# Homemade pasta question



## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

I have made pasta from flour (hard, whole grain, wheat flour) and water a number of times. I have a pasta machine.

Folks here have recommended letting the dough rest. Should I knead the dough before or after letting it rest? How long would you recommend to let it rest? I will do most of the kneading with the pasta machine. I'm making the pasta for tonight's supper, so it isn't going to rest very long this time


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## chopper (Jan 16, 2012)

I let the dough rest after kneading (about 20 minutes). Then I process with the pasta roller attachment on my KichenAid mixer.


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## jennyema (Jan 16, 2012)

I knead it till it's shiny with no bubbles and then let it rest for 15 min or so


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## Whiskadoodle (Jan 16, 2012)

When  you all say "knead it" , does that mean knead it with your hands like making bread,  or with a mixer attachement,  or  start running it through the rollers a few times?  Or---

Thanks.


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## GLC (Jan 16, 2012)

Kneading by hand. You could use a mixer dough hook, if you're making that much pasta that would be a large enough ball to be worked in the mixer. I actually have seen people do a sort of kneading by folding and sending it through the machine with the rollers set a maximum distance apart. But what matters if the texture, smooth and shiny, than how you get there.


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## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

Whiskadoodle said:


> When  you all say "knead it" , does that mean knead it with your hands like making bread,  or with a mixer attachement,  or  start running it through the rollers a few times?  Or---
> 
> Thanks.



I knead it just a teensy bit by hand and then just run it through the rollers until I think it's done. That usually takes at least 10 times through on the thickest setting.


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## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

GLC said:


> Kneading by hand. You could use a mixer dough hook, if you're making that much pasta that would be a large enough ball to be worked in the mixer. I actually have seen people do a sort of kneading by folding and sending it through the machine with the rollers set a maximum distance apart. But what matters if the texture, smooth and shiny, than how you get there.



That's what my Italian friend taught me and that's what I do. It seems easier than by hand and I don't have a dough hook on my mixer (well I do, but it's a useless joke.)


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## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

chopper said:


> I let the dough rest after kneading (about 20 minutes). Then I process with the pasta roller attachment on my KichenAid mixer.



Thanks chopper. I mixed up the dough and gave it a couple of folds by hand, then let it rest for the 20 minutes you suggested. Then I "kneaded" it by running it through the rollers a bunch of times. It did seem to handle better than when I don't give it a rest.


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## chopper (Jan 16, 2012)

taxlady said:
			
		

> Thanks chopper. I mixed up the dough and gave it a couple of folds by hand, then let it rest for the 20 minutes you suggested. Then I "kneaded" it by running it through the rollers a bunch of times. It did seem to handle better than when I don't give it a rest.



Good. I'm glad it seems to be working. Now I'm hungry for some lasagna made with home made pasta noodles. Will have to make it soon!


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## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

chopper said:


> Good. I'm glad it seems to be working. Now I'm hungry for some lasagna made with home made pasta noodles. Will have to make it soon!



You know you don't even have to boil the fresh lasagna noodles first. Just put a bit of sauce in the bottom of the lasagna pan before you put the noodles and let them get cooked in the oven.


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## Whiskadoodle (Jan 16, 2012)

I knead it just a teensy bit by hand and then just run it through the rollers until I think it's done. That usually takes at least 10 times through on the thickest setting. 



GLC said:


> Kneading by hand. You could use a mixer dough hook, if you're making that much pasta that would be a large enough ball to be worked in the mixer. I actually have seen people do a sort of kneading by folding and sending it through the machine with the rollers set a maximum distance apart. But what matters if the texture, smooth and shiny, than how you get there.


 
Ahh, good info. I have a hand pasta rolller and multi size cutting blades ( garage sale, I'm sure). The one time I used it, I really gummed things up, and it's taking up valuable space. I think the recipe I used had egg(s) in it.


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## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

My recipe: 200 grams whole grain, wheat, bread flour (I'll use less next time), add water and stir. Add more water if all the flour isn't moistened and stir by hand. Add water till it feels right. Knead a few folds until uniform.

