What to do
- Set out your equipment and ingredients.
- Weigh the eggs to determine how much flour to use.
- Sift the bi-carb, salt and flour into a large bowl.
- Break the eggs into the flour, add 1 tablespoon of water and knead until the dough is smooth.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let the dough rest for 20 minutes. This will make the dough much easier to work with. It is a dry and fragile dough until the noodles are formed.
To make the noodles
- Clear a large space on the workbench alongside the pasta machine. Make sure all surfaces are clean and dry.
- Dust some flour onto the table beside the machine. Set the rollers on the pasta machine to the widest setting (number 0).
- Cut the dough into 4 pieces (keep the pieces you are not working with wrapped in the plastic wrap to prevent them drying out while you roll the other pieces).
- Flatten the piece of dough and lightly dust with flour. Squash one end of the dough so that it will fit into the pasta machine.
- Pass the dough carefully through the rollers, squashed end first and carefully lift out the other end.
- Lay the pasta onto the floured table, lightly dust with flour and fold it in 3. Hint: place your hand in the middle of the pasta and fold one end over your hand. Slide your hand out and fold the other end over the top to form 3 even-sized layers.
- Feed through the machine again with the rough edge down and the smooth edges at the side.
- If the dough starts to get sticky dust a little flour over the pasta strip.
- Repeat this rolling and folding another 5 times, but the last time you feed the dough through the rollers do not fold it in 3. Now set the pasta machine the next-thinnest setting (1) and pass the dough through once. Set the machine to the next-thinnest setting (2) and pass the dough through once.
- Continue in this manner (changing the settings and passing the dough through) until the dough has passed through the second-thinnest setting.
- If the dough gets too long to handle comfortably, cut it into 2 – 3 pieces using the large knife, and roll each piece separately.
Cut the noodles
- To make the noodles, pass the dough strip through the thin cutter of the pasta machine. Dust the trays with some flour, lay the strands of noodles in a single layer on the trays and allow to dry while you cut the remaining noodles.
- Clean the pasta machine by brushing it with a dry, wide pastry brush. Never wash the machine.
Cook the noodles (an adult should do this for you)
- Fill the saucepan with water and bring to the boil.
- Drop in the noodles. Cook for 4 – 5 minutes (taste to check if it is al dente).
- Set the colander in the sink. Tip the noodles and boiling water into the colander.
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