This week our Foods 11/12 students will be making their own pasta. Many people don’t realize how easy and cheap pasta is to make at home. Because fresh pasta cooks so much faster than dried pasta, with a little practice you can actually make the dough, cut it up and cook it in the 12 minutes it would take you to cook store bought dried pasta. You can also make the dough ahead and let it sit in your fridge (up to a week – it is raw eggs) or freezer until you are ready to cut it up and cook it.

Making pasta is a great cheap and fun activity to do with your family or friends. Have a pasta party and make a bunch of different kinds. Make a huge batch, dry the noodles, pack them in cellophane or paper bags, and give them as gifts. Throw a quick batch together to impress your friends.

When I see pasta machines around the city they usually go for about $60. But I have seen them on sale for $20. I have also seen them at thrift stores. But you don’t even really need a pasta machine to make pasta.

Here are some videos to show you how easy it is:

Using the ‘well method’:

The next video is great because it shows teens making pasta for the first time, and without pasta machines. Warning: The following video does contain some swearing. Also, the English accents may be challenging to understand.