The product leaving the die has a humidity of between 31 to 33%. Once the drying process is finished, this humidity level must be lowered to below 12.5%, the value established by law. The greatest problem to overcome is preventing the pasta from drying differently on the surface and the inside.
The progressive extraction techniques to remove the water from the pasta must maintain a sufficient porosity of the surface layers to allow the humidity still inside the product to come out. Drying is therefore divided into two fundamental stages: pre-drying and drying. These two stages also include various pauses for “drawing”, which allow for the redistribution of water molecules inside the product. According to the type of pasta being produced, this stage can last between 4 to 18 hours.