Classic Homemade Spaetzle

Helen Doberstein

Helen, whose husband’s German family considers spaetzle a staple, was keen to try this recipe for a large family dinner of 15 people. She successfully doubled the recipe, noting its ease of scalability and the enthusiastic reception from her in-laws, including her mother-in-law, a true testament to its authentic flavor! Helen emphasized that the batter’s consistency is key: “like a really thick pancake batter, too thick to pour off a spoon but thin enough to fall off a spoon.” Her prep work took about 20 minutes for mixing and 40 minutes for cooking the doubled batch. While she had a spaetzle maker, she did experiment with a small colander but found it a bit cumbersome for large quantities. She advises cooking spaetzle in smaller batches at a slow boil to keep them separate and ensure even cooking, allowing for easy removal with a slotted spoon. Helen also suggests placing the cooked spaetzle on a towel-lined baking sheet to absorb excess water before tossing them with traditional brown butter, salt, and pepper. Given its simplicity and delicious outcome, she highly recommends investing in a spaetzle maker, which significantly speeds up the process.

Michelle P.

As someone with Bavarian roots who has enjoyed spaetzle both at home and in Germany, Michelle affirms its status as a true comfort food. She found this recipe remarkably easy to assemble, relying on common kitchen staples. She confirmed the batter’s characteristic thick and sticky texture, noting that achieving a perfectly smooth dough wasn’t the goal. Lacking a specialized spaetzle maker, Michelle opted for a colander, but discovered its graduated holes posed a slight challenge. She recalls her father creating homemade makers from plastic milk jugs with uniform holes, which she suggests as an alternative. Initially, she found the colander awkward and struggled to push the thick dough through. After the first batch, she wisely added about 1/4 cup more milk, which helped the dough pass through the holes much more easily. She observed that the mini dumplings cooked very rapidly, floating to the surface in about 30 seconds, and that leaving them in for an additional minute past the initial float did not adversely affect their consistency. After cooking all batches, Michelle browned butter in her Dutch oven, tossed the spaetzle back in, seasoned it with salt and pepper, and served it with grated Romano cheese on top. Her family devoured it, and she plans to use the leftovers as “noodles” in chicken noodle soup, highlighting spaetzle’s versatility.

Joel Jenkins

Joel, a seasoned spaetzle maker since the mid-’90s, praised this recipe for its simplicity. He noted that while he previously rolled and punched each dumpling by hand for many years, the colander method proved to be a “vast improvement” in terms of efficiency. His crucial advice for using the colander method is to place it over the boiling water and quickly add the batter, as delays can lead to a considerable mess. He strongly recommends cooking the spaetzle in small batches, cautioning against dumping all the batter at once, which can overcrowd the pot and result in overcooked noodles. To prevent the spaetzle from sticking together between batches, Joel suggests rinsing them with cool water. For serving, he shared his preference for making brown butter with sage, then briefly crisping the noodles in the butter rather than simply pouring melted butter over them—a personal touch that adds an extra layer of flavor and texture.

Robert McCune

Robert had a spaetzle “lid” that fits over a pan, yet it remained unused until this recipe inspired him. He found this spaetzle recipe to be easy and yielding “great results.” The batter came together quickly, producing very light pasta dumplings suitable for numerous applications. He experimented with a couple of different serving styles: first, tossing the spaetzle with warm sage-infused olive oil and grated Parmesan cheese, which created a delightful herbaceous profile. Second, he served them with leftover pork tenderloin, allowing the spaetzle to absorb the luscious pan juices, highlighting their ability to complement rich flavors. Robert also suggests tossing spaetzle with pasta sauce, adding them to soups, or incorporating them into pasta salads. He particularly recommends browning them in a little butter and serving them as a hearty side dish, a flavorful alternative to potatoes or rice.

Lila Ferrari

For Lila, making this recipe was a special treat as she rediscovered her long-lost spaetzle maker. She noted a small challenge during the batter preparation: whisking the milk into the flour and eggs proved difficult, suggesting that a sturdy spatula might have been more effective than a traditional whisk for incorporating the thick mixture. Despite this, the resulting spaetzle were wonderfully light. For serving, Lila and her family opted for the classic, simple approach of butter, salt, and pepper—a minimalist choice that nonetheless delivered comforting flavor. Looking ahead, Lila plans to enhance the flavor in future batches by adding a touch of nutmeg, a common spice in traditional German cooking that beautifully complements spaetzle.

Mackenzie Campbell

Mackenzie, a long-time lover of spaetzle since her travels through Germany, was amazed by how simple this recipe was to execute, especially given its recent resurgence on “hip menus.” She noted the dough came together in just five minutes and let it rest for about 30 minutes while preparing other ingredients. The batter was “incredibly sticky, like glue,” a common characteristic. Lacking a dedicated spaetzle maker, she successfully used a large-holed grater, effectively smearing the dough over the holes with a spatula. Her meal preparation involved sautéing the spaetzle with caramelized onions, kale, whole grain mustard, butter, and chicken. She describes this as “one of the tastiest and easiest meals I’ve made lately,” emphasizing that browning the spaetzle in plenty of butter elevated it to a “heavenly dish” once combined with her accoutrements. The entire meal, including prep, took around 40 minutes, solidifying its place in her “weeknight meals folder.” Mackenzie also noted that had she not “selfishly eaten more than her share,” the recipe would have been perfect for four people as a side or integrated into a main dish, underscoring its generous yield.

Linda Pacchiano

Linda highlights the convenience of a spaetzle maker but assures that the recipe is entirely achievable with a colander that has “fairly large holes.” If using a colander without a dedicated maker, she recommends having another person assist with scraping the dough into the boiling water to manage the process more smoothly. She found the recipe quick to assemble and mix, taking approximately five minutes. Linda advises against using a standard whisk once the milk is added due to the batter’s increasing thickness, suggesting a dough whisk or a simple wooden spoon for easier blending. The batter’s appearance was described as a “thick, lumpy cake batter.” The scraping and cooking phase took about eight minutes, bringing the total active time to a mere 13 minutes. Her essential tip for knowing when spaetzle is done? “Just like when you cook pasta, the only way to know if the spaetzle are done is to taste them.” After cooking, she tossed her spaetzle in a couple of tablespoons of butter and seasoned with pepper, finding that no additional salt was necessary thanks to the thoroughly salted cooking water.