TABANTHA NOODLES

 


Before the Calamity reduced Tabantha Village to memory, the region was revered not just for its wheat, but for its bakers. Nestled in Hyrule’s western reaches, the people of Tabantha were the first to mill flour and shape dough into loaves, a tradition that spread across the kingdom like wildfire. But their mastery of baking didn’t end with bread.

As the region’s bakers refined their craft, it’s believed that some began experimenting with thinner doughs, stretching them long, folding them over, and slicing them into ribbons. Whether by curiosity or necessity, they found that when these strands were boiled rather than baked, the result was soft, warm, and deeply satisfying. It’s a dish that requires no oven, yet it was still rich in the flavor of the wheat itself.

Some versions of the story say the idea came about after bakers began incorporating milk from eastern Hyrule’s farms into their dough. The milk made the mixture softer, more pliable, and actually better suited to shaping and slicing rather than to hearth baking. Whether born of tradition or improvisation, these noodles became a quiet staple among Tabantha’s kitchens.

Today, they’re still made much the same way, using Tabantha Wheat, fresh bird eggs, a splash of milk, and rock salt. Served simply with butter and herbs, they’re proof that the most enduring dishes are often the humblest.


This recipe is a modern fan interpretation of what those early Tabantha noodles might have become. They are simple, nourishing, delicious, and made with ingredients common across Hyrule. The dough starts with a blend of flour, salt, egg, and milk; very similar to the wheat bread that is a traditional staple of the region. The extra yolks enrich the noodles, giving them a golden hue and slightly silkier texture, while the milk softens the dough, making it easier to roll and cut. Once shaped into wide ribbons reminiscent of rustic pappardelle, they’re briefly dried, boiled, and tossed in butter with a touch of parsley. Whether served as a side or on their own with lemon and cracked black pepper, they embody the humble spirit of Tabantha: practical, comforting, and always centered on the strength of the wheat.


Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 egg
2 egg yolks 
¼ cup milk
1 tbsp + 1 tsp salt, divided
3-4 tbsp butter, cut into cubes, plus additional butter for garnishing
2-3 tbsp parsley, chopped
Fresh cracked black pepper
4 lemon wedges (optional)

Begin by making the dough for the noodles. Add 2 cups of flour and 1 tsp of salt to the bowl of a mixer. Using a dough paddle, mix the flour and salt together on a low setting for a minute or two until blended. Turn the mixer off and make a well in the center of the flour with a spatula. Add the eggs and milk into the well you created, and turn the mixer back on to medium-low. Allow the dough to mix for 2-3 minutes until the ingredients are mixed and the dough is formed. Use your hand to mold the dough into a ball in the mixer bowl. 

To knead the dough, you can take one of two approaches:
  1. Change out the paddle for a dough hook and turn the mixer back on to a low setting. Allow the dough hook to knead the dough for about 10 minutes. 
  1. Dust a cutting board with flour and place the dough ball on a cutting board. Knead the dough by hand for 10 minutes.
The dough should hold together in a ball form, but still be soft and slightly sticky. When the dough is finished, wrap it in plastic wrap and then a towel. Allow it to rest for at least 30 minutes.

Once the dough is rested and you are ready to make the noodles, remove the dough ball from the towel and plastic wrap. Slice the dough ball into four equal chunks with a knife. 

Now we will flatten each of these chunks into a pasta sheet using a pasta machine. Dust the surface of your cutting board well with flour. Place a dough chunk on the floured surface, and use your hands or a rolling pin to press the dough chunk into a disk about ½ inch thick to help it feed into the pasta machine.

Now we will feed the dough through the roller of the pasta machine. Set your machine on the widest setting (usually #1). Feed the flattened dough through the pasta machine. After it comes out flattened, fold in half and put it back through the pasta machine. Do this two or three times to square it off and further knead the pasta dough.

Change the setting of the pasta machine to setting #2 and put the flattened dough through again. Repeat this process until you work your way down gradually to about setting #5 or #6 on the pasta machine. This will provide pasta sheets that are thin, but not too delicate. Use a knife to cut the pasta sheet into two pieces of roughly 10-11 inches in length each. Repeat this process with other three dough chunks. 

Reserve the cut pasta sheets on a baking sheet dusted with flour. Dust the top of the pasta sheets lightly with flour. Do not stack the pasta sheets on top of each other. Place a sheet of parchment paper on top of each layer and dust it with flour before placing down other pasta sheets.

Now place each of the pasta sheets back onto a lightly floured cutting board or surface, and use a knife to cut the sheet into noodles that are ½ to ¾ inch wide. To do this, dust the top of the sheet lightly with flour, loosely roll it up onto a tube, and then cut the tube into uniform ½ to ¾ inch pieces. Carefully unroll each noodle back to length. 

Place the cut noodles back on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and dusted with flour. Repeat this process with each of the pasta sheets. You can lay them out flat one the parchment paper or place them in nests, just ensure there is enough flour dusted so that they do not stick together, but not so much flour that it cakes onto the noodles. Repeat this process with each of the cut pasta sheets. Use more than one sheet of parchment paper (and more making sheets) as needed.

Allow the noodles to rest for about 30 minutes to dry more. 

Fill a pot with 4 to 5 quarts of water and add 1 tbsp of salt. Stir the salt into the water to dissolve it. Place it over high heat to bring it to a boil, then reduce it to a rolling simmer.

Add the dried noodles to a colander and toss them (over the sink) to shake off any excess flour. Add the noodles to the simmering water. Allow the noodles to cook for 2-3 minutes, until al dente. They should be tender but still have a little bitenot mushy.

Once they are al dente, drain the noodles through a colander.  If you are using these noodles for another Hyrulean recipe, stop here. If you are serving them on their own, continue below.

Add the noodles to a bowl and toss with 3-4 tbsp of butter cut into small cubes. Once the butter has melted. The noodles are ready to serve. 

To serve, add a portion to a plate or bowl. Garnish with cracked black pepper, chopped parsley, and a pad of butter. You can optionally serve the noodles with a lemon wedge as well, Enjoy!