Imperia Italian Double Cutter Pasta Machine

Product Information

How well the pasta makers made different types of pasta: Following the included directions and using the same dough recipe with each machine, we made batches of wide-cut fettuccine and narrow-cut spaghetti. We also made a batch of penne with each extruder machine, and tested out any other included cutters for making different shapes (such as ravioli, angel hair, and more.) We took notes on dough texture and evenness, and whether the individual noodles cut and separated cleanly. Hard-anodized aluminum is twice as hard as stainless steel, making it very tough and durable. Anodization seals aluminum so that the metal can’t get into the food. I understand your view on aluminum and its health concerns, especially with aluminum being linked with Alzheimers in several studies. Personally I avoid deodorant with aluminum, but I still use my Marcato pasta maker. If you don’t trust the anodized aluminum rollers, you should avoid the Wellness models. Using the machine, it feels quite sturdy on your kitchen counter or table. It weighs around 8 pound, giving it some extra grip on the surface. The Imperia offers a really nice balance of value and quality. It costs twice as much as the very cheapest manual machines, but it's a big step up in construction and ease of use. And there are very pricey pasta makers available that don't do a much better job. This machine is good for a beginner or a more advanced pasta producer. Marcato offers 10 years of warranty, whereas Imperia models only come with a 1 year warranty. This is a significant difference between the two manufacturers and is alone one of the main reasons that I personally use a Marcato. Since a pasta maker is essentially a machine with gears and other mechanisms, they can break! So it is important to look at the warranty.

The pasta maker does come with a starter guide for pasta recipes and how to make the perfect dough. This will let you immediately get started with your CucinaPro Imperia 150, but if you want even more recipes or know how to make different kind of pasta dough: we got you covered. We were pleasantly surprised with the results of our tabletop pasta maker test: All 10 units we tried got pretty good scores. This OxGord machine is the least expensive of the bunch, with only minor disadvantages over much pricier machines, so it's a great choice for beginners. If you want to try homemade pasta for the first time, this gadget can get you started for a minimal investment. This pasta maker may not have been the best performer in all of our tests, but it was a good performer, and it includes more accessories than others. Its friendly price and included ravioli roller are its best features. If you want to make filled pasta, the CucinaPro gets you an entire pasta-making system for what you might pay for just a ravioli attachment for another machine. We were impressed with this inexpensive model's clamp. It has a concave washer that holds tightly against any flat surface. Once screwed down finger-tight, the thing wouldn't wobble no matter how much we tried to move it. The removable crank also turns very smoothly and easily, but it doesn't attach very securely into the side. It slipped out several times in testing, especially while cutting.Marcato has been granted the patent for the anodized aluminum rollers at the end of 2007. I haven’t found what the material of the rollers was before this time period. The granted patent states the following: “The aluminum used for anodizing the rollers is of moderate hardness and is not easy to dent and the wear resistance of the surface reduces to virtually zero the release of particles from the surface layer, and even in the event any particles were released, being alumina they are not considered harmful in food preparations.“ In the following month I’ll try and find out more about the “Wellness” factor and if their claims are correct. The KitchenAid pasta set is fairly expensive, especially considering that you need a separate mixer (which costs several hundred dollars by itself) just to use it. But if you already have a KitchenAid and want to make excellent, consistently textured pasta, it's a real winner. Cuisinart 5-Piece Pasta Maker: Cuisinart's tabletop pasta machine is a nice one, with a solid grip on the counter, precise control over the dough, and a wonderfully chewy texture. It had a bit of trouble cutting noodles completely, however, and it's a bit more expensive than the similar Marcato and Imperia models above.

The new machine is somewhat lighter. The reviewer attributes this to the manufacturer taking shortcuts by the use of more internal plastic parts. How good the finished pasta tasted: We performed lots of taste tests! Each batch of fresh noodles was boiled in salted water for three minutes before draining and sampling. We rated the noodles on doneness, texture, and flavor. Imperia also makes a motor attachment for this machine, no need to hand wind the machine or clamp it down to your bench top. This popular manual model is from an Italian company that's been crafting pasta machines for generations. It’s made from sleek, chrome-plated steel and is impressively well-built, with a clamp that held it firmly to the table with no wobbling through the full round of testing. The crank handle is removable for easy storage, but it doesn't fall out while you're using it, a problem a lot of other hand-cranked machines have. Personally I haven’t had any problems with my Imperia 150, ever. So I like to take every bad review with a little grain of salt.

