# I just got my pasta maker and I can't wait to try it



## chris629 (Dec 31, 2004)

I just picked up my pasta maker today.  It is a Rival.  It looks like it would be great to use.  I am getting it washed up first.  
Now can I use the same recipe for every noodle.  
The main noodles I would want to make would be:
egg noodles
spaghetti
lasagna
macaroni and
rigatoni

In here the basic pasta recipe it gives you is 
2 c AP flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 lg eggs
1 tsp oil
warm water

The one pasta recipe I have is 
3 c flour
6 egg yolks
and 1 whole egg
then so much water
I use that for my egg noodles

Can you give me your recipes for egg noodles vs basic pasta or can i use the basic pasta for either one?
Sorry I sound so confusing but I am very confused.  It seems there is so many out there to go by and I know I just need to try it.  
Or do the 2 above sound ok for basic and then egg?


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## Alix (Dec 31, 2004)

Hey Christina, I just got mine too! I have been experimenting and according to what I have read the same basic recipe works for everything. Keep in mind I am a newbie at this too. There are several very proficient pasta makers on the boards so I figure someone will come along soon to answer our questions.

I will share with you that I have discovered that your eggs should be room temp when you start the dough, and the recipe I have is adamant about no salt. (Not sure why though)

Also, when you are rolling your dough, keep an olive oiled cloth handy in case any of your pasta sticks to the rollers. Happy pasta making!


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## chris629 (Dec 31, 2004)

Thanks! 
Yeah I still have to read through the whole book yet but I read most of it so I will read up on tips they use in there.  I wonder why no salt.  Maybe because you salt your water when you cook it???


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## Alix (Dec 31, 2004)

Not totally sure, but I think it has something to do with making the dough tough.

I have just been reading Audeo and Darkstreams comments about pasta making.

http://www.discusscooking.com/viewtopic.php?t=7002

http://www.discusscooking.com/viewtopic.php?t=3745&highlight=pasta

Try the second one for some wonderful info and recipes.


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## Michael in FtW (Dec 31, 2004)

Chris - if your recipe calls for eggs, you're making egg noodles. Generally, Italian homemade pasta is AP flour (or Italian Typo OO for pasta) and eggs - although some recipes do throw in salt, oil, water.

Dry pasta in the store is generally made from just semolina flour and water, unless it says "egg noodles". 

If your pasta machine is a roller/cutter like an Atlas or Imperia, then you can play with the recipe. If your Rival is a pasta "extruder" - where you dump things into it, it mixes and pushes the dough out through dies - then you better stick with the recipes in the book. Extruders need a certain consistency ...


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## chris629 (Dec 31, 2004)

Yes it is an extruder type.  Thanks! I just made some spaghetti noodles (going by what they said in the book for the recipe) and they came out ok.  At first awesome but as they kept coming it seemed like they got dry (they kept breaking real easy) so I thought I would add some water and then it seemed too wet.  
Do I just need to let it come out even though it seems dry? (like I said though they seemed perfect for the first half of it) 
Next onto rigatoni noodles.


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## Alix (Dec 31, 2004)

What is an extruder type? Is it the kind where you put in the ingredients and get the finished pasta? 

This is what I got...does anyone else have this one? And has anyone tried the ravioli attachment for this one?


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## chris629 (Dec 31, 2004)

Yeah thats what it is Alix!  I can take a pic when I figure out how to post it in a message. is it 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




???


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## Alix (Dec 31, 2004)

Yep, that is how you do it. 

http://www.imagehost.org/

This is the site I use to host my pictures, and it works well. Good luck, can't wait to see yours!


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## Russell (Dec 31, 2004)

i have a manual one that was passed down to me  from my great grandma


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## Alix (Dec 31, 2004)

Mine is a crank too miguzi...just doen'st show it on the pic.


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## Michael in FtW (Dec 31, 2004)

Christina, could you tell me what model Rival you have? I'll try to check it out and compare it to the instructions I have for some other extruders.

Extruders, by the nature of how they work, require softer dough than a roller/cutter combo.


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## Pam Leavy (Jan 1, 2005)

Alix said:
			
		

> What is an extruder type? Is it the kind where you put in the ingredients and get the finished pasta?
> 
> This is what I got...does anyone else have this one? And has anyone tried the ravioli attachment for this one?



That is exactly the pasta machine I have.  The ravioli attachement gives mixed results.  It is messy.  Some of the raviolis don't seal along the edges (if the pasta is not exactly the right size).  That said, it is still fun to do.  I do it once or twice a year. 

 Lately I have prefered using wonton wrappers for ravioli.  

I have never washed mine.  it says not to.  I take a bit of dough and sacrifice it by running it through several times to pick up the bits left before starting.  Then a good brushing off when finished is also a good idea.

