System for making pasta

A system for making pasta comprises in combination a dough bin having a bottom, extrusion holes associated with the bin bottom, and a hydrated pasta dough mixture in the bin which extrudes from the extrusion holes. Due to the percentage of fluid ingredients in the dough mixture, the pasta is extruded through the extrusion holes due to the force of gravity.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates generally to pasta makers and more particularly to a 
pasta maker for use with hydrated pasta doughs. 
Various shapes and sizes of pasta have been enjoyed all over the world for 
centuries. For much of that time, pasta was tediously made by hand. The 
process involved combining the necessary ingredients into a stiff, 
clay-like dough, kneading the dough, rolling it, and cutting it into the 
desired shapes and sizes. The pasta was allowed to dry and then was 
stored. When it was to be consumed, the pasta was brought out from storage 
and cooked, usually by boiling. This method of making pasta, however, 
involved much time and effort both in making the pasta and cleaning-up 
afterwards. 
To facilitate pasta making, manual and automated pasta making devices were 
developed. A number of these devices combine the ingredients into dough, 
knead the dough, and form the pasta into the desired form by rolling and 
cutting. Alternately, in others of these devices, the dough is extruded 
under pressure through dies to form the pasta. The size and shape of the 
holes in the dies determine the size and shape of the pasta. These 
devices, however, tend to be costly, noisy, and time-consuming to use. In 
addition, the use of the devices requires considerable clean-up and 
maintenance and presents storage problems. 
After pasta is formed using either the handmade method or one of the pasta 
making devices, the pasta is customarily dried and or heated. In order to 
prepare it for consumption from this state, the pasta is usually placed in 
boiling water. Such dried pasta requires between 8 to 10 minutes cooking 
time before it reaches its hydrated, consumable state. It requires such a 
large period of time because the pasta must be re-hydrated during the 
cooking process. 
It is an object of the instant invention to provide a system for making 
pasta in which the pasta can be formed by gravity extrusion without 
kneading, rolling or cutting. 
It is another object of the instant invention to provide a system for 
making pasta that does not require the pasta dough to be dried or heated 
during manufacture. 
It is yet another object of the instant invention to provide a system for 
making pasta which makes hydrated pasta requiring only a few minutes of 
cooking. 
It is a further object of this invention to provide a system for making 
pasta which does not require extensive production time or clean-up time 
and is not prone to mechanical difficulties. 
These and other objects and advantages of the instant invention will be 
apparent from the following description and drawings. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art by 
providing a system for making pasta comprising in combination a dough bin 
having a bottom, extrusion means associated with the bin bottom, and a 
hydrated pasta dough mixture in the bin which extrudes from the extrusion 
means. Due to the percentage of fluid ingredients in the dough mixture, 
the pasta can be extruded through the extrusion means due to the force of 
gravity rather than pressure. 
Since a hydrated pasta dough mixture is used which results in hydrated 
pasta nuggets, the system does not require the pasta dough to be kneaded, 
rolled, cut, dried or heated during manufacture, as prior art systems 
often require. The pasta nuggets are extruded directly into boiling water. 
Since the pasta nuggets are hydrated, they require only 3-4 minutes of 
cooking. Thus, the system can be used to make fresh pasta in a short 
amount of time. 
Because of its design, the system does not require extensive clean-up time 
and it is not prone to mechanical difficulties. Further, it does not 
require a large amount of storage space.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
To provide a system for making pasta 10 in which the pasta can be gravity 
extruded in accordance with the invention, there is provided a hydrated 
pasta gravity extruder 12 comprising a dough bin 13 with a handle 15, as 
shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The dough bin 13 resembles a typical 11/2 quart 
cooking pot, with the exception of its bottom surface. The bottom surface 
17 of the dough bin 13 is provided with extrusion means. In the preferred 
embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the extrusion means comprise a plurality of 
extrusion holes 19 defined in the bottom surface 17 of the dough bin 13. 
The extrusion holes 19 are arranged uniformly about the bottom surface 17 
of the dough bin 13, the particular size of the holes depending upon the 
type, size and shape of pasta to be made. 
