Recipe for German Spätzle Pasta

Fancy some homemade pasta without the work and effort usually involved with homemade pasta? German Spätzle pasta – small, squiggly egg dumplings from the Southwest of Germany – are easy to prepare and can be ready in a matter of minutes.

German Spätzle Pasta
German Spätzle pasta – lovely irregular shapes, perfect for sauces

German Spätzle Pasta Recipe

The flour

Austrian flour type 480 (“griffiges Mehl”, flour type 405 in Germany, Italian 00 flour and soft pastry flour in the UK and US) should be used to make Spätzle.

The ingredients (to serve 6 people as side dish) –

  • 500g Austrian flour type 480 / Italian 00 flour or types as specified above
  • 375g water
  • 2 eggs
  • 6g salt

Please note that I am using a Spätzle maker (in German Spätzle-Sieb) to help me with the Spätzle making. Alternatively, you can use a sieve, colander or steamer with large (5-6 mm) holes.

German Spätzle pasta maker
German Spätzle pasta maker
  1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. All flour should be folded into the dough well. The dough will be more like a batter (it should drip, but not be too thin), so not the same as typical pasta dough.
  2. Heat a large pot of water until it reaches simmering point.
  3. Place the Spätzle sieve on top of the pot, put a few ladles of dough onto the Spätzle board and scrape the batter through the holes directly into the simmering water.
  4. The ‘dough droppings’ will sink to the bottom but they’ll pop up to the water surface once cooked through. Stir to make sure the Spätzle separate. The cooking will take only 2 to 3 minutes.
  5. Using a slotted spoon, take out the Spätzle as soon as they float to the top.
  6. Place them into a colander, rinse with cold water and drain.
  7. Toss in a little melted butter to keep them from sticking and warm through before serving.
  8. You can keep Spätzle in the fridge for a couple of days; heat through before serving.

Spätzle

Serve as a side dish to sauce-based meat dishes. Warning: very filling!