Pam


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## Alix (Jan 1, 2005)

Thanks Pam, I ran an oil covered cloth over all the working surfaces to pick up any leftover bits and it did a good job. I will try the letting it dry out thing too. Thanks for the tip. 

OH! Thanks for the ravioli info too. Since I am still such a newbie at this I think I will wait a while before attempting ravioli.


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## Audeo (Jan 2, 2005)

LOL!  Welcome Alix, chris, miguzi and Pam to the list of us who love our pasta machines!!!!!

Darkstream's postings on the subject are printed out and placed into sheet protectors in my kitchen!  I recommend them highly, because his instructions and information have totally transformed my abilities in using this machine for all that it is worth!

I don't even bother with the ravioli attachment on mine.  I does not make consistent raviolis and is a downright pain in the neck to try and use.  Yuk!  This is the only downside, if you will, that I have found in my set.  I make a lot of ravioli and all using the machine to roll out the wide strips of dough, placing a dollop of filling, using tons of egg wash, then sealing either using a stamp or just using my fingers to press the seal, then cut them apart with a knife.

Miguzi, what a treasure to have your great-grandmother's machine!!!


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## chris629 (Jan 4, 2005)

Ok I just made perfect rigatoni last night.  I think what was wrong with the spaghetti is I used the thin spaghetti disc and I think next time I am going to use the thick one and see if that helps, seeing how the noodles came out awesome last night.  I just put them in the freezer after letting them dry all of last night.  
Here is the pic I finally got loaded to post.  You can see the noodles in pic.


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## Alix (Jan 4, 2005)

WOW! Now THAT is a pasta machine! Glad you got one posted for us. Have fun experimenting.


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## Darkstream (Jan 5, 2005)

1. Do not attempt to make ROLLED pasta with an extrusion machine. It is like trying
to paint a boat with a spoon. It can be done, but it is not worth the effort. Either get a
machine for tagliatelle etc. or roll it by hand when you have made the dough.

2. I looked at your digital image of your rigatoni. Despite enhancing the image I could
not get a clear picture of the product. But it looked to me as if the rigatoni were
collapsing and not properly hollow at all. The dough seemed soft. When you make
spaghetti, or capellini, does it all stick together in one lump?

I ask this because I used to have a hand crank machine. It never worked and got
chucked. If the dough was soft enough to come through the holes it stuck together. It
NEVER formed tube pasta. I have heard that domestic electric powered machines like
yours are the same, ie they do not work or produce the product they are supposed to.
This is because they cannot produce the tons per square inch necessary to pressure
form a proper pasta dough into strands or tubes. But as I live in a very backward
country where the dominant retailers have hardly heard of wholewheat pasta and have
no intention of stocking it, I would be interested in a machine that does work so that  I
could make wholewheat  macheroni etc. myself.

3. As for a ravioli making machine, one that really works where you put the stuffing
in the hopper and the pasta in the rollers and it actually stuffs and makes the ravioli,
forget it unless you have a spare room in your house and $10,000 to spend. As far as I
know, there are NO domestic ravioli making machines worthy of the name. But I
would be delighted to be proved wrong.


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## chris629 (Jan 5, 2005)

The rigatoni was collapsing because when I cut it and then tried to get them arranged I would accidentally collapse them a little with fingers.  Most of them made it through but some well didn't look nice but I do believe they all will still taste the same.  
It came out wonderfully.  
They dried wonderful. 
The pasta recipe I am using is the recipe in the pasta makers book.  
No when they come out they seperate perfectly.  They don't stick together at all really. 
I am sure there are machines out there that work tons better but for me this is working good so far.  I have only used it a couple of times but so far I am happy with it. 
I figured out how to get the pasta perfect for the noodles.
Thanks!


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## Alix (Jan 5, 2005)

Hey...would you share the recipe with us? Just collecting all the variations to try in my own machine.


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## Brooksy (Jan 5, 2005)

Have Marcato will roll. Have hand crank extruder as well. 

Will never use commercial pasta again & I've been making my own for years.

Back to basic pasta recipe:

Rule of thumb: For every 100 grams of flour, use 60 grams of egg. For cutting (rolling) this works perfect.

For upper class pasta use a third AP flour to 2 of semolina. Use egg yokes for richer result.


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## Alix (Jan 5, 2005)

Thanks Brooksy, my recipe says I can use the basic flour, egg mixture...or I can substitute mineral water for the eggs. Anyone try this?


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## Brooksy (Jan 6, 2005)

Alix said:
			
		

> Thanks Brooksy, my recipe says I can use the basic flour, egg mixture...or I can substitute mineral water for the eggs. Anyone try this?



I'm not too sure about the conversion eggs to water, I've only ever used eggs, But according to Stephano De Pieri :
"Strozzapreti is a specialty of central Italy. It is a traditional pasta made without eggs............."

His recipe is:
500 grams strong white flour
1 Cup hot milk (about)

This is about 100 grams flour to 50 mls milk. Water would possibly be about 10% less due to fat content.

