Germknodel
Fluffy steamed yeast dumplings filled with plum jam and topped with melted butter, poppy seeds and sugar, from a dough risen for 1 hour.
Photograph credit: 2015 0720 Germknödel Vanillesoße Sölden (image of Germknödel on Wikidata Q701327) by Takeaway · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · this resized copy is shared under the same licence
Storing and Planning Ahead
Best fresh.
Making Germknodel
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Mix the flour, yeast, sugar, salt, milk, egg and softened butter and knead for 8 minutes. Cover and leave to rise for 1 hour.
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Divide into 6 and flatten each. Put 30 g of jam in the middle and pinch shut. Set smooth side up on a floured cloth and leave for 20 minutes.
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Set the dumplings on baking paper in a steamer over boiling water, cover and steam for 20 minutes without lifting the lid.
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Pour the melted butter over and scatter with the poppy seeds and icing sugar.
Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.
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Worth Knowing
- Do not lift the lid while steaming.
- Pinch the dough tightly around the jam.
- Serve straight from the steamer.
Why the Method Is What It Is
Keep the lid on and do not peek. That is the tip every Austrian ski hut cook gives for germknödel, the big, soft, steamed yeast dumplings sold in the Alps, filled with plum jam and covered in melted butter and poppy seeds. Open the pan early and the steam escapes and the dumplings collapse.
The dough is soft and enriched, with flour, milk, egg, butter and yeast, and it rises for 1 hour. Divide it into six balls, flatten each, put a spoonful of thick plum jam in the middle and pinch the dough shut around it, smooth side up. Let the filled dumplings rise for 20 minutes on a floured cloth before they steam. Steam them over boiling water for 20 minutes without lifting the lid.
To serve, pour melted butter over each dumpling and scatter with poppy seeds mixed with icing sugar. Some cooks add vanilla sauce around the plate. They are best eaten at once, since a cold germknödel is stodgy. Cut one open and the hot jam runs out.
Serving Ideas
Vanilla sauce · Mulled wine · Hot chocolate
Questions About Germknodel
How long does Germknodel take to make?
40 minutes of preparation and 20 minutes of cooking, plus 1 hour 20 minutes of Rising, so allow 2 hours 20 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 6.
Germknodel Nutrition
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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