Making your own noodles...

[guineagirl]

Hi Everyone!

I just found this website and joined today. I'm so excited to be connected with people who love cooking as I do. I am super interested in making food from scratch and have been wondering about homemade noodles. Has anyone had any good experiences with this? Do I need to buy special equipment? I would appreciate any feedback you could give me and am excited to hear back.

Take care!

guineagirl

[Suzanne]

The minimum you need to make your own noodles is:

1. a large, flat surface
2. a rolling pin
3. a good knife

That's it?!?!? Yes: because all you need to do is combine flour and eggs (and maybe some salt, and maybe a little oil), knead the dough, roll it out, and cut it.

But to be honest, I use my KitchenAid mixer with dough hook and pasta roller/cutter attachment. The dough hook is for mixing the eggs into the flour. I knead it by hand. Then I use the rollers to thin it and the cutters if I'm making something like fettuccine, since it is a lot easier, faster, and more even, and requires much less counter space and time. If I want to make other shapes, I thin it with the rollers and cut it using various cutting wheels.

And then again, Marcella Hazan says that some kinds of noodles are actually better store-bought!

[castironchef]

I do much the same. However, I mix the dough by hand.

Put the flour in a pile on the board. Make a well in the middle and add eggs and other liquids. Using the fingertips of one hand, mix up the eggs and gradually expand outward to incorporate the flour pile. Once the flour is an incorporated as it's going to get, start kneading.

Then, flatten, either by rolling, using a hand-cranked pasta roller or a Kitchen Aid-powered pasta roller, and cut into the shape your want.

Toss with flour to keep from sticking and boil!

Great stuff.

[Mezzaluna]

The first time I tried making fettucini from a Lidia Bastianich recipe, I overworked the dough and boy, did that gluten tighten it up! I didn't know about letting dough rest, so I just fought with it and got tough, hard noodles. Now I let it rest about 20-30 minutes to let it relax (just in case I did overwork it a bit), and leave the workout for the gym.

I have my grandmother's board she used for making bread and noodles. It's a precious family heirloom! I also have her old fashioned rolling pin, but I prefer mine with the ball-bearings.

[Mangilao30]

I use a mixer or food processor if I am strapped for time but mixing by hand is of course the preferred way. Also if you use a pasta machine then you are flattening the pasta instead of stretching it which is the better way, according to Italians. I use both methods and have turned out great pasta both ways. Here in Italy we used "tipo" "00" flour, a fine white flour and mix a bit of semolina in with it to make a really great texture. Also in the North of Italy we use eggs in the pasta dough and in the middle and the South of Italy, they make pasta with only water and flour. I hope this helps.

[Suzanne]

Thanks for the reminder about flour! The way I make them (almost all by machine), I find a mix of half all-purpose and half semolina flour works well. (I have access to tipo 00, but I can always make the blend.) Just remember that semolina flour and semolina (the kind you use to make gnocchi alla romana) are NOT interchangeable! I once tried to make gnocchi with the flour -- do not try that youreself.

[guineagirl]

Thank you all so much for the help and advice, but I was wondering, do you know what kind of store I might find semolina flour at to make my own mix. Would a normal grocery store have it? Natural foods store? Or do I have to order it?

[Suzanne]

I can get semolina flour in my regular supermarket, but that one is not far from Little Italy, so I'm not sure it's typical. Natural foods stores would probably have it -- especially if they carry a brand like Bob's Red Mill.

[castironchef]

Originally Posted by guineagirl

Thank you all so much for the help and advice, but I was wondering, do you know what kind of store I might find semolina flour at to make my own mix. Would a normal grocery store have it? Natural foods store? Or do I have to order it?

"Upscale" grocery store is the best bet for a local supply.