Let it rest for 20 minutes. Knead with the rollers until it seems right. Next time I will look for shininess


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## chopper (Jan 16, 2012)

taxlady said:
			
		

> You know you don't even have to boil the fresh lasagna noodles first. Just put a bit of sauce in the bottom of the lasagna pan before you put the noodles and let them get cooked in the oven.



Right. And it is SO good!


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## chopper (Jan 16, 2012)

taxlady said:
			
		

> My recipe: 200 grams whole grain, wheat, bread flour (I'll use less next time), add water and stir. Add more water if all the flour isn't moistened and stir by hand. Add water till it feels right. Knead a few folds until uniform.
> 
> Let it rest for 20 minutes. Knead with the rollers until it seems right. Next time I will look for shininess



So...what did you make?  Spaghetti, lasagna, ravioli, or what???


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## taxlady (Jan 16, 2012)

chopper said:


> So...what did you make?  Spaghetti, lasagna, ravioli, or what???



Made linguine. The cutters on my pasta machine don't successfully make spaghetti. Had it with leftover chicken cacciatore.


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## Chef_Jacob (Jan 17, 2012)

Whether you knead the dough before or after, it usually takes about 8-12 minutes for the dough to fully hydrate anyways. That's why I prefer to work the dough just long enough so it comes together, let rest for about 20 minutes and then use the rollers on my pasta machine to do most of the kneading for me. It usually takes about 10-15 passes on the widest setting before my dough becomes smooth and elastic, at which point I'll start "dialing it down" to my desired thickness.

Bottom line, all that really matters is the quality your end product IMHO.


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## CWS4322 (Jan 17, 2012)

On my bucket list--mastering pasta making...I've made it a few times (tortillini and ravioli), but not "noodles."


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## GLC (Jan 17, 2012)

Another flat alternative is corzetti. A cut out pasta disk, about 2-inches across, embossed on both sides with a corzetti stamp. The impression helps hold sauce. It's a different sort of pasta form that lends itself well to chunkier ingredients and can be used in salads. Very striking when done with bright green spinach pasta or red pepper pasta. Best price I've found is at Fantes:
Pasta Makers
I'm going to turn and carve my own stamp in olive wood with my own design.


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## CWS4322 (Jan 17, 2012)

I see another appliance purchase.......this forum may be free, but all the cool new toys sure aren't!


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## taxlady (Jan 17, 2012)

CWS4322 said:


> I see another appliance purchase.......this forum may be free, but all the cool new toys sure aren't!


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## GLC (Jan 17, 2012)

CWS4322 said:


> I see another appliance purchase.......this forum may be free, but all the cool new toys sure aren't!



I know. I used to think, "Hmmm. If we had eaten this at a restaurant, it would have cost $60. Guess I can buy something new for the kitchen, then."  Not so bad anymore. There's little else I want that I don't already have to work with. 

(We, ah, don't - ahem - count the cost of the wood lathe that will turn the stamp or the exotic wood it will be turned from. Not a "kitchen tool," you see.)


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## CWS4322 (Jan 17, 2012)

GLC said:


> I know. I used to think, "Hmmm. If we had eaten this at a restaurant, it would have cost $60. Guess I can buy something new for the kitchen, then."  Not so bad anymore. There's little else I want that I don't already have to work with.
> 
> (We, ah, don't - ahem - count the cost of the wood lathe that will turn the stamp or the exotic wood it will be turned from. Not a "kitchen tool," you see.)


With capital cost depreciation, that lathe is just pennies a day...that's the excuse the DH uses for all the milling machines in the shop and the sawmill...


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## Addie (Jan 17, 2012)

GLC said:


> (We, ah, don't - ahem - count the cost of the wood lathe that will turn the stamp or the exotic wood it will be turned from. Not a "kitchen tool," you see.)


