Spätzle ([ˈʃpɛtslə] ⓘ), Spätzla or Spatzen, called nokedli ([ˈnokɛdli]) in Hungarian, are a type of Central European egg pasta typically served as a side for meat dishes with sauce.

Commonly associated with Swabia (hence Swabian spaetzle) and Alsace,[1] it is also found in the cuisines of southern Germany and Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Hungary, Vojvodina, Banat, Slovenia, Lorraine, Moselle, and South Tyrol.

The glutinous dough is put directly into boiling water or steam and the form varies between thin and thick, elongated and short.

A similar round shape, simplified in production, is native to the pre-Alpine Allgäu regions of Bavarian Swabia and Baden-Württemberg as Knöpfle.

[4] In Switzerland they are called Spätzli or Chnöpfli, in Hungarian Nokedli or Csipetke, in Slovenian Vaseršpacli or vodni žličniki and in Ladin Fierfuli.

Spätzle which went wrong, which are very lumpy or stick together are also called “raven”, “little stork”, “black horse”, “nightingale”, “grandfather” or “eagle”.

[citation needed] The tradition of making Spätzle can be traced back to the 18th century, although medieval illustrations are believed to place the noodle at an even earlier date.

As industrialisation began and prosperity increased, the noodles went from an ordinary, everyday food item to a culinary specialty eaten on feast days.

Since the region was marked by rural peasant structures and poverty, the undemanding grain spelt was very popular since it also thrives in low-nutrient soil.

They are mentioned in many Swabian traditions and celebrations and also form part of tourist activities in terms of culinary specialty weeks or courses, seminars and competitions where Spätzle are scraped (made).

This gives a chewier texture but can produce a dough too crumbly for scraping if no water is added, particularly when cutting short on eggs for dietary reasons.

If fine ("all-purpose") flour and the full amount of eggs are used, all fat and moisture in the dough is derived from these, and water is rarely necessary.

Traditionally, Spätzle are made by scraping long, thin strips of dough off a wooden (sometimes wet) chopping board (Spätzlebrett) into boiling salted water, where they cook until they rise to the surface.

Since this can be a cumbersome way to prepare Spätzle, several devices were invented to facilitate cooking that resemble a strainer or colander, potato ricer (Spätzlepresse), food mill, or coarse grater (Spätzlehobel).

For certain specialty dishes, the dough may be enriched with minced pork liver (resulting in Leberspätzle [de]), spinach or finely grated cheese.

Spätzle typically accompanies meat dishes prepared with an abundant sauce or gravy, such as Zwiebelrostbraten [de], Sauerbraten, Jägerschnitzel or Rouladen.