An alternate preferred embodiment of the instant invention is depicted in 
FIG. 4, this embodiment differing from the embodiment of FIG. 2 in the 
extrusion means employed. The extrusion means of the alternate preferred 
embodiment comprises an extrusion die plate 21, the die plate 21 defining 
a plurality of extrusion holes 23. The extrusion holes 23 are located 
uniformly about the plate 21. The plate 21 is removable so as to be 
interchangeable with a number of other extrusion die plates, each having 
different sized holes. Die plates may be provided with holes having 5/16", 
3/8", 1/2" or 3/4" diameters. The distance between the holes of each plate 
is dependent upon the hole size. For example, a die plate which includes 
5/16" holes has a distance of 1/4" between each hole. In comparison, a die 
plate which includes 1/2" holes has a distance of 3/8" between each hole. 
For further comparison, a die plate which includes 3/4" holes has a 
distance of 3/8" between each hole. The distance between the holes is 
important for proper pasta extrusion. If the holes are too close, the 
pasta, after being extruded, may re-coagulate. Of course, die plates 
having different sized holes are contemplated. The particular die plate 
with its corresponding sized extrusion holes is selected depending upon 
the type, size and shape of pasta to be made. 
To support such die plates, the dough bin 13 is provided with a support lip 
or ring 26 located about its bottom circumference. The support lip 26 
extends radially inwardly from the circumference of the bin 13. In order 
to ensure that the die plate 21 remains in place, a notch and pin 
arrangement is provided, as shown in FIG. 4. Each die plate 21 is provided 
with two notches 30 located at the outer edge of its circumference and 
placed diametrically opposed from one another. The support lip 26 of the 
dough bin 13 in turn is provided with pins or protrusions 32 along its 
inner surface, the pins 32 being placed diametrically opposed from one 
another. In a preferred embodiment, the pins 32 are located 
perpendicularly to a line representing an imaginary extension of the 
handle 15 across the dough bin 13. In use, the die plate 21 is placed on 
the support lip 26 in such a manner so that its notches 30 mate with the 
pins 32 of the support lip 26. With the notches and pins mating, the die 
plate 21 remains in place during the extrusion of the pasta. 
To provide a system for making pasta in which the pasta can be gravity 
extruded, the pasta extruder 12 is used with a hydrated pasta dough 40 
rather than with conventional, stiff clay-like pasta doughs. Such a 
hydrated pasta dough differs from conventional pasta doughs in the ratio 
of fluid ingredients to dry ingredients that are used to make the dough. 
Conventional pasta doughs typically are comprised of approximately 20 to 
26% weight of fluid ingredients. Hydrated pasta doughs, in contrast, are 
comprised of approximately 39% to 72% weight of fluid ingredients. The 
hydrated pasta doughs require such a high percentage of fluid ingredients 
so that they are thin enough to be extruded from the pasta extruder 12 by 
the force of gravity. The type of pasta (for example, egg, flour or 
semolina) to be made determines the type of dough used and the size of the 
extrusion holes chosen. 
In the baking world, the concept of baker's percentage is well known. This 
concept describes the percentage of each ingredient as compared to the 
percentage of flour in the mixture. The amount of flour is always 
described as 100%. Thus, a mixture that has 4 ounces of flour and 1 ounce 
oil is described as having 100% flour and 25% oil, for a total mixture of 
125%. The baker's percentage is based on the weight of the ingredients. 
The instant invention can be used with a number of different hydrated pasta 
dough mixtures, one being a hydrated semolina pasta dough mixture. This 
mixture requires 1/2 cup semolina, 1 cup all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon 
salt, 1 egg, and 5 ounces water in order to make 3 to 4 portions. In 
approximate baker's percentage terms, such a mixture requires 66.66 % 
semolina, 100.00% flour, 4.44% salt, 44.44% egg, and 111.11 % water. Thus, 
the hydrated semolina pasta dough mixture has a fluid ingredient content 
in the range of 42 to 46% by weight of the total mixture, preferably 44%. 
