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1
Tear and dry the bread
10 Mins
Room temperature, ~20°C (68°F)
Tear the day-old rolls into rough 2 cm cubes and spread them in a large bowl. If the rolls still feel soft inside, leave the cubes uncovered for 10 minutes so the cut faces dry out a little — dry bread drinks up the milk without collapsing.
Tear rather than cut: rough edges soak up milk more evenly than clean knife cuts.
Done when: Cubes that are dry on the outside and still springy inside.
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2
Soak in warm milk and egg
15 Mins
Room temperature, ~20°C (68°F)
Pour the warm milk over the bread and press it down gently with a spoon so every cube is damp. Leave for 10 minutes, then add the beaten eggs, salt, nutmeg and parsley and mix with your hands until the bread breaks down into a soft, even dough. Rest for 5 minutes so the crumbs finish absorbing.
Warm milk soaks in far faster than cold milk — but milk hotter than 50°C (122°F) will start to cook the egg.
Done when: A soft, sticky dough that holds together when you squeeze a handful.
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3
Fry the onion in butter
5 Mins
Medium heat, ~160°C (320°F)
Melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat, add the finely diced onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring, until it turns pale gold and smells sweet. Tip the onion and all the butter into the dough and fold it through evenly.
Do not let the onion brown — browned onion tastes bitter inside a pale dumpling.
Done when: Onion soft, pale gold and sweet-smelling, with no dark edges.
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4
Shape the dumplings
10 Mins
Room temperature, ~20°C (68°F)
Wet your hands, take a generous handful of dough (about 110 g) and roll it between your palms into a smooth ball, then press it very lightly so it is slightly flattened. Repeat to make 8 dumplings, setting them on a damp plate as you go.
Wet hands stop the dough sticking to your palms; a smooth surface keeps the dumpling from cracking open in the water.
Done when: Eight smooth, even balls, about the size of a tennis ball, with no cracks.
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5
Simmer until set
20 Mins
Gentle simmer, ~95°C (200°F)
Bring the large pot of water to a boil, then turn the heat down until the water barely trembles — never a rolling boil. Slide the dumplings in one at a time, cover loosely and simmer for 20 minutes. They will sink, then rise and swell. Lift one out with a slotted spoon and cut it open: the centre should be soft, even and steaming, with no raw doughy patch.
A rolling boil tears dumplings apart; a bare simmer cooks them gently and keeps them whole.
Done when: Dumplings risen to the surface, doubled in size, and soft all the way through when cut open.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Lift the dumplings out with a slotted spoon, let them drain for a minute, and serve at once with plenty of hot gravy spooned over the top — they wait for no one and firm up as they cool.
Germany
3h 30m
