Pasta Equipment: Rollers, Extruders, etc.

[Suvir Saran]

I made raviolis by my own hands for the first time in a home.

Friends had invited me for dinner and I helped prepare and then stuff the raviolis. It was easy to make, stuff and cook.

I want to go buy a Pasta Maker... What is the best kind?

My friends had a steel one that clasps on a surface... It seemed to do the tick... But I am sure if you all think it is worth wasting space on...

Any advice?

[awbrig]

ive avoided them Suvir.

Too much mess and really not the worth the time and effort for the payout, IMO...

[oraklet]

i only know about my own machine, an atlas. it's fine for making "plain" pasta (better than hand rolled) but catastrofal for ravioli. it's very cheap.

[Adam Balic]

Suvir - with all respect to awbrig, they are great to have in the home and involve very little mess. I have a Mercato/Atlas hand cranked model and it works very well for most pasta types. I wouldn't bother with the ravioli attachment as you can make better ravioli using stamps or moulds.

On of the nicest things about them is that it is an activity that several people can participate in. One person to roll the pasta sheets, another to fill the ravioli etc. A nice way to wind down after work is to make pasta together with you partner.

[GordonCooks]

I made raviolis by my own hands for the first time in a home.

Friends had invited me for dinner and I helped prepare and then stuff the raviolis. It was easy to make, stuff and cook.

I want to go buy a Pasta Maker... What is the best kind?

My friends had a steel one that clasps on a surface... It seemed to do the tick... But I am sure if you all think it is worth wasting space on...

Any advice?

Any of the ones you'll see in specialty italian stores work great. I also got the attachment for my kitchen aid mixer but you lose the "feel" of the dough and sometimes go a little thin.

Edited November 18, 2002 by GordonCooks (log)

[Robert Schonfeld]

It's a convenience, and it makes achieving the desired degree of thickness easy. Some commentators have noted that machines extrude the sheet, while hand rolling stretches it, the latter method providing a more effective surface for interaction with the sauce. I roll mine by hand. Sometimes I feel like I'm being really authentic; other times I feel like I'm being just stubborn and stupid.

Note that, in some places, ravioli are made by preparing a rectangle that receives spaced portions of filling. This rectangle is then folded over the fillings and cut to size, resulting in three cut sides and one folded side. Sometimes, you can feel really authentic doing this; other times, you can feel just stubbron and stupid.

[Suvir Saran]

Thanks all. The machine I used last night was a hand cranked one. It was amazing ... and the ravioli were excellent. It made the pasta into sheets...and it took 7 entries through the press to get it to the desired thickness.

It was a great thing to use for a communal effort... But also makes the idea of making pasta seem so much easier to a stupid man like me.

I can roll 200 samosas with no effort, but making pasta always seems a challenge.

DO I need to go to an Italian specialty store or could I buy these at a Broadway Panhandler... Bridge etc?

[helenas]

Atlas pasta machine can be found in Linen&Things or Bed,Bath&Beyond. The standard price is $39.99, and with all the 20% discount coupons i get every week from these retailers, i will go get my pasta machine pretty soon.

Thanks Suvir for helping me to make my mind!

[nyfirepatrolchef]

I have both a hand cranked one for strand pasta and sheets....I have a manual press type ravioli tray...I love them both....the cranker is minimal mess...

[FoodMan]

I got my Atlas hand cranked machine as a wedding gift and I love the thing. I use it to make all kinds of pastas including raviolis. I do not use any attachements for raviolis I just use the machine to get to the desired thickness then I cut and shape as I like (ravioli, canneloni, lasagna, tortellini,....). I did not pay for it but if nobody had bought it from the gift registry I would have certainly done so myself.

Suvir it is a $30 well spent if you love pasta.

FM

[Suvir Saran]

I got my Atlas hand cranked machine as a wedding gift and I love the thing. I use it to make all kinds of pastas including raviolis. I do not use any attachements for raviolis I just use the machine to get to the desired thickness then I cut and shape as I like (ravioli, canneloni, lasagna, tortellini,....). I did not pay for it but if nobody had bought it from the gift registry I would have certainly done so myself.

Suvir it is a $30 well spent if you love pasta.

FM

Thanks Foodman... and everyone else.

I shall got buy one today or first thing tomorrow.

I am sold.

[phaelon56]

Not really off topic.... did anyone see the Iron Chef episode recently with the young guy who is the world pasta champion? There's supposedly a competition held once every 5 or 10 years in Italy to determine who makes the best handmade pasta. He is a second or third generation and (supposedly) received tips from his father on the arcane parts of the process that are really known to very few. The cool thing was his presentation fo the prep process. He cooled the semolina flour in a tub of dry ice and then used a blowtorch to heat the surface of the stone where the pasta dough was to be mixed. When the stone was sufficeintly heated, he made the pile, added the liquid and then kneaded. A fast read digital thermometer kept going into the ball of pasta until some optimal internal was reached. At that point he rolled it all out by hand, his insistence being that using a press changes the character of the dough. Have no idea if you can really taste the difference but the showmanship of the prep process was great theatre.

[Varmint]

Suvir-

You may also want to consider getting a motor for your Atlas. Here's a link to the first site I found from Google: http://www.kitchenetc.com/Products.cfm?sku=000579537

We enjoy the crank, but the motor (although quite noisy) has made it so much easier for us to make homemade pasta on a regular basis. My wife can have a batch of pasta made and cooked before I can put together even the simplest of sauces. Having your hands free make it so much simpler.

[torakris]

Atlas pasta machine can be found in Linen&Things or Bed,Bath&Beyond. The standard price is $39.99, and with all the 20% discount coupons i get every week from these retailers, i will go get my pasta machine pretty soon.

