A majority of people love to eat noodles, but mostly end up buying the pack of dry readymade noodles and season it with a sauce. Though this seems convenient, it’s not the way noodles should be eaten. All chefs recommend making fresh noodles, but for a layman, it is a tough job. Mixing the ingredients in the right quantity, kneading the dough and making noodles is a time-taking job that needs expertise too.
If you have a noodles making machine in your kitchen, making noodles is very simple. If you are making it for 2 persons, all it takes to extrude noodles in the desired shape is 10 minutes and if it is for 4 persons, you need 15 minutes. By the time, you chop the vegetables and make the sauce, freshly made noodles would be ready in your noodle maker. The process is completely automatic and you just need to put the ingredients, press the ‘Auto’ mode and forget it.
Though making noodles is an easy process in a noodle making machine, you need to ensure that you avoid making few mistakes.
Not Adding the Right Quantity
While you can make many variations of noodles, the basic two ingredients always remain the same and they are flour and water. It’s these two that combine together to form gluten to gives the noodles its texture and elasticity. So, if you don’t add the right quantity of these two as specified in the instruction manual, the noodles may not come out right.
Making Large Piles at Once
Once your machine starts extruding noodles and if you are making a large batch of it, don’t do it at once. Always make several small piles of it. This is important because otherwise, the weight of the noodles on the top will lead to a messy pile that is stuck together.
Adding Old or Stale Eggs to the Dough
If you are adding eggs, make sure that they are fresh. In case they are old and stale, they will have watery white and flattish yolk, which will ruin the texture of the noodle dough. The finished product will not be of perfect quality as you would have expected it to be.
Not Boiling Immediately After Extruding
It is always recommended to make the sauce ready and the moment your noodles making machine extrudes noodles, immediately boil it. Though this is what is recommended, in case you want to make more for later consumption, you can store it by placing them in a sealed bag in a refrigerator. You can store the freshly prepared noodles this way for two days without any trouble. Never try to store it for more than that.
Not Keeping Ratios in Mind While Customising
You have an option of customizing the noodles by adding different flours, herbs, replacing water with spinach or carrot juice, adding or removing egg etc. While you are getting creative with the flour, don’t forget that you need to maintain the ratio prescribed in the instruction manual for getting the right dough consistency.
If you are new to using a noodle maker, it’s quite natural to commit a few of the above mistakes. However, now that you know these pointers, you can avoid these pitfalls and make those perfect noodles. Enjoy fresh homemade noodles with your favourite choice of seasoning and sauce!