Not just because they are that delicious, no, also because they can be prepared with leftovers (you know: “too good for the bin” and all that.) We don’t throw away a single piece of stale bread. We cut it into small cubes, let it dry and use it to prepare dumplings. And who ever was hiking in the mountains knows how tasty dumplings are on a mountain lodge. Dumplings in broth or dumplings with bacon and cole slaw like on the mountain? Let’s go

Of course, you can buy your dumpling bread. In southern Germany you can get this „Knödelbrot“ (diced bread) at every bakery. In northern Germany and probably the rest oft he world you have to do it yourself. Leave bread rolls a day or two and then cut into small cubes. I personally use stale bread, cut it in small cubes and dry them. I store them (well dried) in a large clay pot with a lid, until the sufficient amount for dumplings is reached. You can also use dark seed bread. However, there should always be a proportion of dark and light bread, 50:50 is ideal. We like even a sunflower or pumpkin seed inside the dumplings. Why not. After all, we buy best organic bread, why should we throw away any leftovers?

I used to cook the dumplings in salted water. Sometimes, however, there was a mishap: the dumpling mass was not consistent enough, the dumplings fell apart or “frayed”. It then acted like a sponge and the taste suffered. Until I got the tip to let the dumplings simmer in the steamer basket over boiling water. Brilliant! The dumplings do not need any extra breadcrumbs, are wonderfully fluffy and are guaranteed not to fall apart!