Do you make your own pasta? If you’re making pasta on your own and don’t know where to dry it, consider buying a pasta drying rack.
If you’re into cooking and you make fresh pasta every once in a while, a pasta drying rack might be the thing for you. Assuming that you know how to make pasta, you should also know that if you want to store the pasta noodles for some time, you have to dry them.
If you won’t do that, there’s a good chance that the pasta will go bad within a couple of days. If you want to use the pasta right away, drying the pasta is also a good idea – the cut pieces of dough won’t stick to one another.
As you can see, if you’re making your own spaghetti, fettuccine or tagliatelle, some kind of pasta dryer is a must-have for you. You’re the one to decide whether you want to buy that kind of utensil or make your own one using items you have at hand.
Some of the most common pasta drying racks you can find on the market includes:
- wooden pasta drying racks
- plastic pasta drying racks
- polycarbonate pasta drying racks
Pasta drying racks are typically very cheap, you can easily find one for below $15. Those devices are of various shapes and heights. Dowels are the most important parts of any drying rack for us – they support the pasta. The base of the dryer is also very important – it should ensure that the whole rack won’t tip over if you’ll overload one of the dowels.
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Factors to Consider When Buying a Pasta Rack
- Allows you to dry a lot of homemade pasta. This one is pretty obvious – you want to dry all the noodles at once, so the drying rack should be able to hold about 4 pounds at once. Also, there should be enough space for your homemade noodles. The height of the device is also very important – you should be able to dry long pasta without any problems.
- Allows you to fold it flat. You should be able to store the rack easily when it’s not in use. A noodle drying rack takes a lot of space, so the ability to disassemble is a must.
- Is easy to clean. If you can disassemble the device it’s in most cases easy to wash each part.
- Provides you with a utensil that allows you to transfer pasta onto the drying rack
If you don’t want to buy a pasta drying rack, you can make one yourself. I won’t give you any specific ideas because the way you build a homemade pasta drying rack depends entirely on the tools you have. You can even use your own clothes rack to dry pasta!
If you want to build your own pasta drying rack, here are helpful tutorials how:
1. DIY: Instant Pasta Drying Rack by Sarah
2. Incredibly Easy Pasta Drying Rack
If say, you are shopping for a pasta drying rack, consider our recommendations:
- Simple design
- Fits longer pasta
- Simple, elegant design
- Chemical smell
- Loose fit between dowels
- Elegant design
- Durable built
- Adjustable polycarbonate arms
- Expensive
- User friendly
- Easy to clean
- Stable design
- Bit flimsy drying arms
- Sturdy
- Versatile
- Stackable
- Sturdy
- Easy to clean
- Traditional design
- Larger than average drying rack
Norpro Pasta Drying Rack
Norpro pasta drying rack is one of the most popular wooden pasta drying racks we’ve seen on the market. It stands about 16.6 inches high with a thick, solid base that’s about 7.5 inches. It features four 18-inch wood dowels and eight arms to dry fresh pasta.We love Norpro’s pasta drying rack because it’s so easily to assemble and it stows away in small compartments.
What’s more, it’s easy to clean! The natural wooden finish is not lacquered so just wipe it off to clean and you’re done. This is the perfect drying rack for those who make around two pounds of pasta or less. It’s roomy enough that you won’t run out of place to dry freshly made fettuccine or linguine.
People love Norpro’s pasta drying rack for its simple yet efficient design and its affordable price tag. As far as downsides go, some dowels may not fit as snugly and the wood has a distinct chemical odor. The odor does go away after multiple uses. One user recommended this pasta dryer for its user-friendly design.
The Norpro Pasta rack is great! What I like most about the drying rack is it’s easy to assemble, use and put away.
Marcato Atlas Pasta Drying Rack
Featuring a sleek, contemporary design and longer dowels, this drying rack features 16 8-inch arms that you can fan out and adjust according to your preference. It folds away neatly and conveniently without taking too much space. Unlike traditional pasta drying racks, this product is made from polycarbonate and chrome plated steel, ensuring durability that will last for years!