When using this pasta mixture, a die plate having 5/16" or 3/8" holes is 
preferred. 
Another pasta dough mixture that can be used with the instant invention is 
a hydrated egg pasta dough mixture. This mixture requires 1 cup all 
purpose flour, 3 eggs, and 1 teaspoon salt in order to make 3 to 4 
portions. In approximate baker's percentage terms, such a mixture requires 
100.00% flour, 133.33% egg, and 4.44% salt. Thus, the hydrated egg pasta 
dough mixture has a fluid ingredient content in the range of approximately 
39 to 43% by weight of the total mixture, preferably 41%. When making egg 
pasta, a die plate having 5/16" or 3/8" holes is preferred. 
Yet another pasta dough mixture that can be used with the instant invention 
is a hydrated flour pasta dough mixture. This mixture requires 2 cups all 
purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt, and 10 ounces water in order to make 3 to 
4 portions. In approximate baker's percentage terms, such a mixture 
requires 100.00% flour, 2.22% salt, and 111.11% water. Thus, the hydrated 
flour pasta dough mixture has a fluid ingredient content in the range of 
approximately 49 to 55% by weight of the total mixture, preferably 52%. 
When making flour pasta, a die plate having 5/16", 3/8" or 1/2" holes is 
may be used. 
Another pasta dough mixture that can be used with the instant invention is 
a hydrated gnocchi mixture. This mixture requires 1/2 cup water, 2 ounces 
butter, 1 teaspoon salt, 2/3 cup all purpose flour, and 3 eggs in order to 
make 3 to 4 portions. In approximate baker's percentage terms, such a 
mixture requires 133.00% water, 66.66% butter, 6.66% salt, 100.00% flour, 
and 146% egg. Thus, the hydrated gnocchi pasta dough mixture has a fluid 
ingredient content in the range of approximately 65 to 72% by weight of 
the total mixture, preferably 68%. When making gnocchi, any of the four 
die plates may be used. 
The use of the instant invention is depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. It should be 
understood that either of the preferred embodiments are used in the manner 
described below. To make pasta using the instant invention, the cook 
places a pot 37 of water on the stove to boil, much as one would do to 
make any pasta. Then the cook prepares one of the hydrated pasta dough 
mixtures. Depending upon what type of pasta is being prepared and the 
desired size and shape of the pasta, an extruder with appropriately sized 
holes is selected. If the embodiment of FIG. 4 is being used, the 
appropriate extrusion die plate 21 is placed into an pasta extruder 12. 
The cook then places the pasta extruder on a flat surface such as a dinner 
plate. The reason for this placement is to inhibit the hydrated pasta 
dough 40 from extruding prematurely from the dough bin and also to enable 
the cook to easily transport the extruder to a location above the pot of 
water. When the water has reached a boil, the extruder is moved into 
position above the pot of water, the flat surface is removed from beneath 
the dough bin, and the pasta dough is allowed to extrude by gravity 
through the extrusion holes, into the boiling water. As the dough is 
extruding, the cook "cuts off" the pasta by scraping a rubber spatula 35 
over the interior surface of the die plate 21 until all the dough has been 
extruded. The pasta takes the shape of pasta nuggets 42, as can be seen in 
FIG. 2. 
Since the pasta is in a hydrated state, rather than a dry state, before it 
is placed in the boiling water, it requires only 3-4 minutes to cook. 
Thus, the cook saves time making the pasta since it is not necessary to 
knead, roll, cut, dry or heat the pasta dough during its production. 
Further, the pasta made by the system of the instant invention is fresher 
than the dried pastas and thus results in a better taste. 
Additionally, since the extruder involves either one part, the dough bin, 
or two parts, the dough bin and a die plate, less time is required to 
prepare the pasta and to clean-up afterwards and less space is needed for 
storage. The system is not complicated or difficult to operate. As there 
are no moving parts, there is no fear of mechanical problems. 
It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the 
preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled 
in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing 
from the spirit and scope of the instant invention and without diminishing 
its attendant advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and 
modifications be covered by the appended claims.