Our parents were both German and our mother was born in Straubing, a small town in Bavaria. German meals were often served at our house and my brothers, sister, and me, loved our mom’s German cooking. My brother and me were both stationed in Germany while in the Army. One of our favorites is Bavarian Style Spätzle; tender, buttery, dumpling like pasta that goes well with practically any dish or added to soups and stews. Spätzle is simple to make and the dough can be pressed through a colander, a spätzle press, or spread out on a floured cutting board and sliced off with a knife into boiling salted water like our mom used to do. I find it easier to use a colander or a spätzle press (you can find them online). Here’s how to make the spätzle:
Start by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil. You will need a colander with medium sized holes or a spätzle press like the one shown above. I was lucky enough to have my sweet brother bring back a spätzle press as a gift to me on one of his trips to Germany. You can purchase a spätzle press online; however, a colander works just fine.
Next, start mixing your dough. You can use a stand mixer, or mix it by hand; however, as expected, the stand mixer is faster and easier. Mix together 3 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, 2 large eggs, and one cup of water. Mix well to combine and beat on medium speed with a paddle for 3-4 minutes or beat the batter with a wooden spoon until some bubbles form, 5-6 minutes.
Once the batter has been mixed, add 2 tablespoons of melted butter while mixing on low speed and then to medium speed until butter is well incorporated.
Once water is boiling, work with one cup of batter at a time. Place a cup of batter into the spätzle press or a colander and hold it over the boiling water and squeeze the spätzle into the boiling water. You can use a rubber spatula to press it through a colander and also to cut off the spätzle under the press or colander so it drops into the water.
The spätzle will float to the top almost immediately and many people say it’s done when it floats; however, I usually let it boil from 1-3 minutes depending on the size of the spätzle. The best way to tell if it’s done is to try one and see if it needs a little longer to reach the desired doneness that you like. Nevertheless, it does not take long, you just need to test until you know how long it needs to cook for your taste.
Once spätzle have reached the desired tenderness, scoop them out and place in another colander to drain, and continue making until you have used up all of the batter. At this point, if not serving right away, spätzle can be rinsed and set aside or refrigerated until ready to use. If they are being served, melt the 3 tablespoons of remaining butter in a large nonstick pan.
Once the butter is melted, toss in the spätzle and continue tossing until coated with butter and heated through. Sprinkle with ground black pepper, fresh chopped parsley, and the spätzle is ready to serve. Some people like to add cheese; however, our family recipe does not include cheese but you can surely add some if you wish.
Spätzle is delicious and can be served with practically any dish. In this case, I served the spätzle with some imported Bavarian style bratwurst. Enjoy and happy cooking!
Prep Time: 15 min.
Cooking Time: 15 min
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: 4-6
You will need: Large pot of boiling salted water, colander with medium sized holes, or a spätzle press, and a rubber spatula.
Ingredients:
3 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 large eggs
1 cup of water
5 tablespoons butter separated (2 tablespoons melted butter for the batter, & 3 tablespoons are used to sauté the spätzle.
ground black pepper
chopped fresh parsley for garnish