pasta makers - classic or dud

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buying a device that makes fresh pasta - is this a good idea? on the one hand, I wuv pasta so such a thing would add a special zing to my staple food. But maybe because I am lazy and disorganised, a pasta maker would forever sit in my kitchen unused, mocking me with its idleness.

has anyone any experience with these devices?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 19 May 2003 14:31 (twenty-two years ago)

Home-made pasta is infinitely better than store bought. Its also a time consuming and laborious process, at least, it is for an untrained person such as myself. If one gets the technique down it could go much faster i assume from watching Iron Chef Italian do it. But it will probably just sit there unused.

― fletrejet, Monday, 19 May 2003 14:39 (twenty-two years ago)

I would think it would be a bitch to clean.

― JuliaA (j_bdules), Monday, 19 May 2003 14:53 (twenty-two years ago)

I thought this was gonna be a thread about Italians.

Yeah I said it.

And "dud," natch.

The pasta makers I mean.

― jm (jtm), Monday, 19 May 2003 14:59 (twenty-two years ago)

Its also a time consuming and laborious process, at least, it is for an untrained person such as myself.

how time consuming, do you reckon?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 19 May 2003 15:02 (twenty-two years ago)

I have never had a problem using just a rolling pin and a knife. The noodles are rather fat and plebian, but as my grandma says while stirring her beets and mashed potatoes together, "It's all the same once you get it inside."

― Fivvy (Fivvy), Monday, 19 May 2003 15:06 (twenty-two years ago)

i bought my boyfriend a pasta maker, which languishes unused. it is good if you have an afternoon to devote to cooking but otherwise a faff. (i don't complain at him about it - he would bring up my barely used creme-brulee-making blowtorch. kitchen dreams...)

― liz (lizg), Monday, 19 May 2003 15:12 (twenty-two years ago)

The pasta maker doesn't make the pasta it only cuts the shapes. They are the ultimate 80s yuppie kitchen accessory. My experienc eof them is that they get used once, if at at then put at the back of a cupboard. Charity shops abound with them. Find a good pastaficio.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 19 May 2003 15:21 (twenty-two years ago)

what is a pastaficio?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 19 May 2003 15:32 (twenty-two years ago)

To make enough pasta for dinner for a few people it took about an hour.

The pasta maker will cut shapes and also let you set the thickness of the noodle. The only reason to get it is if you want a uniform product - otherise, yeah, you can just roll the dough and hand-cut it.

― fletrejet, Monday, 19 May 2003 16:04 (twenty-two years ago)

pastaficio, person or shop that makes pasta.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 19 May 2003 16:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Forget the pasta maker. Get an ice cream maker.

― Kenan Hebert (kenan), Monday, 19 May 2003 16:16 (twenty-two years ago)

so, you need a pasta maker if you want to make hoops rather than just eat tagliatelli and spaghetti?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 19 May 2003 17:11 (twenty-two years ago)

I've never seen a home pasta maker that did anything other than lasagna three types of tagliatelle and spaghetti. Never seen one do the extruded shapes.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 19 May 2003 17:38 (twenty-two years ago)

The device I used wasn't an extruder. It was one of those hand cranked deals where you the pasta is cranked through some rollers. All it could make a fettucine-type stuff, I think.

I wouldn't know about extruders, I never used one.

― fletrejet, Monday, 19 May 2003 17:49 (twenty-two years ago)

mmmm.

so how do they make those extruded shapes, then?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Tuesday, 20 May 2003 08:01 (twenty-two years ago)

WIth a pasta extruter, its a bit like a mincer without the sharp blades. An auger forces the pasta through the die and the cut off at different lengths. I've never seen a domestic one I'm sure they must exist.

― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 20 May 2003 08:22 (twenty-two years ago)

Professional Pasta's section on pasta machines is incomplete but it does have a directory of shapes.

― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 20 May 2003 08:42 (twenty-two years ago)

However, here is a machine that detects the moisture content of pasta.

― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 20 May 2003 08:44 (twenty-two years ago)

http://www.castiglioninedo.it/impianti/EP50.JPG

is about the smallest extruder you can get.

― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 20 May 2003 08:53 (twenty-two years ago)

six years pass...

My girlfriend has been talking about wanting a pasta maker, so I'm thinking about getting her one for Christmas. Anyone have any recommendations? The Amazon listings are kind of overwhelming.

― Nuyorican oatmeal (jaymc), Thursday, 17 December 2009 20:38 (sixteen years ago)

If you go for a hand-cranked one, get one with a longer crank rather than the shorter ones. Less tiring. The KitchenAid one that is the food grinder + plastic plates isn't worth it, unless what you really want is a food grinder that you can use for 15-20 minutes max.

― Jaq, Thursday, 17 December 2009 20:50 (sixteen years ago)

Pasta makers are classic. People who never use them are just lazy. It takes 10 mins to make your dough. Half an hour for it to sit. Then minutes to roll and cut. The taste difference is incredible. And you can do things you'd never dream of with shop pasta - made a chocolate flavoured ravioli filled with raspberry compote for dessert the other night. I've got an Imperia - £50 and worth it all.

― ithappens, Thursday, 17 December 2009 20:58 (sixteen years ago)

six years pass...

https://67.media.tumblr.com/b588e44d5e3df8efb5b76772cd42b06a/tumblr_nuu1v00PoD1u66hq1o1_400.gif

― 龜, Tuesday, 6 September 2016 11:58 (nine years ago)

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