Have You Tried German Spaetzle Noodles?

[Food4thought]

Spätzle or spaetzle noodles make a nice change from Italian pasta. These broad yellow noodles are made from durum wheat flour and eggs. If you have a spätzle press you can make your own noodles with flour, eggs and water. I buy them from Lidl supermarket, where sometimes dried spätzle egg noodles are sold in packets, just like pasta.

German egg noodles are cooked exactly like Italian pasta. The noodles rise to the top of the water when they are cooked. The long soft noodles can be served in many ways. You can bake them with cheese sauce and onions, in the same way as macaroni cheese, or lightly fry them in butter and serve with spicy German sausage or frankfurters. I usually serve them with vegetables cooked in a rich sauce.

 

[BWF]

I've had them in the German-speaking part of Italy. It was delicious in a rich cheese sauce. I also liked the Northern Lombardian pizzoccheri which is like a short rough tagliatelle.

 

[Treeca86]

I love Spaetzel! Mine and my son's favourite way to make it is sautee diced ham, add shredded cabbage to wilt down, and then add 1-2 cups pasta, with 1 ladle of warm chicken broth, when that evapourates, add another ladle, keep adding once evapourated until Spaetzel is done. This releases the starch in the Spaetzel to make it creamy without adding fattening cream. You can use this method with all rice and pasta. It is so delicious.

 

[Delftse Post]

I've just spent a couple of weeks in S Germany and consumed my bodyweight in spaetzle: typically served in a cream sauce. Lovely stuff!

 

[OhioTom76]

Yes, our local grocery stores here in NE Ohio sell them fresh in the refrigerated section near the fresh meats. They are also sold along side fresh pirogi. I like them overall, though they are a bit heavier and more dense than your regular egg noodle. They hold up well in dishes that need to stay in a baking dish for a long period of time, such as if you are catering some event. But I probably wouldn't use them in something like a Tuna Noodle Casserole, since they seem like they would be a tad too heavy for my liking. I've heard one of the traditional ways of making them was to press the dough against the holes of a colander, forcing the dough to extrude into its signature shape, and drop into boiling water to cook.

They are also good with a Polish dish known as Haluski. It's basically just egg noodles with caramelized onions, braised cabbage and tons of butter. Some people include crumbled bacon in it as well, while others leave it meat free and serve it for Lent.