Schwäbische Spätzle

Schwäbische Spätzle, also called Schwäbische Knöpfle, are an egg pasta with an EU protected geographical indication (PGI) from Swabia – the whole of Baden-Württemberg and the Swabia region of Bavaria. Both names refer to the same product made from the same dough; which one is used varies from place to place.

The dough is made from meal (semolina) of durum wheat and/or spelt, fresh eggs and drinking water. Dried Spätzle must contain at least 2 eggs per kilogram of meal, normally 4 or 6; fresh Spätzle need at least 8 eggs per kilogram, and for them the meal can be partly or fully replaced by flour. Salt (max. 1%), spices, herbs and spinach are optional; fresh Spätzle may also contain citric acid and a neutral cooking oil.

Spätzle have an irregular, home-made shape and a rough, porous surface; they can be thick or thin, long or short, and are naturally golden to light yellow. Cooked, they are firm to the bite and not sticky. The dough is kneaded and shaped straight into boiling water or steam; dried Spätzle are then pre-dried and dried, while fresh ones are pasteurised if needed and chilled to 2–7 °C or frozen. All of this takes place in Swabia.

Spätzle have been made in the region for centuries. Scraping the dough from a board by hand is still seen as a mark of quality; machines imitating the home-made style appeared at the start of the 20th century. Museums such as the open-air museum in Beuren document the craft, and the region holds cooking competitions and records for cutting Spätzle dough.