Bit hot for cooking big old heaping bowls of carbs I hear you say? And seriously, H, aren’t you trying to lose some weight? Well my answer is, yes and sadly, yes but also that once I get a bee in my bonnet about something, nothing will stop me - not even 30 degree heat or a desire to drop a dress size. I recently tried spaetzle (or Spätzle) at Konstam. It is a type of German ‘noodle’ (the name translates as ‘little sparrows’) and is usually made by pushing batter through a spaetzle maker and then cooking the pieces in boiling water, like pasta.
The spaetzle I ate at Konstam had then also been fried, in butter and had the most wonderful texture. Apparently, this is a popular way to eat them - as is mixed with cheese and topped with crispy fried onions. I enjoyed the cheese and onion combo but with a fat wadge of brown crab meat in the fridge, it seemed obvious to go down the crab-lemon-chilli road. I love white crab meat too of course but personally, I feel that the intensely flavoured brown meat is hugely underrated.
The batter is a one bowl job but the mixing of it seriously tests the guns. I’m not talking mayonnaise making gun strain either - this is much more hardcore. I recommend sifting the flour beforehand to avoid those pesky lumps and therefore cutting down on mixing time. A quick shifty through the first page of Google results for spaetzle informed me that a spaetzle maker is the ideal utensil (funny that) but in the absence of this, one should just push the batter through either a potato ricer (I don’t have one), a slotted spoon (takes a lot of practice), or a colander - unsurprisingly I opted for the latter. Easier said than done. The elasticity of the batter makes pushing it through the colander some seriously hard labour. The fact you need to do this over a pan of boiling water = nasty steam burn on my left hand.
I gave up on the colander method and switched to slotted spoon, which worked well until the spoon clogged up and resisted all my attempts to de-batter it. In the end, I resorted to using my hands in what I believe is correctly referred to as a ‘bodge job’ - messy but I got an acceptable result.
I’m pleased to say too that the effort was absolutely worth it as the end result was a joy. I considered throwing all pasta off the balcony and pledging eternal allegiance to the spaetzle. Chris described it as a cross between pasta and gnocchi in texture and it had lovely crusty bits where I fried it in butter before mixing it with the fragrant crabby mixture. I’ll be making spaetzle again and very soon, although not before I’ve invested in some proper equipment. Seriously, you should see the state of my kitchen.
Spaetzle with Crab, Lemon and Chilli
For the spaetzle, I used this recipe, which is sound enough but I will add just a few things. Firstly, make sure to sift your flour - this will cut down on the amount of stirring required to make the batter smooth. Secondly, don’t add too many spaetzle to the water at once - they will stick together. Set each batch aside in a bowl, with a drizzle of oil to stop them sticking together. Finally, it doesn’t mention that when the spaetzle float to the top, they are cooked.
You will also need butter, for frying the spaetzle.
For the crab (and to finish the dish)
170g brown crab meat (this is how much I used…a bit more or less - not a problem)
1 large red chilli, finely chopped
A few strips of lemon peel (from an unwaxed lemon), finely chopped
Juice of half a lemon (plus extra to serve)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
A small handful parsley leaves, chopped
Olive oil
- When you have cooked the spaetzle as above, fry them in butter in a heavy bottomed pan, until they are golden and crispy in places.
- While you are doing this, gently heat the garlic, chilli and lemon zest with a good glug of olive oil in a separate pan. When this begins to sizzle, pour it straight over the spaetzle and add the crab meat, lemon juice, parsley and seasoning. Stir well to combine and warm everything through. Serve straight away with extra lemon wedges.
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