Hi y’all – I need some help or suggestions with homemade rigatoni.
I’ve been trying to make this shape with the Kitchenaid gourmet attachment. Though I’m sure this issue may exist with other brand of pasta extruders.
I have a strong suspicion it’s my dough, but also might be the machine.
Whenever we cut the pasta with the wire, it’s pinching the ends of the tube (see photo).
We’ve tried different pasta recipes (mostly variations from my nonna) and all times have failed.
Recipe 1 – 450 g semolina flour and 230 g water
Recipe 2 – 225 g semolina flour, 225 g 00 flour and 220 g water
Recipe 3 – 225 semolina flour, 225 g 00 flour and 190 g water (this one was super super dry but still had the same ‘pinching’ issue)
I’ve seen a lot of rigatoni recipes with egg, so I’m thinking that might be my issues… anybody have advice or suggestions if they have experienced similar issues?
by AuthorDouble6976
5 Comments
Kitchenaid extruders are garbage. You’ll drive yourself crazy trying to get it to work. You’re better off finding a used countertop commercial machine on Facebook marketplace or getting brass dies for a Phillips extruder.
I would shoot for a 30-32% hydration and you’ll get much better results. And use ONLY durum semolina. The semolina (coarse) and water should be extremely granular and still look loose after mixing. For a pound of semolina, use 130 grams of water to start. If you squeeze a bit after it’s mixed, it shouldn’t hold its shape very long. And let it rest a bit to finish hydrating before extruding. Stay away from 00 flour for extruded dough and you’ll have much better results – extruders aren’t designed for the softer flour that is used for laminated dough.
I had this issue also and realized I was pulling down on the cutter a bit leaving a gap which pinched the rigatoni closed. I then tried cutting making sure the wire was pressed against and scraped the metal face as it cut through and that helped alot.
Just do it by hand!!
I have a 5k bottene pasta machine, great! Makes amazing pasta, like 10kg an hour,but it comes with little to no satisfaction.
I have also hand made for years, and doing it by hand feels amazing.
2 eggs, 200g flour, salt, splash of olive oil.
I roll it cut squares then using a chop stick to roll it round and seal the square into a tube and a sushi mat to give you the ridges.
And I saw this watching some 100 year old on pasta granies
Just bin all the machines mastering everything by hand give such amazing satisfaction, and a bit of practice and you will start making pasta of an evening when you get home from work with no stres
Your dough is super wet.