Quality of flour is also a major thing. Taste is everything. Pasta I've made with cheap flour didn't taste as good.

Here's another one:

Cavatelli

500gms strong flour
125mls hot water
125mls hot milk

Good old Stephano........  

(250mls in a metric cup)

Strong flour = Duram flour (minimum 12.5% protein)
Semolina is (for all intents and purposes) duram flour ground to various grades of fineness.


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## Darkstream (Jan 8, 2005)

Chris 629

Can not find any details of your machine. 

According to Google, Rival is not a manufacturing company and does not have a web
site. I would be interested in it’s ability to operate. Can you post any more pics of the
product actually working? (Try increasing the exposure and focus-if your camera does
that) I am really not going to go through all the hassle to acquire one of these
machines if it does not work.

And you Brooksy also for your machine. I just am not convinced that these machines
can actually make spaghetti or capellini, let alone macheroni, bucattini or tortiglione.

For anyone interested, Ada Boni’s basic recipe for pasta is 4 ounces of flour (good
and strong) to one egg (plus of course a good pinch of salt). This should produce
perfect pasta every time, and in my experience, it does. You might need to add a
LITTLE water depending on the weather/relative humidity etc.

I am sure your pasta tastes good. The question is, does it retain the correct texture,
particularly the correct texture for the shape?


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## chris629 (Jan 8, 2005)

Ok I froze the noodles (rigatoni) and then I cooked them the other night to use in a recipe I had and they fell apart in the water.  I can't remember who said it but is that what soft pasta is???
I can't do all these types of noodles myself.  I can do the simple egg noodles myself and roll out lasagna noodles (as long as I don't have to worry about the pretty crimpy edges) but to make the tube shaped noodles I can't do that.  I try to do things to make them homemade but yet save me time so I can still do other things.  
According to my pasta machine recipe on the front is there something wrong with it to make it do that?  Do I need to add another ingredient? I don't add salt to it just because I salt the water like crazy, could that be why?
I really like the machine but not what they do when they cook, so actually its the recipe.


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## Alix (Jan 8, 2005)

Brooksy said:
			
		

> I'm not too sure about the conversion eggs to water, I've only ever used eggs, But according to Stephano De Pieri :
> "Strozzapreti is a specialty of central Italy. It is a traditional pasta made without eggs............."



Again Brooksy, thanks. I will try your milk one and see how it goes. I will also check my recipe to see what amount it suggests for the water instead of eggs. (BTW, no worries about converting mls to cups for me...we are metric too)

I am still wondering why particularly MINERAL water though? Taste? or something else?

Audeo? Darkstream? any insight would be helpful. Googling doesn't seem to help me here.


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## Audeo (Jan 9, 2005)

Hmmm...  Beats the heck out of me, Alix!

Can't wait to find out from someone else who knows....


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## Darkstream (Jan 9, 2005)

Chris,

If your pasta fell apart in the water, then they were far too wet or were not made with strong flour. This is precisely the problem that I had with extruders. Basically, if it will not work with the basic pasta recipe (4 oz flour to one egg) then it WILL NOT WORK AT ALL.

You could try adding more egg or egg whites to make a softer dough that will extrude in the hope that the egg will "set" when put in the hot water. But what you are trying to do then is fiddle the ingredients because the machine does not work. Your best bet is to demand your money back. I beleive the manufacturers and retailers know these domestic machines do not work.

Alix I see no reason to use mineral water except for flavour. But then you would need to use something like San Pellegrino.

Strozzapreti: lit "priest stranglers"

actual meaning ".....whatever...."

There are at least3 totally diferent pasta related products called Strozzapreti.


1. Macheroni
2. A mutilated tagliatelle
3. Spinach and ricotta gnocchi (of the bullet like variety).

So the meaning is whatever you want it to be.

I suggest you stick to the traditional forms. If you want to see pasta shapes taken to extremes, go here:  Tortured Pasta


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## chris629 (Jan 9, 2005)

I got the pasta maker for free.  I thought well if I could do something to help just a little then it would be great.  
I used just regular AP flour.


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## Darkstream (Jan 9, 2005)

Well, if you can not get your money back, then you have three options.

1. You can experiment, in small quantities along the lines I suggested.

2. You can make your own experiments along completely different lines.

3. You can throw the machine in the bin, which it probably deserves. Because here you are dealing with the question of whether it will ever work at all, and how much dissapointment and wasted effort (and ingredients) you are prepared to put up with.

I hope you succeed in finding a recipe that works. I tried for a long time before realizing there was not one. But you may be luckier.

But at no cost, in my opinion, best to just chuck it. (Sometimes that is the kindest thing, for everybody involved).

Regards,


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## Alix (Jan 9, 2005)

Thanks Darkstream. I am just going to stick with the egg/flour thing. It works, and tastes great. Thats all I care about.


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