Thanks Suvir for helping me to make my mind!

They are that cheap?

I couldn't find one for under $100 here in Japan and it was tiny, much smaller than the one my brother uses.

Another thing to add to my wish list!

[mixmaster b]

We just got the pasta roller attachment for the KichenAid (after seeing it on Mario's show) and love it! As Varmint mentions, it is great to have both hands free. We had an Atlas one, but this is much faster. Fresh pasta on weeknights!!

Here is the roller:

http://www.surlatable.com/common/products/...or&PRRFNBR=6534

KitchenAid also has a pasta extruder attachment. Has anyone tried that? I am skeptical...

Obviously, this is only a good idea if you already have the mixer!

[Dave the Cook]

We just got the pasta roller attachment for the KichenAid (after seeing it on Mario's show) and love it!  As Varmint mentions, it is great to have both hands free.  We had an Atlas one, but this is much faster.  Fresh pasta on weeknights!!

In the spirit of supporting all things eGullet, here's an eG/Amazon link for the KitchenAid pasta accessory that mixmaster b and Varmint mentioned. It qualifies for free shipping, and the site gets a cut.

KitchenAid KPRA Pasta Roller Attachment for Stand Mixers

[mixmaster b]

Thank you, Dave!!! My bad!

[Stone]

I've only seen this one by Imperia. It works great. The problem is that I can't make pasta. It's always white and gummy.

[Suvir Saran]

We just got the pasta roller attachment for the KichenAid (after seeing it on Mario's show) and love it!  As Varmint mentions, it is great to have both hands free.  We had an Atlas one, but this is much faster.  Fresh pasta on weeknights!!

Here is the roller:

http://www.surlatable.com/common/products/...or&PRRFNBR=6534

KitchenAid also has a pasta extruder attachment.  Has anyone tried that?  I am skeptical...

Obviously, this is only a good idea if you already have the mixer!

I already have a Kitchen Aid mixer.. Do you really reccommend a pasta attachment?

Is it difficult to get a grasp of? I enjoyed the Atlas hand cranked one last night...

I am not worried of the expense... Just do not want something sitting around that I will not use.

Have you ever made sheets of pasta with good success with this attachment?

I enjoyed the idea of being able to make raviolis with the hand held.. if you have been able to do the same with the Kitchen Aid one.. I am happy to contribute a small token to the egullet/amazon link.

Looking forward to your input.

Thanks everyone.

[Suvir Saran]

I've only seen this one by Imperia.  It works great.  The problem is that I can't make pasta.  It's always white and gummy.

And I think that is the one I worked with last night...

I knew it was not calld Atlas.. and the name did start with "I"... so maybe this is it....

But I await the reply from Mixmaster...

And I shall decide if I should get a Kitchen Aid attachment instead.

[mixmaster b]

Oh! Too much pressure!!

This may be infatuation with the new gadget, but I think we will probably never use the Atlas machine again.

We have used the KitchenAid attachment for spinach papardelle, regular lasagne, and big sheets that we turned into ravioli. (Pumpkin filling.) The advantage is that you can feed the dough through with one hand and catch it with the other, instead of cranking. It does get thin, but I really like thin pasta, especially for ravioli. And I think that experience with the machine will allow for more presise regulation. (We haven't tried the cutting attachments yet.)

One thing about the Atlas: make sure you have a good place to clamp it down. In order to be efficient, it neede to be clamped down onto a table or counter. We don't have a good spot to do this, so it is less convenient than hauling out the great KitchenAid beast.

This is just one opinion among many, Survir, so you might wait until more folks weigh in. Perhaps a poll would be in order?

The one certain thing is that homemade pasta is awesome!

[Suvir Saran]

Oh! Too much pressure!!

That was not the intent.

Thanks for your great post...

I will sleep over this decision.. Will let you all know which way I go.

I made the pasta using the hand cranked one and was cranking with my left hand and holding the sheet from my right... It was not too difficult...

But your posts about the Kicthen Aid attachment make me think twice.

[Malawry]

I have an Imperia steel hand-crank clamp-on machine. About half of the machines we have at school are the same model. I got it from Williams-Sonoma for about $50. It came with fettucine and angel hair cutters.

Until I went to school, I had the same problem Dstone mentions of gummy, white pasta. It really is not the fault of the machine, it's a matter of technique. I made pasta at home on weekends sometimes now and it is a wonderful thing. It really makes a big difference over the dried, frozen and refrigerated stuff. I just made some this past Saturday as a first course and everybody was impressed with my thin, delicate, egg-y noodles.

Definitely get a machine if you like to eat pasta. Which one does not matter so much.

[snowangel]

Until I went to school, I had the same problem Dstone mentions of gummy, white pasta. It really is not the fault of the machine, it's a matter of technique.

Elaborate, please!

[Suvir Saran]

I have an Imperia steel hand-crank clamp-on machine. About half of the machines we have at school are the same model. I got it from Williams-Sonoma for about $50. It came with fettucine and angel hair cutters.

Until I went to school, I had the same problem Dstone mentions of gummy, white pasta. It really is not the fault of the machine, it's a matter of technique. I made pasta at home on weekends sometimes now and it is a wonderful thing. It really makes a big difference over the dried, frozen and refrigerated stuff. I just made some this past Saturday as a first course and everybody was impressed with my thin, delicate, egg-y noodles.

Definitely get a machine if you like to eat pasta. Which one does not matter so much.

Malawry,

What would you do if you had a Kitchen Aid mixer. And now had the option of getting the Imperia machine or the attachment. Which would you buy?

And I called our host from last night, and it is confirmed that the pasta machine was an Imperia. I enjoyed using it thoroughly and the pasta was superb. Better than what I have eaten in the best of restaurants. Really.