Making pasta from scratch!
Hello fellow pasta lovers,
I got this pasta maker and I was really exited to try it. I think the motivation to get one was during binge watching Gordon Ramsay making pasta. So i got it. To be honest, I thought making pasta was more difficult than expected.
I think it would be a good idea to share my knowledge of pasta and try exploring Steemit at the same time.
So, lets begin!
At the end of my post there is a video link to "Binging with Babish" video on how to make pasta.
What you will need:
- A pasta machine/ pasta maker, can be found here
- a rolling pin
- some eggs
- flour
- salt
- olive oil
And that's pretty much it.
If you're wondering why are there no measurement, then I always cook with my eyes, by feelings. So pretty much trial and error.
To begin with, put some flour on the table, so it's like a little pile, a hill, or a mountain, depending how much you want it. Into the flour make a well, where you crack open some eggs. Add salt to taste and even some olive oil, for that glossy finish. Take a fork and start whisking the eggs and at the same time try to get some flour into the mix. After some time your fork should get stuck in the mix.
Now it's time to bring out your muscle and to knead the dough for about 10 minutes until a firm dough forms. If the mixture is too runny, add more flour. Now that your dough is done, grab a plastic wrap and wrap it around the made dough and let it rest on the table for about 45 minutes.
My pasta maker
During that waiting time, time to bring out... THE PASTA MACHINE! Just attach it to your table and you're all set.
As you can see from the picture above, there are two parts to this contraption: the roller and the cutter. Put the cutter to the side for now, we'll come back to it later.
Now after the hour has passed, take out your dough and it's time to roll it with a rolling pin. Flour the working surface. Cut it into smaller pieces for easier rolling. The reason for the rolling pin is to make the dough flatter so the machine can take it in, otherwise the dough will stretch and become uneven. Try to make the dough kinda square like and fold it in couple of times. Fold, roll, fold, roll and so on, couple of times.
Now it's time to roll it with the pasta maker. Depending on the machine, it will have different levels of thickness. Simply put it into the roller and start cranking the lever. But before you do, flour your dough, otherwise it will stick. Once you've rolled it through, put the roller for a smaller gap. And roll again.
Repeat the process until you have your desired thickness. You now can cut it into your pasta. You can cut by hand, or with the cutter.
Attach the cutter to your machine and put the lever inside it. Before cutting the pasta, don't forget to add some flour, otherwise the done pasta will stick together and you will end up with a messy pastaball and you think on giving up on the think alltogether. Next steps are very similar to the rolling motion. Insert your rolled dough into the machine, pull the lever and voila, you have pasta.
Picture I took while making my first batch.
That was my tryout to show you how I made pasta by hand. Sadly I don't have more pictures to show you the process, but click down on the video link, where I learned the pasta making ways.
I hope you enjoyed it and it was helpful.
SHOUTOUT TO "BINGING WITH BABISH" FOR HELPING ME LEARN HOW TO MAKE PASTA!