Which pasta maker?

[CHokKA]

Hey everyone

We purchased a really cheap Jamie Oliver pasta maker, and to be honest the results aren't always brilliant. It just doesn't get the pasta thin enough, as when you start dropping the thickness, the pasta just ends up getting caught up inside the machine and then it breaks up. The machine was only £10, and has given us a few good meals so I'm happy with the initial purchase.

However, now we feel it is time to move on and get something better. I've found an Imperia pasta maker for £40, but it looks the same as the Jamie Oliver maker that we have now, so I fear it'll have the same problem. What other ones should I be looking at?

I should clarify that I'm after a roller, not a full all-in-one maker where you just shove all the ingredients in and then it does the rest

 

[CHokKA]

Ok awesome, thanks guys. I guess they might look similar to the one I have now, but they work far better

 

[CHokKA]

Is home made pasta a lot better than dried pasta you boil?

From what we made (I made tagliatelle, spaghetti, and also some filled spinach and ricotta pasta) the fresh egg pasta was even better than the fresh pasta you buy, and leaps and bounds above what you get that's dried. It takes some getting used to making it, but it is just so much better and once you get the hang of it, it really is pretty straight-forward.

It's the same with pizzas. I hate packaged pizzas now, I make the dough myself. It takes about 40 mins in total with 30 of that being in the fridge prior to rolling it, and it is always so much better than a supermarket pizza. Fresh food is definitely far more rewarding for the extra effort. Got myself two ceramic pizza stones that you put them on in the oven, and that always makes the bottom nice and crispy whilst the top stays soft

 

[CHokKA]

I think I have the same pasta maker, got it from Sainsbury's around Christmas time for the same price. The cutters do not work very well do they?

I think fresh pasta tastes miles better than dried, and if you've got a bit of extra time to make it then it's well worth it.

Yep that's the one we got. It cuts really poorly and the pasta gets stuck when you start going fine for spaghetti. I'm gonna order an Imperia.

Surely pastas cheap enough that you could grab a massive bag for under a quid at most supermarkets?

Dried pasta is cheap but that's the issue. Try making your own pasta and decide which you prefer for yourself. Eating fresh pasta that you've made yourself is a real pleasure and one that's not difficult at all to experience, even without a roller. You cal still make it by hand like a lot of Italians.