Norpro Spaetzle Maker

by Norpro

• Designed to make authentic egg dumplings
• 13 inches long
• Stainless-steel and plastic construction
• Batter/dough recipes included
• Hand wash in warm, soapy water

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 14 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004UE89
• Item model number: 3128
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (164 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,923 in Kitchen & Dining (See Top 100 in Kitchen & Dining)
  • #16 in Kitchen & Dining > Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets > Graters, Peelers & Slicers > Graters

Product Description

Amazon.com

Whether you call that German-by-way-of-Genoa hybrid of dumpling and pasta spaetzle, spatzle, spatzen, or just "that dough stuff you drop into boiling broth," the folks at Norpro have fashioned a reasonably efficient way to prepare it. With their stainless-steel spaetzle maker--essentially a bottomless mining-car basket that runs along a flat cheese grater with bigger holes--cooks can load their favorite combo of egg/flour/milk (recipes for two spaetzle doughs are included) into the basket. By running the "mining car" along the rails of the stainless-steel grater, the batter is extruded into the waiting pot of boiling water or stock. At least, that's the theory: while the plastic basket is bottomless, it's also topless, meaning that, depending on the consistency of the batter, you may need to push it through the grater by hand--a bit daunting over a boiling pot. The grater base is also attached to a plastic handle via plastic tabs; one wishes for one-piece construction, though no doubt an all-stainless-steel fabrication would involve dropping a different kind of dough. --Tony Mason

Product Description

Stainless steel grater with a plastic hopper this device quickly cuts through spaetzle batter into little dumplings. The hopper slides along cutting the surface while each pass of the hopper, the perforated devise drips dozens of perfectly formed dumplings right into your pot of simmering water.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

74 of 80 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I Love My Spaeztle Maker!! January 25, 2003

By Spoiledbrat

Amazon Verified Purchase

A decade or so ago I toured through Europe and while in Germany I was introduced to Spaetzle. It was love at first bite. I live in a small town in California and spaetzle is not easy to come by. I bought an instant package of spaetzle, and followed the directions (pour contents of box into boiling water...) and it was terrible. Finally I decided to shop around for a Spaetzle maker and the only one I could find cost a fortune and was incredibly big and awkward, I imagined scraping my knuckles off and gave up my dreams of having fresh spaetzle. Imagine my surprise and delight when I found this simple spaetzle maker here on Amazon.com and at such a friendly price. I ordered it right before the holidays and it arrived in time for Christmas dinner. We eat our Christmas feast early in the afternoon and for a light dinner I love to make turkey soup from leftover Christmas turkey. For a twist I decided to add some fresh spaetzle and it was a wonderful success. The maker came with two simple recipes and after a couple attempts, I mastered the spaetzle maker. Since then we eat spaetle often with gravy's, soups, and tons of other dishes. This is a great deal for such a wonderful tool that will inhance you meals.

42 of 46 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Spaetlze noodles for your sauerbraten February 28, 2001

By Joanna Daneman #1 HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

This is an unusual spaetzle maker. Instead of being a press, it's kind of a grater, where you push the batter through the holes into the hot water. The traditional way these are made is to make a very soft dough and hold a wooden board over a pot of boiling water, and cut strips off and shove them into the pot. They float, they're done. This is a messy job. That's called "vom Brett" or "off the board" and where we lived in Germany, it was the mark of an expert cook. I never got the hang of it. This unit is not the fanciest, that would be more like a Heavy Duty Spaetzle Press which also can do riced potatoes. If you think you are going to rice potatoes, I'd get that unit instead. If you only want to make spaetzle occasionally, this is an inexpensive option.

The little maker is a lot easier and the price is right. It comes with some good dough recipes (I add a bit of nutmeg to mine.) Traditionally, the noodles are served with a garnish of browned bread crumbs. They are very good with stew, pot roast and venison. They are also made into Kaesepatzle--literally "cheese spaetzle", which is the German version of macaroni and cheese. You toss the boiled spaetzle in a bechamel (white) sauce made with swiss or cheddar cheeseabd top with sauteed browned onions. They are very good, too. Kids love them.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars EMERIL USED THIS TOOL ON HIS SHOW!!!!! October 16, 2000

By A Customer

I saw Emeril Lagasse use this spaetzle maker and I knew I needed it immediately. My mom used to make spaetzle and drop the dumplings by hand into the boiling beef stew and it was so time consuming but we loved to eat them. It was worth the wait. But alas, this tool doesn't make spaetzle as big as my mom's but the receipe that is included with this tool is just as good. I had fun using it and plan to order 2 more as Christmas presents.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars quick and easy... May 23, 2003

By remosito

What a wonderful tool...

Easy to use, quick and doesn't use up lots of space.
Definitely the way to make spaetzle (or Knoepli as
they are called in Switzerland).

This is definitely one of those speciality tools
that's worth having, because there's nothing else
that works as nicely and it makes the job SO much
easier!!!

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars simplified spaetzle September 19, 2005

By Mutantfrog

This product makes making spaetzle SOOOO much easier! It has grooves on the end that allow you to rest it across a pot and just push the little basket back and forth, while your spaetzle drops into the pot. If you use the spaetzle recipe on the back of the Norpro box, the dough/batter is soft enough that you can use a mixer to combine ingredients (rather than by hand) and just pour the batter right into the basket resting on the pot. You can work it so that you never have to touch the spaetzle by hand, thanks to the Norpro spaetzle maker.

Also, the norpro comes apart very easily, so cleaning it is a breeze. For 8 bucks, you really can't beat it.

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars yummy and quick! December 3, 2001

By Archimedes

this gadget is by far the easiest (and least messy)way to make spaetzle I have ever tried - but dry it well, I didn't and mine rusted pretty badly. My grandma would have loved this gizmo.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Spaetzle-nockerl maker essential for Paprikas Chicken June 30, 2002

By Kathy M. Guenther

Amazon Verified Purchase

If you love authentic food of the Austro-Hungarian region, this is your kitchen essential. The sliding action of the cutter rapidly makes the tiny spaetzle, tender and worthy of your best Paprikas sauce! Also great in soups. I used to flip the spaetzle by hand with a spoon , over the hot pot, it took forever! This product shortens the time by 75%. The cutter is very easy to clean, just zip it into hot soapy water.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy and fun! June 24, 2001

By A Customer

I love this. I have looked all over and they are kind of hard to find. The first time I made them I used a colander and I had a mess. So I said when I find one of these I am going to buy it, and I bought this one. I make them all the time I like them better than noodles or dumplings, and they take no time at all.