Planing or scraping spaetzle dough – a matter of belief
The way you prepare your spaetzle depends in most cases on how you learned it yourself as a child from mom and grandma. This connection to tradition also contributes to the great spaetzle myth. The egg pasta from the Swabian region are particularly popular because of their rough, open-pored structure, which ensures that they bind sauces optimally. It is no magic to make spaetzle yourself – if you know how. We have put together great spaetzle recipes for you that make it easy to make the sparrows yourself. Because handmade spaetzle is simply the best!
Swabian spaetzle is characterized by its elongated, irregular shape, which is created by scraping or pressing. The basic recipe is very simple: To achieve the special consistency, flour, eggs and lukewarm water (or optionally milk) are mixed and seasoned with salt. There is also ready-made spaetzle flour, which is made from classic wheat flour type 405 as well as spelled flour or semolina. The advantage over classic flour: there is less clumping. But you can also use normal flour with a clear conscience for your spaetzle dough.
Scrape spaetzle in the traditional way
Mixing these ingredients creates a moist, fairly soft dough that breaks very easily. It cannot be rolled out, but only spread out. With the traditional preparation with the spaetzle scraper, you spread the moist spaetzle dough on a board, for example, and then use a scraper or simply a normal knife to separate thin strips from the mass, which are scraped directly into the boiling salt water.
Important: It is best to scrape the spaetzle dough into the water freshly and not to let it dry first!
Also of great importance for the success of the spaetzle: the board must have a bevelled edge. You won't get very far with a breakfast board. Admittedly, the scraping technique is a bit tricky and requires a bit of practice. It is well worth the effort. It is therefore not surprising that until a few decades ago, a housewife in Swabia was only good if she did spaetzle so could prepare.
Plan and press spaetzle and knöpfle
It is easier with the spaetzle press, a kitchen device that was specially developed for this purpose. Simply put the dough in the press and press vertical threads into the water. The advantage here: the threads are all the same length, it is quick and even beginners succeed really well. With the spaetzle press, you will surely succeed in the spaetzle.
Another tool also makes it easier to prepare your first own spaetzle: the spaetzle slicer! In many parts of southern Germany, planing is the traditional – and therefore only true – variant of spaetzle preparation. The dough is poured into a funnel located on the top of the tool. This runs on a rail above the actual planer. By pushing the container back and forth, the dough flows into the holes in the plane – and directly into the pot underneath. Depending on the cut-out in the planer, the spaetzle is given its characteristic shape: either short and thick for the classic Knöpfle or long spaetzle as is known throughout the country.
Make delicious dishes from spaetzle dough
You can tell that the spaetzle is cooked by the fact that it rises to the surface after being submerged. Then it's time to skim off! Those who dream here risk that the spaetzle will soften or drown. And you don't want that, because spaetzle also depends on this special consistency, thanks to which they absorb the sauce so well. Now you can process them further. For example with cheese spaetzle or thyme spaetzle.
Cheese spaetzle are the autumn and winter classics, because nothing beats their hearty aroma when you come home after a day in the cold, fresh air. For more creative recipe ideas, just browse through our spaetzle recipes and be inspired. In the recipes you will learn how to make the spaetzle dough yourself and how versatile the finished spaetzle can be used. By the way, it becomes especially delicious when you experiment with fresh herbs and wild garlic.