Norpro Pasta Machine

Pasta Makers

Norpro Pasta Machine Review

I have been looking at pasta machines for several years, but the high price for most of them was a turn-off for a tool I wasn't sure would be useful. Along comes the Norpro on sale, and with just a little hesitation I bought it. An evening of playing later finds me kicking myself for the years spent without this tool in my kitchen. The idea of the machine is to roll out pasta dough into a sheet and then further process the sheet into various forms of strip based pasta (think lasagna, fettucine, etc), and this tool does it well enough for my needs at much less cost than comperable machines by other manufacturers. Although marketed for pasta, this also works with other doughs (pie crust, pastry, etc..) and is ideal for creating thin tartlet crusts.

The machine itself is nearly all metal, including the hidden gears which drive the rollers (visable after removing the side covers for those so inclined), and there is good access for cleaning. The clamp and crank handle are both easily removed for storage but hold firmly during use. The clamp has a molded plastic T-handle for turning the screw; in my case this clashes against the drawers under my counter so I have to either open the drawers or clamp it on a table.

The first step is for you to make a dough however you want to (note that if you expect to dump flour and eggs in a bin, hit a button, and come back later to find pasta ready for the pot this tool is not what you are looking for); pasta dough can be very fast and simple to make, a couple of eggs mixed with enough flour to make a stiff ball yields enough finished pasta in about 10 minutes for a full meal for one person or a side dish for 3-4 people.

The second step is to roll the dough to the desired thickness. Adjust the smooth rollers on the machine to their widest setting, take a handfull of the dough from step one and use your hands to pat it more or less flat and about 3/4 or 1/2 an inch thick, and place it between the rollers. Turn the crank and the dough will be passed through the rollers. You may want to use your other hand to catch the dough sheet as it exits the rollers and guide it smoothly away, otherwise it has a tendency to pile up under the roller exit. Dust the sheet lightly with flour if needed to avoid sticking, and repeat rolling a couple of times at this roller setting to condition the dough for further working. Once the dough is conditioned, reduce the spacing between the rollers and continue the rolling process until the desired thickness is obtained.

Step three, if desired, is to use the cutting attachment to create uniform strips. This operates much like the rollers except there is no spacing adjustment and only one pass is required.

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