📋 Italian Bread Dumplings Recipe (Knödel)

📋 Italian Bread Dumplings Recipe (Knödel)

These Canederli are Italian bread dumplings originally from South Tyrol in Northern Italy, a recipe also known as Knödel in the German language. They are big bread dumplings boiled in stock made with stale bread mixed with milk, eggs, and speck, a cured smoked pork typical of the region. Round-shaped the size of a small orange, these bread gnocchi can be served in stock or with melted butter. This Canederli recipe perfectly exemplifies a sustainable, frugal meal from Italy's cucina povera tradition.

Course Soups & Stews

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Bread dumplings, canederli, Italian bread dumplings

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 20

Resting time 2

Total Time 2 35

Servings people

Calories 303kcal

Author Laura Tobin

Equipment

Ingredients

9 oz Stale white bread
1 cup Whole milk
3 Fresh eggs
7 oz Speck or smoked bacon or salami
1 cup Flour
1 pinch Freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup Finely chopped fresh parsley or chive
6 cup Meat broth
1 teaspoon salt

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preparing the bread mixture

Break the eggs in the milk
1 cup Whole milk, 3 Fresh eggs
Mix until they are combined
Cut the stale bread into small cubes
9 oz Stale white bread
Blend some bread with the finely chopped parsley
½ cup Finely chopped fresh parsley or chive
Add the milk and the eggs to the bread mixture
Add the speck and any other pork meat cut into tiny chunks
7 oz Speck
Season with salt and freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt, 1 pinch Freshly grated nutmeg
Add a few tablespoon of flour to firm up their consistency
1 cup Flour
Stir with a fork until it is roughly combined
Mix with your hands until the mixture is compact but still soft

Boiling the canederli

Warm up the broth or salted water in a large pot
6 cup Meat broth
With wet hands, form compact balls about 2.5 in - 6 cm
Coat them with flour
Boil in a gentle simmer for 20 minutes

How to serve them

Pour the broth into a soup bowl and serve the canederli at the table in the broth.
You can top them with thin-sliced chives or parsley

Video

Notes

In this recipe, I blend the parsley with the bread as it absorbs the moisture from the parsley and chop it finely. You can chop the parsley by itself, keeping the bread in small cubes instead.
For better flavor, you can make it the day before or let the canederli mixture rest for a couple of hours.
It is important that the simmering is very gentle, as vigorous boiling can break the balls.
Place one ball in the broth to test its consistency. The mixture's consistency depends on the bread you are using. Add more flour if you think it is too fluid or more milk if too compact.
You can boil them in salted water instead of broth if you serve them dry.
Dry Canederli are topped with melted butter and served as a first course or a side dish to Trentino gulasch, game stews, or Hausplatte (house plate).
As they are quite filling, plan to serve three canerdeli per person.
Different variations of this peasant dish can be made with speck, veal liver, or cheese, all products farmers would produce themselves.
Some version of these dumplings uses white bread, others a rye bread typical of the region.

Nutrition