Easy Spaetzle Recipe

4.58 from 7 votes

These Spaetzle are light, pudgy, and perfect pillows of egg pasta. They're the perfect side dish to so many recipes - pass the gravy and dig in!

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Resting time1

Total Time1 20

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: European

Keyword: baked pasta, easy side dish, german noodles, german pasta, spaetzle, spaetzle recipe

Servings: servings

Calories: 328kcal

Whisk the eggs and milk together in a large mixing bowl until frothy. Add the flour and salt, then stir with a sturdy wooden spoon until the flour is fully incorporated.
Mix the dough for 2–3 minutes until thick, glossy, and elastic, and it slowly oozes off the spoon. If it clings too much, add 1/4 cup milk; if it runs off quickly, add 1/4 cup flour.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for about 1 hour.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and generously salt it, just as you would for pasta.
Position a spaetzle maker over the simmering water and fill the hopper with batter. Slide the hopper back and forth to cut the noodles and let them fall into the water.
Cook a third of the batter at a time, letting the spaetzle simmer for 1–2 minutes or until they float.
Remove the cooked spaetzle with a spider strainer and transfer to a bowl with butter, tossing to coat so they don’t stick. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Chef Jenn's Tips

Have everything at hand and ready to go. The batter can rest while you boil the water, and have about 2-3 tablespoons of butter in a bowl to help the spaetzle not stick once cooked.
The batter should ooze through the holes of the spaetzle maker. If it isn't oozing, thin the batter with a few tablespoons of milk and try again.
Cook just a few spaetzle at first to make sure they've got enough salt in them. You can add more salt to the batter if you like them saltier.
I almost always at least double this recipe - sometimes triple. If I'm going to go to the work of making them, I want to have at least enough for another meal! Plus, they freeze just fine. See my storage tips below.