Best Pasta Maker – Buyer’s Guide

With three aluminium rollers for making Lasagne, Fettuccine and Tagliolini, this is a brilliant machine which has been crafted with the best possible pasta in mind.

The rough surface of the rollers creates a porous texture for the pasta. This helps the cooked article to absorb the sauce and create a tastier dish. You can choose from ten different positionings to change the thickness of the pasta too.

If you want to be even more adventurous, there are thirteen extra attachments you can purchase too, such as spaghetti, linguine and lasagnette makers.

The build quality is great, with a strong handle despite this being plastic. It is quite heavy because of this, but a lighter machine probably wouldn’t be able to cope as well. A basic recipe for dough is included in the box which should help you get used to the machine before you turn to more complicated blends.

Sturdy and built to last, with a ‘Duplex’ cutter, this is a machine for those serious about their pasta.

You can make your dough in six different thicknesses, and tagliatelle and fettuccine with the included attachments. Plenty of others are available to buy also, such as lasagnette, pappardelle and ravioli.

The solid steel and wooden handle is easy to turn, and comfortable as well. The clamp is also high quality, so there is no chance of the unit moving around when you’re concentrating on getting the perfect results.

A simple recipe book is included which should get your creative juices flowing, and it is also relatively compact in case you want to store it. Imperia is the brand of choice for many Italians, so you’re definitely in safe hands.

Our only niggle is that it must be clamped to a bench, and can’t sit freestanding. With some other machines, you have a choice. This is going to make it unsuitable for some kitchens.

If you are going into this completely brand new, with bare kitchen cupboards but a big open imagination of what you’re going to make, then you’re going to need a lot of equipment.

Thankfully, this kit comes with all of the basics. It is technically a gift set, but we think it would also be a brilliant gift to yourself.

You get four different cutters – spaghetti, tagliatelle, fettuccine and lasagnette. These are the staple pasta types. So many others come with fancier attachments, but there is a good chance that these will be the most common ones you use.

The rollers are adjustable so you can choose from six different thicknesses, and you also get a ravioli mould and wooden rolling pin so you can make stuffed pasta and roll out the mix before inserting for an easier job.

Don’t feel like this is too much to handle; instructions are included on how to use the machine and all of the attachments, and there are some handy tips too.

We rated the actual Imperia machine highly in our review above, and all of the additions round it off nicely, particularly if you’re a beginner.

All you need to do is add the flour, eggs and water to this electric pasta maker, and the machine will do the rest, from combining to the kneading and extraction.

It takes just six minutes to make fresh pasta, which makes it well worth the effort. The dough is mixed and then pushed through the nozzle for perfect results. Pasta is air dried as it comes out of the machine, which makes it less likely to all stick together and will also speed up the end drying process if you won’t be cooking it straight away.

It comes with all the accessories you need to make the pasta which is best for your mealtime, whether it be spaghetti, noodles, tagliatelle or macaroni. Six attachments are included, and you also get a measuring jug, the spanner to take it apart, cleaning brush, and even a free cheese grater for adding the finishing touches – we all love a bit of cheese on pasta.

A large LED display and soft touch buttons make it nice to control, so you get the results you are after. The price perhaps means it is best for serious home chefs or those who will be needing it in a professional atmosphere, but the ease of use makes the cost perfectly valid.

Because you can only make spaghetti or shapes, you’ll still have to use the good old manual method for making lasagne sheets or pasta for ravioli, but it does the hardest types to save you the effort.

Although it isn’t a machine or name which you’d usually find in an authentic Italian kitchen, this Jamie Oliver model still produces great tasting pasta which even the fussiest critic would be a fan of.

It is easy to use and can roll pasta up to 17cm wide, meaning you can get more done in a shorter time. The sheets of pasta produced are even, so you get consistent results, which makes it all easier to boil when the time comes.

We have chosen the copper-hued model because we know that will appeal to loads of you out there who like all of their appliances to match, but it is available in full silver too.

VonShef is great at making affordable yet trustworthy small kitchen appliances, and this pasta maker is great for anyone who wants the most options for their money.

The four attachments are wide and varied, with a choice of five different kinds of pasta possible. It is nice and user-friendly to turn, thanks to the ergonomic handle and strong stainless steel build. You can adjust it to make various thicknesses too so that you can match the pasta perfectly to the dish. The thinnest is actually perfect for very fine noodles.

The clamp for securing it to a table or kitchen bench is included, so you can use both hands to glide the pasta through the machine safely. It is a little tricky to clean afterwards, but not more so than the others available. For the cost, we would say it is fabulous if this is going to be your first pasta machine or if you simply like the varied results it can offer.

Electric machines are usually not the first choice for a lot of professional Italian pasta chefs, but they are still used by some big names. If the sheer idea of manually turning the handle is tiring you out, an electric model could be the answer.

450g of pasta can be made in just over 15 minutes, which is plenty to feed a small family. All you need to do is pop the ingredients into the machine, and it will do the rest for you. It is fully automatic, so you have no winding or manual feeding to do – it will even mix and knead before extruding.

The stirring bar design is unique to this Philips model and ensures that the flour is combined with the other ingredients perfectly for the tastiest pasta possible. The kneading tube is also long, which gives it plenty of opportunities to combine and also results in soft, bouncy pasta.

Different flours can be used, from spelt and wholewheat to durum or quinoa, to ensure the end result is just how you want it and even gluten-free if need be. You can also add various flavours to the mix, whether it be beetroot or carrot juice for colouring or herbs and spices for a bit of a flavour kick.

Despite its talents, it is actually quite a compact and small appliance for keeping on your kitchen counter or popping away in between uses. You get a free recipe book filled with some inspiration which goes beyond the basics, which is nice if you get the hang of it all quickly so need some other ideas to spice up your meal times.

This only features near the bottom of the list because you need a KitchenAid Stand Mixer Model for them to work. If we were rating them on performance and quality alone, they’d get the 5* treatment.

It gives you the electric performance in a much more manageable sense, as you just use the mixer as you would ordinarily, and the attachments work their magic by thinning out and cutting the sheets. The lack of manual operation makes it ideal for anyone who wants ease but still wants to be involved, as you just need to pop the pasta through as opposed to turning the guide too.

The range of KitchenAid attachments available makes it one of the best stand mixers around, and these are perfect for any pasta lover. You can make ordinary lasagne, and you also get the cutters for perfect fettuccine and spaghetti. The former rolls widths of 15cm which should be plenty for your lasagne dish, and you can select eight different thicknesses.

They aren’t cheap, but if you already own a KitchenAid then it makes sense to buy these attachments to save some space, plus you’ve already made a significant purchase.

Nice and streamlined, this pasta maker is good for anyone who wants a product with a small footprint.

You get all of the usual bits and bobs in the package; the clamp to secure it to the bench, and the handle are both easy to fit and take apart for storage. There are eight thickness options to choose from, so you can cater it to your liking and what the dish requires.

Because the handle is removable, it does fall off quite a bit when you turn it, but this is quite a surprisingly common issue. However, we would have to say it happened the most with this Lakeland model so it may not be the best option if you are easily frustrated by things like this.