Plum dumplings as a dessert or main course?

Traditional Austrian plum dumplings, known as "Zwetschkenknödel", are perfect as a dessert or as a main course. Plum dumplings are common throughout central and eastern Europe. Plum dumplings are made by stuffing small plums into potato dough. They are then stewed in water and covered with sweet, buttery and nut crumbs. The preparation is absolutely simple and the flavours are a delight for even the most demanding palates.

1. Which potatoes should I use for the plum dumplings?

We suggest using freshly grated or sliced potatoes to make the dough for the plum dumplings, which will give the dumplings a lovely delicate potato flavour that goes well with the hot plums. The dough will be quite similar to gnocchi dough, so you can use the leftover dough to make gnocchi.

2. What about the plums?

To make plum dumplings, you need plums. More than obvious :) But there are several types of plums, and yet there is not a plum among them that is not suitable for making dumplings. Small oval plums are recommended, but other types work well too. Just make sure you choose ones where the stone separates from the flesh of the fruit with complete ease. If you choose a type of plum whose fruit is larger, it may not cook all the way through in a short time and may not soften properly and evenly. If plums are not your favourite fruit, other stone fruits can be chosen instead. Apricots are an option, but strawberries are also often found in meatballs.

3. What about the preparation and recipe?

The preparation is absolutely simple. Once you''ve shaped the potatoes into a ball and hidden your favourite fruit inside, it''s time to cook. It is very important to cook the plum dumplings in boiling water that has been salted. Once the dumplings have been added to the boiling water, the water should no longer be boiling. If the water is still boiling at this time, the plum dumplings will fall apart. The boiling water can be cooled by turning down the temperature on the stove or by adding some cold water to the boiling water.

To further enrich the flavour of the dumplings, add vanilla sugar to the boiling water along with the salt to give the dumplings a rich vanilla flavour. If desired, a little rum can be added to the boiling water to give the dumplings a hint of rum flavour. No problem, the dumplings will still be suitable for children''s mouths as the alcohol evaporates during the boiling process. If you don''t have vanilla sugar on hand or want to add a really strong vanilla flavour to the dumplings, you can also dip a vanilla pod in the water.

As soon as the plum dumplings are cooked, remove them from the boiling water with a kitchen utensil and place them on a kitchen towel or sieve to remove excess water. If the dumplings are left in the boiling water for too long, they will be served with a soggy and soggy texture.

BAM tip for first-timers: if you are making dumplings for the first time, follow this tip. If you think the dumplings are already cooked, remove only one dumpling from the boiling water and cut it open. If there is a fluffy, dry texture inside, remove all of it. If instead there is a wet and compact texture, cook them for a while longer.

A recipe with the procedure for making plum dumplings is waiting HERE.