I have never made fresh pasta at home, but I think it’s probably time I gave it a try (it’s easy, right)?
Do I want to buy a Kitchen Aid attachment or a manual model? And which model?
Thanks.
It’s easy. Basic pasta is very easy. Getting gnocchi exactly right isn’t easy.
I am not the expert Christine Huang is, but I have always been happy with the Kitchen Aid attachment. I have a manual model, too, and still use it sometimes as I find it satisfying. You really can’t go wrong with the Kitchen Aid rollers, I think.
Thank you Sarah. I was leaning to the Kitchen Aid attachment…I think you swayed me.
KitchenAid, definitely! It frees up a hand that would normally be cranking. I also find that the KitchenAId will also get the pasta thinner than the hand crank.
I have this model and love it.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00170EB1Q/ref=twister_B01MY7MM97?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
This^
An Italian-American friend of mine turns her nose up at the Kitchenaid – will only use a manual machine. But she makes her husband crank the machine while she handles the dough. For a one-person operation, I much prefer the Kitchenaid rollers.
edit: Ah, I see that Christine already mentioned this advantage (great minds and all that).
The are motor attachments for the hancranked machine. As noted above, a necessity if you are working solo
I have the kitchen aid set of three and have been very happy with them for many years. I usually use half AP and half semolina with a mix of whole eggs and yolks depending on the weather. Add a little salt too. I use the kitchen aid dough hook for the kneeding. I let the dough sit in the fridge for a bit before I start rolling. I have a drying rack which helps with a place to put all the noodles more than with drying. Cook in boiling water for a few minutes. It’s a very different thing than dried store bought pasta.
Silly to insist on a hand crank machine. If you go to Dal Pescatore a Michelin *** restaurant outside Milano you’ll see the industrial kitchen aid type of machine. If it’s good enough for chef Nadia Santini it’s good enough for me.
I have an Atlas that I’ve used for 20+ years. I used to hand crank with no problem, but I added a motor attachment so I wouldn’t have to bolt it down to work.
I agree that 50/50 semolina is a good mix, but you can get by with 100% all purpose. I also add a bit of olive oil sometimes.
Kitchenaid here. Had a good hand crank but the attacment is easier.
JD
I have had great success with the kitchen aid. It seems like a fine place to start…
I have an Atlas and like it, but can’t comment on Kitchen-aid just that if you make bread regularly, you’ll want something better made.
I do highly recommend the Flour + Water cookbook. There’s a ton of technique discussion and tips on how to create balanced pasta dishes. It seems weird to buy a pasta book from a dude from New Jersey cooking in SF but I promise you will level up by reading it.
Flour + Water: Pasta
by Thomas McNaughton et al.
Link: Amazon.com
I bought the Kitchen Aid pasta extruder attachment because I figured making 6 types of pasta would offer more flexibility than the simple rollers. In retrospect I think that was a mistake because extruding the individual noodles is extremely slow and difficult.
I remember considering buying that and then, after a bit of research, determining that extruding is a very different animal than rolling. I can’t imagine plastic would hold up under that kind of pressure. I recently discovered that my Kitchen Aid meat grinder has developed a crack. Those kind of applications call for heavy duty metal.
I do it all by hand but this is how I learned it… Thta being said gimme a kitcheaid anyday!
Should work very well for most kind of pastas ( I doubt that homemaid Soba noodle would be great but hey)
For years we had a hand-crank model and never used it. When we did, it did not go well. Then we sprung for the Kitchenaid and have been making fresh pasta multiple times per month. Love it.