 
Of course it was purchased for the kitchen. And unless you already have them you will need chisels to carve the head. All of this makes it kitchen tools and therefore needed items to serve an exotic meal to company. And you never know when the boss and his wife will be there for dinner. It could mean the difference in whether you get that promotion or not. After you have them made for your kitchen, you could make more for sale and start your own side business. That make the expense a business tax deduction.


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## chopper (Jan 17, 2012)

All of the kitchen gadgets still don't come close to the cost of building a hot rod, so I am still safe. May need more gadgets!


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## CWS4322 (Jan 17, 2012)

chopper said:


> All of the kitchen gadgets still don't come close to the cost of building a hot rod, so I am still safe. May need more gadgets!


Good point!


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## Claire (Jan 18, 2012)

My husband is in charge of the pasta making in this house, and Chef Jacob, you pretty much use the same method.  He kneads by hand for awhile, lets it sit for 15 min or so, then finishes the kneading by going through the machine from thick (folding it a few times at thick) to whatever thickness we ultimately want.  Then we let it sit for another little while before cutting into noodles or whatever.  The last sitting is mostly just to make it so it doesn't stick too much to the machine, making it a bit*h to clean.  My job is to flour at each stage.  Not to mention making the sauce (when you've gone through the trouble of making hand-made pasta, the KISS rule rules) and salad .... and cleaning the machine.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Jan 18, 2012)

Claire said:


> My husband is in charge of the pasta making in this house, and Chef Jacob, you pretty much use the same method. He kneads by hand for awhile, lets it sit for 15 min or so, then finishes the kneading by going through the machine from thick (folding it a few times at thick) to whatever thickness we ultimately want. Then we let it sit for another little while before cutting into noodles or whatever. The last sitting is mostly just to make it so it doesn't stick too much to the machine, making it a bit*h to clean. My job is to flour at each stage. Not to mention making the sauce (when you've gone through the trouble of making hand-made pasta, the KISS rule rules) and salad .... and cleaning the machine.


 
I do the same thing, but without a pasta machine. I hand roll my pasta. I've often wondered what would happen if I took the cutting blade out of my meat grinder, and used it to extrude noodles, either through the coarse wheel, or the fine wheel. Anyone ever try this method for making noodles?

I would love to master the technique used by Martin Yan.  The man makes amazing noodles faster than I can spell his name, and his name isn't hard to spell.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Addie (Jan 18, 2012)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> I do the same thing, but without a pasta machine. I hand roll my pasta. I've often wondered what would happen if I took the cutting blade out of my meat grinder, and used it to extrude noodles, either through the coarse wheel, or the fine wheel. Anyone ever try this method for making noodles?
> 
> I would love to master the technique used by Martin Yan. The man makes amazing noodles faster than I can spell his name, and his name isn't hard to spell.
> 
> Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


 
I would think you would get long pasta like Bucatlnii. Only there wouldn't be a hole in it. Sounds like an interersting concept.


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## taxlady (Jan 18, 2012)

Claire said:


> My husband is in charge of the pasta making in this house, and Chef Jacob, you pretty much use the same method.  He kneads by hand for awhile, lets it sit for 15 min or so, then finishes the kneading by going through the machine from thick (folding it a few times at thick) to whatever thickness we ultimately want.  Then we let it sit for another little while before cutting into noodles or whatever.  The last sitting is mostly just to make it so it doesn't stick too much to the machine, making it a bit*h to clean.  My job is to flour at each stage.  Not to mention making the sauce (when you've gone through the trouble of making hand-made pasta, the KISS rule rules) and salad .... and cleaning the machine.



I'll have to try to remember to let it dry a bit before cutting it next time. Hey, maybe it will even cut it into spaghetti if I let it dry a bit first.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Jan 18, 2012)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> I do the same thing, but without a pasta machine. I hand roll my pasta. I've often wondered what would happen if I took the cutting blade out of my meat grinder, and used it to extrude noodles, either through the coarse wheel, or the fine wheel. Anyone ever try this method for making noodles?
> 
> I would love to master the technique used by Martin Yan.  The man makes amazing noodles faster than I can spell his name, and his name isn't hard to spell.
> 
> Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North



Might be a neat way to make Spaetzle...


