving. Make sure to have a few wedges of lemon nearby for squeezing into the soup for those who so desire.
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