This is an excellent pasta rack for those who love making fresh pasta regularly.The wands make transferring fresh pasta from the machine to the rack very easy. One of the nicest features of this drying rack is that you can automatically form the spiral (check out the picture) with just twisting the top of it one way. Twist it the other way and all arms are lined up. Because of this, you can fold the drying rack neatly for storage.
Also, it comes with a box in which you can store folded drying rack between uses. Our only gripe is that elegance comes with a hefty price tag. This pasta drying rack is pretty pricey for what it is. That said, it earns raves from one user for its chic design and durability.
Wow. It’s hard to believe I’ve been using the Marcato Pasta Drying Rack for 4 years. Whether I’m making pasta for my family, an event, or someone in need of a meal, out comes the Marcato. It still functions perfectly.
KitchenAid Pasta Drying Rack
KitchenAid’s polycarbonate pasta drying rack features 16 8-inch drying arms and a slim core post. Lightweight yet stable, this stylish drying rack offers adjustable plastic arms. You can set up the arms to dry fresh pasta whichever way you want it, similar to Mercato Atlas’ drying rack.Because of its polycarbonate material, it wipes off clean and stows away conveniently. What’s more, it features a transfer rod that makes transferring pasta very convenient. Because it’s an attachment, KitchenAid’s pasta dryer is designed to integrate with the brand’s very expansive range of pasta making gears. This drying rack is best for making larger batches of pasta.
KitchenAid’s pasta drying rack earns raves for offering better control over the thinness of the pasta. One user gave it a glowing review for its user-friendliness. However, some people complained of the material’s brittleness. Also, it’s not as easy to clean as other polycarbonate drying rack. But for this user, KitchenAid’s pasta dryer is a must-buy:
I highly recommend this attachment. This attachment is very well made (Made in Italy). It attaches, detaches and cleans up easily, and most importantly, it works very well.
Eppicotispai Stackable Food Dryer
Made from natural beech wood, Eppicotispai’s stackable food dryer is best for pasta connoisseur who insists on making pasta the old-fashioned way. The food dryer features a net with wide holes, ensuring optimal airflow to dry freshly made pasta effectively.As the name implies, this pasta dryer is stackable, allowing you to make as much fresh pasta as you can. In addition, Eppicotispai’s food dryer can be used to prep all kinds of foods, including mushrooms, spices, veggies, fruits, herbs and so much more. If you are shopping for a pasta dryer than can dry out pretty much everything in your pantry, give this product a whirl.
This stackable food dryer wins in terms of versatility and sheer size. It offers 10 square feet of pasta space! The build is also very solid, which is great if you make large batches of pasta on the daily. Our only gripe is the price. This product comes with only a single food dryer. If you want more food dryers and stack them all, you’ll have to get them individually, which will cost you extra $$$. Also, the netting isn’t as taut as some users expected. An Amazon user says this pasta dryer shines because of its sheer versatility
Very useful product. I got one and used for pasta, mushrooms, vegetable and spices. I bought another 3 and I stack them one on top of the other, now in a small area I have a lot of space for letting food dry. The quality of the net and the wood is very good.
Fante’s Grandma Nadia’s Pasta Drying Rack
In case you’re wondering, yes, this is exactly the kind of pasta drying rack your Italian granny used to have. Except it’s foldable, portable, and assembles easily. Made from high quality beech wood, this pasta dryer features a traditional design. It comes with removable dowel rods, allowing you to transfer freshly made pasta from the drying rack with ease.If you’re the kind who lives for freshly made pasta all day, every day, then look no further. This old school pasta dryer is all you need to churn out pasta of any length. Its robust design can hold large batches of pasta too, perfect if you’re gearing up for a special event. This pasta rack gets brownie points for its simple yet efficient design and its versatility.
The only downside is the size. It’s larger than your average contemporary drying rack so make sure you have room in your kitchen for one. Also, one user noted that the dowel rods might not fit as snugly and this will affect the stability of the dryer. But this classic pasta dryer has won over this user for its generous size and dependability:
This is a fabulously simple rack, with some very important features: it holds a lot of pasta, it has removable rods, and it is tall enough to dry long noodles!
