Käsespätzle

Name: Käsespätzle
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 4 plates
Cuisine: German
Ingredients: 400 g Wheat flour; 4 piece Egg; 150 ml Water, or sparkling water; 1 tsp Salt, plus more for the pot; 0.25 tsp Nutmeg, freshly grated; 200 g Emmentaler cheese, coarsely grated; 100 g Gruyère cheese, or any aged Bergkäse, grated; 3 medium Onion, thinly sliced into rings; 60 g Butter; 2 tbsp Chives, snipped

Swabian egg noodles layered hot with Emmentaler and mountain cheese and buried under slow-fried onions.

Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.

Start cooking

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 40 min
Rest: None
Total: 55 min
Difficulty: Easy
Spice: No chilli
Cost: Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price

Know it before you cook it

About

Spätzle are soft egg noodles made by pressing a loose batter through holes into boiling water. Käsespätzle layers them, straight from the pot, with grated Emmentaler and a sharper Alpine cheese, then covers the lot with onions fried in butter until deep brown and sweet. This version makes the batter from flour, egg, water and nutmeg, presses it through a spätzle press or a colander with large holes, and finishes the layers in a frying pan rather than the oven so the cheese strings instead of crusting. A green salad in a vinegar dressing is the only correct side.

What you'll need

10 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.

0 of 10 ready

4 servings

Ingredients

Servings

Wheat flour400 g
Egg4
Water, or sparkling water150 ml
Salt, plus more for the pot4.9 ml
Nutmeg, freshly grated1.2 ml
Emmentaler cheese, coarsely grated200 g
Gruyère cheese, or any aged Bergkäse, grated100 g
Onion, thinly sliced into rings3 medium
Butter60 g
Chives, snipped (optional)30 ml

Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.

Steps

Step 1
Fry the onions in 40 g of the butter over medium-low heat, stirring now and then, for 25 to 30 minutes until brown and sweet. Start these first; they take longer than everything else combined.
30 min
Tip: Brown, not black. Lower the heat if they catch.
Step 2
Beat flour, eggs, water, salt and nutmeg into a thick, glossy batter that falls slowly from a spoon. Beat it for a minute with a wooden spoon until it blisters. Rest 10 minutes.
12 min
Step 3
Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Press a third of the batter through a spätzle press or colander into the water. When the noodles float, after about a minute, lift them out with a spider.
5 min
Step 4
Tip the hot noodles into a warm pan with the remaining butter, scatter over a third of the cheese, and keep going: noodles, cheese, noodles, cheese, working fast so the cheese melts on contact.
10 min
Step 5
Set the pan over low heat for 3 minutes, loosely covered, until the cheese is molten and stringy. Pile the onions on top, add chives, and bring the pan to the table.
3 min

Nutrition

Per serving · estimate

Calories: 876 kcal
Protein: 35.9 g
Carbs: 87 g
Fat: 42.2 g
Saturated fat: 23.8 g
Fibre: 4.3 g
Sugar: 5.2 g
Sodium: 1094 mg

Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.

Allergens

Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.

Wheat
Eggs
Milk

Vegetarian

Vegetarian only with a vegetarian Gruyère cheese: the traditional cheese is made with animal rennet.

Adapt this recipe

The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.

Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.

Substitutions

Emmentaler and Gruyère → Any mix of a mild melter and a sharp hard cheese
Mature Cheddar and mozzarella works. It is no longer Käsespätzle, but it is dinner.

Tips

No press: hold a chopping board over the pot and scrape thin strips of batter off the edge with a knife. Uglier, more authentic.
The batter should be thicker than pancake batter and thinner than dough. Add a spoon of water or flour until it drops slowly.
Leftovers fry up well the next day in butter until crisp.

History & culture

Swabia and the Allgäu own it; it crosses into Austria as Kasspatzln and into Switzerland as Chäschnöpfli. It is mountain hut food, Friday meatless food and student food. Beer gardens serve it in portions that defeat people. Nobody is impressed if you make it, but everybody eats it.

Spätzle appear in Swabian records from the 18th century and the region has protected the name within the EU. Cheese versions come from the Alpine dairy valleys where cheese was cheaper than meat and onions were what grew.

Traditional

Provenance: Editorial adaptation.

Questions about this recipe

Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.

How long does Käsespätzle take?

55 min all in — 15 min prep, 40 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.

How many does it serve?

The recipe is written for 4 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.

How hard is it?

Easy.

How spicy is it?

No chilli.

What allergens should I watch?

This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Eggs, Milk. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.

Does it fit a diet?

The published recipe is labelled Vegetarian.

7 more questions

What does it cost to cook?

Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.

What equipment do I need?

Stockpot, Frying pan, Mixing bowl, Spider or strainer.

How much salt do I put in?

The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp (plus more for the pot).

What can I use instead?

Emmentaler and Gruyère → Any mix of a mild melter and a sharp hard cheese. Mature Cheddar and mozzarella works. It is no longer Käsespätzle, but it is dinner.

Any tips from this recipe?

No press: hold a chopping board over the pot and scrape thin strips of batter off the edge with a knife. Uglier, more authentic. The batter should be thicker than pancake batter and thinner than dough. Add a spoon of water or flour until it drops slowly. Leftovers fry up well the next day in butter until crisp.

Can I prepare this ahead?

Leftovers fry up well the next day in butter until crisp.

Can I use an air fryer?

This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.