Traditional German potato dumplings, also known as “Thuringian dumplings”, are probably the most delicious side dish for savory meals with gravy. In this recipe I will show you how to make the delicious dumplings “half and half”, as we say in German. They are named so because they are made from a mixture of cooked and raw potatoes. This gives them a very special and unique consistency – very slightly tough, but also super soft, so that they melt on the tongue and absorb sauces very well. I like them so much that I once had a whole portion of them exclusively with delicious vegan gravy. The combination is simply a dream! In the middle of the dumplings I put roasted pieces of bread croutons. I season them with salt, a little garlic and fresh thyme. Pure pleasure, friends! On top, the recipe is very simple and there is only one big cooking secret, which at the same time is the guarantee of success. The prepared dumplings are cooked in hot water for about 15 minutes. However, the cooking water may only “boil”, not “bubble”. The latter causes the dumplings to disintegrate. More about this in the recipe itself. So you are guaranteed to succeed. Have fun & all the best, your dumpling queen Lea.
Traditional German Potato Dumplings
Ingredients
- 1 kg (35.27 oz) floury potatoes
- Salt
- 1 slice of bread or toast (50 g/1.7 oz)
- 15 g/ 1 tbsp. margarine
- A pinch of garlic powder
- Optional: some fresh thyme
- Pepper
- Freshly ground nutmeg
- 3 tbsp. potato starch
- Fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Wash the potatoes and boil half of the potatoes (500 g/17.63 oz) unpeeled in salted water until soft. Depending on the type and size of the potato, this takes about 20-25 minutes.
- While the first half of the potatoes is boiling, wash the second half of the potatoes, peel and rub very finely. Put the fine potato rasp into a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Wrap the squeezed potato rasp in the towel and put it aside until use.
- Cut the bread into pieces. Heat a tbsp. of margarine in a pan and fry until golden brown. Lightly salt the croutons, season with a pinch of garlic powder and mix with a few thyme leaves.
- Peel the boiled potatoes and press them through a potato press. Mix the cooked and pressed potatoes with the rasped ones and season with a salt, some pepper and plenty of freshly grated nutmeg.
- Knead the ingredients to a smooth dough, adding 3 tbsp. potato flour.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Take a large portion of dough in your hand, press flat, place a few pieces of toasted bread on top and form a firm round dumpling (approx. the size of a tennis ball).
- Continue until all dumplings are formed.
- Cook the formed potato dumplings in hot water for about 15 minutes until done. Finally they float to the surface and can be taken out of the water 2-3 minutes later. Very important for your dumpling-success: The boiling water must never "bubble". It should only be "about to bubble". So let the dumplings simmer! Because if you put the dumplings in bubbling hot water, they will quickly disintegrate. But as long as you only simmer them, they will turn out to be great!
- Now your delicious "half and half" potato dumplings are ready. You can serve them immediately, but you can also warm them up again the next day. Add a little cooking liquid to the dumplings and store them in the fridge. Sprinkle the dumplings with fresh parsley before serving.
