When meeting with my friend Michael Berkowits recently, he served me his favorite recipe for Chicken Paprikash over small egg noodle dumplings known as nokedli (in some regions they are called spätzle). Michael grew up in Transylvania (what is now the central part of Romania, and was once part of Hungary). Because of his background, many of his family recipes have a Hungarian influence. These dumplings are a popular and beloved starch in many Eastern European countries. They are surprisingly easy to make and very tasty.
As Michael described how to make the dumplings, he showed me an old kitchen tool he’s had for close to 50 years– he called it a “nokedli maker.” It is more widely known as a spätzle maker. This tool is used for pushing the nokedli batter into the boiling water. I didn’t have one at home, so I used a metal cheese grater, which worked well. I recommend using a grater or spätzle maker (which I just ordered!) rather than the alternative method of spooning small amounts of batter into the boiling water, which takes a lot of time and can produced overcooked nokedli if you’re not careful.
Michael’s instructions were kind of vague on the nokedli– make a batter of 2 cups of flour, 2 eggs, water and salt, then boil in salted water. After some experimentation, I found that the following combination worked best and produced the same texture of nokedli that he served me at his home. I find them very tasty and homey, a comforting dish that can be made in 15 minutes or less. Try them fried in butter and topped with parsley, or serve them with your favorite stew or a saucy braised dish. Enjoy!
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Nokedli/Spaetzle
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup tepid water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups flour (more or less)
NOTES
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil. Beat the eggs and tepid water together with the salt.
- Slowly beat in the flour 1/4 cupful at a time to make a soft, sticky dough (you may not need all the flour, or you may need more-- stop adding flour when the texture of the batter is soft and pliable). Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes. Beat the mixture again.
- Push 1/3 of the batter through a spaetzle maker, cheese grater or pasta strainer over the pot of salted water to create small egg noodle bits that drop into the boiling water.
- Let the noodles cook for about 3 minutes until they float to the top of the pot and are cooked tender all the way through.
- Remove from water with a slotted spoon or small mesh strainer and drain in a colander. Repeat the process two more times with the remaining two thirds of the batter.
- Serve warm. You can toss them in melted butter, fry them a bit, and sprinkle with fresh parsley (this would make it a dairy dish). Or, you can serve them with your favorite Hungarian-style stew or dish. Goes great with chicken paprikash.
Kerry says
I made these for the first time last night and WOW. They were delicious and fun to make, everyone loved them. I pan fried them in butter with fresh parsley and served them with chicken paprikash. I did not have a flat cheese grater so I used the method some of your commenters mentioned of putting the dough on a plate and flicking it in with the back of a spoon. That method worked great, and was relatively easy as long as I kept dipping the spoon in the water pot to keep it wet.
I will definitely make these again and again. Thank you for the lovely recipe!
Michelle Sullivan says
I’m Slovak and my mother made these with chicken paprikash also. She also used a flat plate and a spoon to flip them into the boiling water. They were considerably larger than the spatzle. She also used them with fried sauerkraut or chopped cabbage browned in butter. I’m making them with sauerkraut tonight.
JAMES KOROMI says
MY HUNGARIAN GRANDMOTHER, WHO DIDN’T SPEAK A WORD OF ENGLISH, USED TO MAKE CHICKEN PAPRIKASH WITH NOKEDLI. SHE USED TO MAKE QUITE A BIT OF DOUGH AND USED THE BACK OF A TABLESPOON TO FLICK IT INTO A LARGE POT OF BOILING WATER AT LIGHTNING SPEED. SHE WAS SIMPLY INCREDIBLE AND HER CHICKEN PAPIKASH WITH NOKEDLI WAS ABSOLUTELY THE BEST!! I MAKE IT NOW AND THEN FOR MY WIFE AND KIDS (WHO ARE NOW GROWN UP), ONLY I TAKE A SHORT CUT AND USE FROZEN CAVATELLI. IT’S GOOD, BUT NOT AS GOOD AS GRANDMA’S. THANK YOU FOR RECIPE FOR NOKEDLI. I WILL TRY TO MASTER IT.
Pat says
Our Hungarian family used to go to a restaurant called Budapest Restaurant in Toledo, Ohio, which has since closed. They served the Nokedli with many dishes, including their stuffed cabbage which was the best ever. On top of the Nokedli, they put a kind of sauce or gravy. It was white and may have had some paprika in it. Do you know of anything like this?