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## Greg Who Cooks (Jan 19, 2012)

taxlady said:


> I'll have to try to remember to let it dry a bit before cutting it next time. Hey, maybe it will even cut it into spaghetti if I let it dry a bit first.



I think of spaghetti as round. How do you get that with home chef techniques? Or is it just no big deal as long as the cross section is about the right size?

I'd love to make my own spaghetti/linguini or whatever pasta some day. (When I have a kitchen.)


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## taxlady (Jan 19, 2012)

Gourmet Greg said:


> I think of spaghetti as round. How do you get that with home chef techniques? Or is it just no big deal as long as the cross section is about the right size?
> 
> I'd love to make my own spaghetti/linguini or whatever pasta some day. (When I have a kitchen.)



Oh, it won't be found. It will just have the right size in a rectangular/square cross section.

Before I got my pasta machine, I used to make lasagna noodles every now and again. Narrower noodles were done seldom - too much effort.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Jan 20, 2012)

taxlady said:


> Oh, it won't be found. It will just have the right size in a rectangular/square cross section.
> 
> Before I got my pasta machine, I used to make lasagna noodles every now and again. Narrower noodles were done seldom - too much effort.



To get uniform noodles, roll the dough to the proper thickness, dust with flour and roll it up.  Make thin slices perpendicular across the roll.  When they are unrolled, you have beautiful noodles of any thickness you want.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## taxlady (Jan 21, 2012)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> To get uniform noodles, roll the dough to the proper thickness, dust with flour and roll it up.  Make thin slices perpendicular across the roll.  When they are unrolled, you have beautiful noodles of any thickness you want.
> 
> Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North



Yeah, but sometimes they stick to themselves when you are trying to unroll them and they fight with you.


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## CWS4322 (Jan 21, 2012)

taxlady said:


> Oh, it won't be found. It will just have the right size in a rectangular/square cross section.
> 
> Before I got my pasta machine, I used to make lasagna noodles every now and again. Narrower noodles were done seldom - too much effort.


What kind of pasta machine do you have?


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## Addie (Jan 21, 2012)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> To get uniform noodles, roll the dough to the proper thickness, dust with flour and roll it up. Make thin slices perpendicular across the roll. When they are unrolled, you have beautiful noodles of any thickness you want.
> Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


 
Have you ever seen how Lydia cuts her pasta dough by hand? She rolls it from both ends so that they meet in the middle. Then she cuts them, puts a handle from a wooden spoon in the middle and picks them up and shakes them loose to separate. A really neat trick.


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## taxlady (Jan 21, 2012)

CWS4322 said:


> What kind of pasta machine do you have?



Atlas 150 mm Deluxe:







I would probably get a wider one if I was getting one now.


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## Addie (Jan 21, 2012)

taxlady said:


> Atlas 150 mm Deluxe:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
I have the KA one. What I like about it is that it is run by the motor. No hand cranking.


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## Claire (Jan 21, 2012)

That's mine as well.


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## Addie (Jan 21, 2012)

Claire said:


> That's mine as well.


 
You have more control when you have the motorized pasta maker. You can use both hands for long, long strips. Well worth the cost of the motor if you have a pasta maker like taxlady's.


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## taxlady (Jan 21, 2012)

Addie said:


> You have more control when you have the motorized pasta maker. You can use both hands for long, long strips. Well worth the cost of the motor if you have a pasta maker like taxlady's.



DH cranks and I catch, or vice versa.


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## chopper (Jan 21, 2012)

taxlady said:
			
		

> DH cranks and I catch, or vice versa.



That is love TL!!


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## PrincessFiona60 (Jan 21, 2012)

taxlady said:


> DH cranks and I catch, or vice versa.



Yes, Shrek is cranky and I get to catch it...that came wrong, didn't it?


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