Dampfnudeln
Dampfnudeln: Bavarian steamed yeast dumplings with a caramel crust and vanilla sauce
GermanDampfnudeln are a Friday supper in Bavaria and the Palatinate, from the days when meatless Fridays meant a sweet main course. Soft yeast buns are packed into a heavy pan with milk, butter and a little sugar, the lid goes on, and they steam until fluffy on top while the liquid boils away and leaves a salty-sweet caramel crust underneath. They come to the table with warm vanilla sauce. The famous mistake is lifting the lid too early: the steam escapes and the buns collapse. Chef's tip: listen to the pan instead of looking; when the bubbling turns to a crackle, the crust is forming and you have about 3 minutes left.
- Total time
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the dough
For the pan
For the vanilla sauce
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Mix the 1 ⅛ lb plain flour, ¼ oz dried yeast, 1 ⅜ oz sugar and ½ tsp salt in a bowl. Add the 1 cup lukewarm milk, 1 egg and 1 ¾ oz butter and knead for 8 minutes until smooth, soft and no longer sticky.
10 minStep 2: Cover and leave somewhere warm for about 1 hour, until doubled. Divide into 8 balls, tuck the edges underneath to make them taut, and rest under a cloth for 15 minutes.
75 minStep 3: Choose a heavy 26–28 cm pan with a tight lid. Add the ¾ cup milk, 1 oz butter, 1 tbsp sugar and 1 pinch salt and warm until the butter melts. Sit the buns in the pan, close together.
3 minStep 4: Put the lid on, bring to a simmer, then turn to medium-low. Cook for 25–30 minutes without opening the lid; the milk steams the buns and slowly boils down.
28 minStep 5: When the gentle bubbling turns into a crackling sizzle, the base is caramelising. Give it 2–3 minutes more, then take off the heat and lift the lid away from you so no drips fall on the buns. They should be tall and springy with a golden crust underneath.
3 minStep 6: While the buns cook, make the sauce: heat most of the 2 cups milk with the 1 vanilla pod. Whisk the 2 egg yolks, 1 ¾ oz sugar and 1 tbsp cornflour with the rest of the milk, pour on the hot milk, return to the pan and stir over a low heat until it coats a spoon, about 5 minutes. Don't let it boil hard or it can split.
8 minStep 7: Serve the Dampfnudeln crust side up with the warm vanilla sauce.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 690 kcal
- Protein
- 18 g
- Carbs
- 104 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does dampfnudeln take?
- About 55 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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