Took delivery of my passata machine yesterday and tries it out on 5 kilos of tomatoes last night, the kids loved turning the handle to squidge them.

I was amazed at how a huge pile of fruit was reduced to little more than a cereal bowl of skin and seeds along with a huge bowl of juice. (It was very noticeable that different varieties of tomato produced more juice or thicker paste. San Marzona being by far the best to squish).

I have started to reduce the sauce a little to thicken it up ready for bottling tonight.

So far I am very impressed with the machine and the 5 kilo of fruit should yield in excess of 4 litres of nice thick sauce.

But I was thinking what other things I could process in the machine, any tips or suggestions?

Thanks

Jerry

Hi jerry, do anything with smallish seeds, juice and skin you want to filter out - I've squished raw blackberries, raspberries, cooked goosegogs and tomatoes so far, and would imagine it would process any small-seeded berry fruit e.g. currants.

That passata machine has proved to be one of the most useful bits of kits in the kitchen at this time of year! When I make 'mango' chutney and try ketchup from green tomatoes in a month or so, I'll squish the cooked pulp through the machine as our household likes their chutney smooooth.

For passata we put the pulp through four times so the residue is practically DRY Like you say it's astonishing.

Kids can't resist turning the handle, can they? And mine is 23!

Will remember your tip re San Marz., others have said the same so I know what I'll be growing next year

Happy bottling!

Mine did not cope with grapes at all Hope this helps

Hi
My Passata machine arrived today, with no instructions - can i ask if the tomatoes work best if they are cooked first?
Many thanks
Mary

I find that partially cooked tomatoes work best - they don't spurt all over the place as the uncooked ones are apt to do. Don't forget to pass the residue through the machine at least three times . That's when the thicker puree goes through.

(If you bought the 'Passatutto Velox' machine from Seeds of Italy, brief instructions are on the lid in several languages, including English) .

Hi mitmot, I pressure cook my toms very briefly - just comes to pressure - then let the pressure drop. The liquid which has come out can be boiled vigorously without sticking to the pan, and the cooked toms get squished more effectively imo. We normally put them through four times.

Hey, it the machine also works to make crab apple puree with no peeling and coring

sanders,were did you get your machien from and how much did it cost.i tryed to get one when i was over in spain this year to no avail.

Lakeland have withdrawn their electric one, so I think the best one around here is the hand cranked version from Seeds of Italy (£22.95) which is an excellent bit of kit even though it looks like a toy!

Hello,

I have copied this info' from a May 1972 C12 handbook...not sure if it will match your engine type.??.

I've not had so much experience with Villiers engines...

A large proportion of Villiers do not have a locating key to align the flywheel...do note the brief mention of how to align the flywheel on the tapered crank.
The timing figure is, I note, hard to read...it is; piston 3/16" before top dead centre.

The flywheel nut on most of these engines acts as a puller to draw the flywheel from its taper.(Note the torque figure is in lb/inch...and not lb/ft.)

It would seem that there is a bolt that holds the starter cup/pulley in place...this screws into the nut that is used to hold the flywheel in place. THANKS

Morning Forrester, i you in the right topic.

Hello Forrester & Old H',

The above seems to be a part quote of an old writing of mine...that dates back to 2005.?
Hopefully the info' I found and typed back then has proved useful.
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=130&hilit=c12

Clive.

I'd move this to the right place if I understood what was going on! But moving it would make nonsense of the other thread too.