How to Use a Pasta Machine for Noodles
Pasta machines, which allow you to prepare your own fresh pasta at home, are a staple in Italian homes. Fresh pasta is very easy to make using a few ingredients you already have in your home, and the machine does all the hard work for you. Pasta machines are available in motorized and hand cranked models, and can be found starting under $30. Fresh pasta has a taste and texture all its own, so once you are shown how to use a pasta machine to make noodles, you may never buy another box of dried pasta again. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Prepare the machine, rubbing it down with a clean cloth and running a small piece of dough through the rollers. Throw the dough away.
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Set the machine to position 1 using the manufacturer's directions. This should be the widest setting.
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Slowly feed the dough through the rollers five or six times, folding the dough over between passes. Lightly dust with flour between passes to prevent sticking, if necessary.
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Set your pasta machine to setting number 2, the narrower setting, to get flat sheets, or put on the attachment that shapes and cuts the dough according to your needs.
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Pass the dough through at this setting only once. If the cutting rollers will not cut, you need to add a bit of flour to your dough because it is too soft.
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Cut across the noodles every 10 inches or so if you are using the cutting rollers.
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Let the pasta dry by draping it over a drying rack or by setting it out on a cloth for at least one hour. Store the dried pasta for up to two weeks in a cool, dry place.
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Tips & Warnings
Pasta dough should never stick to your fingers. If it does, add a little bit of flour. It also needs to be pliable, so if your dough is too stiff, add some water a few drops at a time to get the desired consistency. Practice makes perfect.
Fresh pasta cooks in just two to five minutes.