If you have a KitchenAid stand mixer, you might have noticed the little cap on the front that's held on with a screw. This little access port allows you to connect a wide variety of attachments to the motor, which can do anything from grind meat to mill grain into flour. The KitchenAid pasta maker is our favorite one of those because it's so easy and works so well compared to manual models. Beside the roller and the two cutters, there are more attachments available for the two pasta makers. The Marcato has a total of 9 different attachments available for long types of pasta, and Imperia sells up to 6 different attachments for the Imperia. Roundup: Hands down, the Marcato is the absolute winner if we are comparing the warranty. With a total of 10 years versus the 1 year that the Imperia offers, it is not even close. Optional pasta motor attachment When it comes to cleaning, this unit is right in line with most competitors. No parts can go in the dishwasher or sink, but the included cleaning brushes make it reasonably simple. Of course you can! People made pasta by hand for hundreds of years before any of these machines were invented. All you really need is a rolling pin (or even a wine bottle, or any other heavy round object) to roll out your dough, and a sharp knife to cut the dough sheet. With a pasta maker, the process is much easier and faster, with more uniform noodles that cook evenly. Pasta machines also make a wider variety of shapes possible; you can cut fettuccine and even roll certain tube shapes by hand, but spirals and other complex configurations require a machine.

The Marcato Atlas 150 is equipped with Wellness rollers which are made of anodized aluminum. Anodized aluminum is twice as hard as stainless steel, making the chance of metal particles less likely with rollers made from anodized aluminum. As Marcato has patented this technology, there are no other pasta rollers that have this same feature. If you and your family try to avoid aluminum with cooking altogether, One thing can be said for sure: if we are looking at the design of the pasta rollers, the Marcato Atlas 150 Wellness would definitely be the winner of the two. Featuring a classic and high-class design, you get the feeling you are looking at a high quality product. From the beautiful beveled logo to the nine different colors that the Marcato is available in: it just looks and definitely feels right.Design and Ease of Use: As we performed our tests, we noted whether any of the machines were especially complicated to set up and break down, as well as if they had any features to make managing the dough simpler. We paid special attention to how smoothly and easily the crank turned the rollers and cutters with manual models. For extruder machines, we also judged the simplicity of the dough-making and kneading process that comes before pasta-shaping. That being said, the motor attachment works great on the Marcato Atlas 150 and my 180 model as well. It has two different speeds to choose from and it allows me to use both of my hands. The Imperia on the other hand has a very basic design, as the Imperia looks very comparable with all the other pasta rollers out there on the market. The design doesn’t reflect the quality of the machine and the Imperia definitely looks good in your kitchen. Especially the wooden handle is a lovely touch and it lovely on the shiny Imperia. This versatile machine may have made the tastiest pasta of our testing, but the problem is that the whole batch wasn't equally tasty. The Starfrit continually kneads the dough while squeezing it through the die, and the part at the end winds up overkneaded. The beginning of the batch had perfect texture, but the dough got too springy to push through the holes effectively. Where the Philips Plus did better with a larger batch, this machine did better with a smaller one. With a consumer review rating with 80% of the votes as a 4/5 or higher, the all-round consensus definitely remains positive.

Because the ingredients list for pasta is short, the type of flour makes a difference. World Food Pasta Champion Suzanne Clark prefers 00 flour (or "doppio zero" in Italian), which is milled to an extra-fine texture and yields an "exceptionally smooth and silky pasta," Clark says. "I find this is great to use when making ravioli or pastas that will be paired with a light and creamy butter sauce."

Imperia Pasta

The result was pretty much the same – pretty, thin sheets of pasta. Really, as long as your dough is great most pasta rollers do a decent job. Using the cutters for spaghetti & fettuccine Both models offer the same basic functionalities, there aren’t many differences to spot when you put the two side by side. Although the review covers most of what I expected, what I really wanted to know was more of “what’s under the hood.” That is what is most important to me. For example, I wanted to know if/how many parts are plastic when comparing the two models. Though they're quite a bit pricier than manual pasta makers, extruders make the entire process fully automatic. You add ingredients and insert a die to choose a shape, and the machine does the rest. The compact Viva can make nearly a pound at a time, and the texture of the pasta it made in testing was almost perfect.