Val says
Hi Pat,
I know just the place you are talking about. I grew up in Toledo, have been to the Budapest Restaurant and absolutely loved their food. I lived close to Tony Packo’s Restaurant, and went to HS with young Tony. I would also love that gravy recipe. Are you sure it wasn’t the Paprikash gravy?
Val
Zolly Littlechild says
My father used to make this regularly and in a big pot, well, with 6 kids it had to be big. I used to watch him make the mix then put some on a flat plate, then using a tablespoon upside down he used to keep the tablespoon hot and wet and flick, off the edge of the plate, lumps of the mix into the hot boiling water, the knokadli pieces were a little larger maybe, than those shown here, but added to the chicken, green peppers, tomato, mushroom, grated carrot, olive oil, paprika, salt&black pepper (onion if you weren’t allergic, I was) it made a grat hearty meal,bwhich I now cook for friends on occasssion.
Nick says
Give me a call if you get this message Zol, it’s Nick
07482-720016
Brenda Scardina says
OMGoodness! My fav dinner from the Ornstein family in Cinti Oh in 1967! Loved you kids!
Sharon, Miriam, & Rafael!
sana says
hi tori can I use 00 flour / pasta flour instead of all purpose to increase the nutritional value ? thank you
Tori Avey says
Sana, while I haven’t tested it myself I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t work.
sana says
these came out great ! I fried them a bit in olive oil. thank you sharing such great recipes ( including kosher chicken paprikash). love and prayers from your fan in pakistan.
MIles Szilagyi says
Thanks for the Nokedi recipe. I forgot how my grandmother made them but chicken paprikash I have memorized having helped her make it as a young…skinny child.
Nancy M Carlson says
Hi Tori,
I just ordered this spatzle maker on
Amazon..Thank you…What a great
recipe…He seems so sweet!! 🙂
Maybe it would be a good idea for
you to sell them on your site…
Your friend,
Nancy
Celeste Bocian says
My Hungarian grandmother used to make these and put them in soups as well. She didn’t use a grater. She put the flour mixture on a small, flat plate and used a butter knife to separate a ribbon of flour. She then used the knife to cut small pieces and push it in the water with the knife. She did it so fast I just loved watching it. She made her own noodles for chicken soup on a large cutting board. She used a machete to cut the thinnest noodles you’ve ever seen and at the speed of light.
ferenc says
I saw a comment on not using sour cream with chicken paprikas. Fact is we hungarians eat most dishes with sour cream. It is a neccesity to be authentic
Tori Avey says
Ferenc, kosher Jews do not mix dairy products with meat. This is a Hungarian Jewish recipe, which is why there is no sour cream in the sauce. It is traditional, but only for Jewish Hungarians, not for all Hungarians.
Elina says
some of us do make the chicken paprikas without the sour cream, but then we just call this csirke {chicken} porkolt, {, which means you sort of singe, sear or roast the meat so it gets a little crisp on the outside}
Do the same method for beef, pork lamb.
Nina says
Excellent recipes. I made the chicken and the spaetzle last night. Took some time, but it was easy to follow. Like I do with all slow cooked foods, I make them the night before. Be sure to use good paprika, I think that is the key.
There are only two of us and I made the whole recipe. I will make individual portions with my FoodSaver and freeze them for future dinners.
I never really liked paprikash with sour cream. This recipe is much tastier and less Jewish guilt!
Thanks for sharing Michael’s heart rendering story.
Tori Avey says
Glad you enjoyed them Nina!
Susann Codish says
How different do you think the recipe has to be to make it with whole wheat flour? I, too, remember this dish very fondly from my childhood (my mother, z”l, was a fabulous Hungarian cook) but these days I’m pretty committed to whole grains.
Tammy says
Can you make these ahead of time and reheat? Thank you
Tori Avey says
Hi Tammy– yes you can, they reheat quite well. Just stir them in a pan over medium heat with a little butter or olive oil to keep them from sticking.
nossi @ the kosher gastronome says
Nuckedluch/nukedli and chicken is quite possibly my favorite comfort food. My Hungarian grandmother used to make it, she even gave me her nuckedli maker, although I haven’t been able to reproduce her nuckedli…I’ll definitely give this recipe a try
Barb Sullivan says
This is soo Great to find such delightful cooks!
Sounds so good. Thanks!!
T says
I find that if, after you boil them, you put in a fying pan with some butter, and get the outsides a little crunchy, they’re even better!
Enjoy.