Spaetzle are a German style dumpling, or noodle, and are so easy to make as well as tasting delicious! I remember them fondly from childhood as my first German teacher told us a lovely story about eating them back in Germany in winter.
With a cold Victorian winter currently taking hold, as well as grocery limitations, these dumplings go hand in hand to make an easy and satisfying meal.
That’s another of the great things about these noodles, you don’t just have to limit them to a side dish during main course! They’re a lovely entree or snack, and you can also serve them as a dessert! Versatile doesn’t begin to cover it.
You could use them in a salad, as a replacement for potatoes, or even fry them as a more substantial deep-fried chip. Cut thick or thinly, they’re super flexible yet always filling and give you plenty of scope for meal time variation.
How to make Spaetzle
When it comes to the crunch of making spaetzle, you won’t need a lot of fancy equipment either! Just the basics; large saucepan, mixing bowl, wooden spoon to stir, a slotted spoon or spider to lift them out of boiling water, and a knife to cut them into shape. How easy is that?!
Likewise, the ingredients are no doubt already in your pantry or larder; all purpose flour, salt, and an egg. This is the best spaetzle recipe and it suggests either breadcrumbs or poppy seeds as a topping for savoury dumplings, or your favourite jam/conserve for you sweet-tooths.
It doesn’t take long at all to make German dumplings. The recipe below will walk you through how to make spaetzle in step by step directions. But, in a nutshell, you mix the dough, cut the dough, boil the dough. It’s that simple!
So, on to that recipe for Spaetzle, the German Dumpling noodle!
Spaetzle - Bavarian Dumplings
Equipment
- Large saucepan
- Mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon
- Slotted lifter or spider
- Knife
Ingredients
- 250 gr All purpose flour
- 5 gr Salt
- 1 lrg Egg beaten
- 60 ml Water
Toppings
- 45 gr Butter
- 60 gr Breadcrumbs or poppy seeds
Instructions
- In the mixing bowl, add the flour and salt, combine thoroughly, and make a small well.
- Add the egg, and a little water, mix until completely combined and forms a small ball of dough - you may not need all of the water!
- Place the dough on a floured work surface, and knead until smooth. Rest for 5mins.
- Heat the large saucepan with boiling salted water, the water must be boiling gently for the next part.
- Roll out the dough until approx. 10mm/".5 thick, and scrap or slice off 'dumplings' of about the same width - rustic scratchy edges are fine!
- Place these dumplings in the boiling water, they will sink to start but float to the top.
- Once floating, cook the spaetzle for a further 5-8mins. Then remove to a clean plate or bowl. You can serve them now, or top with the following:
Toppings
- 1) Melt the butter in a pan, add the breadcrumbs, toss until golden. Then, add the spaetzle and coat evenly before serving.
- 2) Melt the butter and pour over the spaetzle, sprinkle the poppy seeds over the dumplings and mix thoroughly before serving.
- 3) Spoon some of your favourite jam or conserve over the dumplings, mix to coat evenly, then serve with custard or ice cream.
Thanks for checking out this post on how to make an Spaetzle the German dumpling noodle. I do hope you make them soon! If you do, please come back and post a comment, or share a photo with the tag: #LarderPantryandGarden.
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