As the title suggests, today I am going to show you how to make Authentic German Spaetzle (Spätzle). Spaetzle means Sparrow in German. It is a type of egg noodles, which is extremely popular in Germany. It is a must-have when visiting Germany. This Swabian speciality can also be found in other parts of Europe such as Austria and Switzerland.
This authentic German egg noodles are actually easier to make than they look. The traditional German Spaetzle recipe that I am making today only require you 3 ingredients – flour, salt and eggs.
Some German Spaetzle recipes require you to use milk and less eggs. (for example, here and here). However, our family recipe prefers using only eggs. Both recipes are delicious. It is just how our family loves our Spätzle to be. By using only eggs, it gives a different texture to the German Spaetzle. This side dish tends to be more chewy and stronger in flavours. Either way, German Spaetzle is delicious and it is our family’s favorite side dish.
How to make Authentic German Spaetzle
As mentioned above, for this recipe, you only need 3 ingredients – flour, salt and eggs. I mean a lot of eggs, especially if you are making a big batch of it.
Tips for making German Spaetzle:
- Flour : There is special German Spaetzle flour available. However, all purpose flour works just fine.
- Eggs : Add your eggs in small batches to your flour is the key to achieving the ideal consistency. Depending on the size of the eggs, you may need more or less eggs than the recipe. Due to the size of eggs, it might differ each time you make German Spaetzle. For example, for 1kg of flour, you might need 20 eggs this time around and 18 the next time. The best way to do it would be slowly adding your eggs to the flour.
- Spaetzle maker – If you do not have a Spaetzle maker, you can use any kitchen equipment with some holes in it such as a colander. However, if you are interested in making this side dish often. I would highly recommend you to invest in a Spaetzle maker. It does make this job easier and the German Spaetzle you make would look much better.
- Set up before cooking: These traditional German egg noodles cook really fast. Therefore, it is important to be prepared. This means that you should set up your working top as shown above to avoid stress.
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Directions for making German Spaetzle
In a suitable bowl, pour in flour. Add salt and eggs to your flour. Use a wooden spoon or a electric mixer, beat as hard as possible until all ingredients are combined.
The texture of the Spätzle batter should be sticky. A simple test to do that is to hold your wooden spoon up. If the batter does not fall back to the bowl, it is ready. If you see flour clumps or that the batter is difficult to mix, it means the batter is too dry. If you could „write“ with the batter, then it is too runny. To fix the problems: Add eggs, if the bater is too dry. Add more flour, if it is runny.
Transfer some batter to the Spaetzle maker, press the batter into a pot of boiling water (salted). After the egg noodles flow on top of the water. Transfer them into cold water. After which, drain off exess water before putting them into a storage box.
Before serving the Spätzle, melt some butter in a pan and cook some Spätzle in it. Add salt according to taste. Store Spätzle in an air tight container in the refrigerator up till 3 days.
It might be difficult to make these egg noodles, if you are doing for the first time. With some practice, you can also master this delicious side dish. Try out this recipe and tell me how you like it? #chenguins on social media, so that I can see your creations!
Until next time & guten Appetit!
Love,
Pia
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Authentic German Spaetzle Recipe
Equipment
- Spaetzle Maker or a colander
Ingredients you need
- 200 g All purpose flour
- 0,5 tsp Salt
- 4 Eggs may varies depending on their size
Directions
- Add eggs and salt to all purpose flour. Mix everything with a wooden spoon or an electric mixer until well combined. The consistency should be sticky. If the batter is too thick, then add an egg. If it is too runny, then add some flour.
- Put a portion of batter into a Spaetzle maker or a colander. Press batter into a pot of boiling water, which is slightly salted.
- Once the egg noodles rise to the top, scoop them out and place them in a pot of cold water. Thereafter, transfer the noodles into a strainer to remove excess water. Repeat as needed.
- Before serving, heat up some butter in a pan and add in the Spaetzle. Add salt according to taste. Serve hot!
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Thanks For Sharing this amazing recipe. My family loved it. I will be sharing this recipe with my friends. Hope the will like it.
Hello Raju, thank you for your comment! This is our favorite main side dish. I am glad that you like this recipe and I hope that your friends will like it too.