The Tyrolean Cuisine

"Griaß enk" (Hello in Tyrolean) dear Tirolerhof friends,

Sturmi and I are currently enjoying the great summer weather in the Wildschönau high valley.
In addition to our numerous great hikes, we look forward to the delicious food in the Landhotel Tirolerhof every day. And we also learned a lot about Tyrolean cuisine.

Potatoes and cabbage, a decent egg dish, a Gröstl (pan fried dish with potatoes and meat), maybe even a piece of smoked meat once formed the basis of rural Tyrolean cuisine. Because those were the things you could harvest from a farm. In autumn there was sometimes a roast chamois, in the vicinity of the lakes maybe even a fish. But the predominant part of every meal was grain products in thousands of variations.

„Knödel, Nocken, Nudeln, Plenten - these are the four Tyrolean elements,” they still say today.

This saying sorts the "elements" by size:

First the round dumplings the size of a man's fist, which are made of bread or potato dough, with or without smoked bacon, with cheese or a filling of minced meat.

Then there are the smaller "Nocken or spätzle", which are always irregular in shape and are usually on the menu today as savory Kasnocken (cheese spaetzle) or as sweet "blueberry nocken" (blueberries in batter).

In Tyrol, "Nudeln (e.g. Kiachl)" (noodles) also mean something baked with lard.

"Plenten" is the thick mush made from corn or oat flour, which is more commonly known by the Italian name polenta. One ate whole grains in the morning before the strenuous day's work - for many it was their daily bread.

Sturmi especially loves the "Kaspressknödel" (cheese dumplings). At the farmer's buffet, which is accompanied by great harp music, you can hardly get him away from it. I have written down the recipe for you here so that you can recreate this treat at home. With this amount you have enough dumplings for 4 people.

250 g bread cubes
25 ml milk (warm)
50 grams of onion
250 g cheese (gray cheese, mountain cheese, just what you have at home, depending on your taste)
1 bunch of chives
1 bunch of parsley
50 grams of butter
4 pcs eggs
50 g flour (a little more/less depending on the firmness)
1 pinch of salt
oil for baking

Peel the onions. Finely dice the onion and cheese. Chop the chives and parsley.
Soak the breadcrumbs in the milk. Fry the onions in butter until translucent and add to the breadcrumbs.
Now add the cheese, eggs, herbs and flour and add salt. Heat the oil in the pan and add a tablespoon of batter to the hot fat, flatten it and fry slowly until golden brown. And now you can enjoy.

Another little tip: You can freeze cheese dumplings pretty well. So maybe do a few more right away and enjoy again later.

The dumpling is traditionally eaten as a soup ingredient, but it is also great with a bit of salad.

Bon appetit and see you later
Yours, Alma