Homemade German Spaetzle Just Like Grandma Used to Make

Process Overview

To make the Spaetzle dough, you will need to grab a big mixing bowl and add flour, salt, whole eggs, and water. Combine all the Spaetzle ingredients to a smooth mass. Please refer to the recipe below or the video to see what consistency you need to look out for.

Then let your dough rest for at least 30 minutes. If you are in a hurry, just proceed. Keep a large pot of saltwater to boil; that means to fill up the pot with water and add about 1 tablespoon of salt. Mix.

If you are using a Spaetzle Press, it will be easier for you. Just fill the kitchen tool and press it into the boiling water. If you are using a Spaetzle Maker, as I did in the video, you will need to work fast and by batch!

For the Spaetzle maker, place it over the cooking water. Then add a batch of the dough onto the spaetzle maker, and with a cake card/spatula (or the handy hobble), quickly press the dough through the wholes.

The dough will be falling into the boiling water on the other side. The more you press through the Spaetzle maker, the more the wholes get blocked, and that's when you need to be careful to not burn yourself with the steam.

The water in the pot has a tendency to overboil too because the Spaetzle maker is covering the pot, and over boiling can be caused by holes blocked by dough, which is getting hard with the steam. The pot shouldn't be overcrowded with Spaetzle noodles.

The Spaetzle will swim on the surface after a few minutes when they are ready to be taken out with a slotted perforated spoon. Then just keep it in a bowl, and do not pass through cold water!

You can add some butter to the Spaetzle before serving them hot. See serving instructions further below after the recipe card.

Where to buy flour to make Spätzle?

While you can buy the gripping flour easily in central Europe, it isn't that commonly available anywhere else in the world. In Germany, Spaetzle flour can be found at type 550, in Austria, it's type 700.

If you are one of the lucky ones to live in a rural area, then your village might still have a local flourmill,l and you could just ask them to make a batch of gripping flour for you. If this sounds too complicated, please don't fret!

I know some people who tried to mix some semolina into regular smooth flour to get something that comes close to the dough consistency of a gripping flour. I encourage you to experiment with semolina and regular smooth all-purpose flour!

If all this sounds too complicated for you and you just want to make some Spätzle without hassles, then just go ahead and use regular flour. I have done itbefore;, there is nothing wrong with it!

Shaping them

To create Spätzlenoodles, you will require a tool to shape them. In modern days, we use a spaetzle maker or spaetzle press to shape the noodles. Traditionally the dough is cut into shape in a moving motion on a  wooden chopping board while gradually falling into the below-boiling saltwater.

This is NOT the best way to do it these days. You would take much longer, and it can be tiring. That is why several devices were invented to facilitate your Spätzle production.

Either you go for the Spaetzle maker, which is low cost, and easy to store. But it can turn into a workout when you do it for the first time, time-consuming (although the second one is better!).

Or you can use the Spaetzle Press; just fill and press. It's easy to handle, with no mess afterward, but it’s a little more pricey and bulky, just like a spaghetti press. Whichever Spaetzle gadget you pick, it's up to you!

Serving Ideas

• Beef Goulash
• Chicken Paprikash
• Dutch Oven Beef Stroganoff
• Sauerbraten
• Jägerschnitzel (Hunter's Schnitzel) with Chanterelle mushrooms
• Authentic Wiener Schnitzel
• Creamy Mushrooms
• Hamburger in a Bell Pepper Sauce
• Salisbury Steak in Sauce
• Pork Loin Roast with Garlic

Or serve as Cheese Spaetzle aka Käsespaetzle on its own! Otherwise, you are, of course, free to use Spaetzle the way you use Italian pasta, by preparing a pasta sauce to serve over the Spaetzle.