Cheese spätzle from the pot
The classic from the Allgäu, Vorarlberg and Tyrol for the stove: dried spätzle are boiled in salted water, drained and layered with tangy mountain cheese on the lowest flame until the cheese melts. Crispy fried onions from a tub go on top. The biggest danger is the bottom of the pot: cheese burns quickly – so a low flame, stirring and, if needed, letting the retained heat do the work.
- About 30 minutes
Explained simply
Cheese spätzle are small, soft noodles with lots of melted cheese and crispy fried onions on top. They come from the Allgäu, Vorarlberg and Tyrol and are cooked there in many mountain huts.
For trips you take dried spätzle from a packet. You boil them in salted water until soft, pour off the water and then mix in the cheese on a very low flame until it melts and forms strings.
Cheese burns onto the bottom of the pot quickly. So you always stir from the bottom and keep the flame small. If it smells burnt, you turn the flame off and put the lid on – the heat in the pot still melts the cheese.
How it works
Dried spätzle soak up water in boiling water and become soft. How long that takes is written on the packet. The salt in the water gives the spätzle flavour. A lid on the pot brings the water to the boil faster and saves fuel.
Cheese melts best slowly and over gentle heat. If it gets too hot, the fat separates from the rest, the cheese turns as tough as rubber and sticks to the bottom. That is why you put the pot on the lowest flame or melt the cheese only with the heat of the hot spätzle under the lid.
A few spoonfuls of cooking water in the pot make the cheese sauce creamy. The cooking water contains starch from the spätzle, which helps the cheese and water combine into a smooth sauce.
Safety at the pot
The stove always stays outdoors – never in the tent and never in the porch, not even in the rain. Burning produces carbon monoxide, a gas you can neither see nor smell. In a small space it can make people unconscious. Tent fabric also catches fire quickly. In the rain, cook under a tarp pitched high with open sides, or eat something cold.
A full pot of pasta water is heavy. If the stove is crooked or the supports too narrow, everything can tip over, and boiling water runs over legs and feet. That is why you find a level spot, take a wide pot and keep children at a distance while cooking and draining. A windshield must never fully enclose a gas canister, otherwise it gets too hot.
When draining, you hold the pot with both hands and pour away from your body – the steam rises. Melted cheese sticks to the skin and burns deeply. With a burn, cool it at once with cool running water; with large burns, burns to the face or in children call 112, in Austria also 144.
Cheese, water and washing-up
Hard cheese such as mountain cheese or Emmental keeps much better without cooling than soft cheese. Still, you carry it in the shade and cool. If it gets a little greasy outdoors, that is normal; if it smells odd or is slimy, it is not eaten. The dish contains milk, gluten and usually egg – important for everyone with allergies.
You never pour pasta water or washing-up water into a stream or lake; you scatter it on the ground far away from water. Soak the pot with a little water straight after eating, and the cheese crust comes off much more easily. Leftovers and packaging go into the rubbish bag.
At high altitude water boils at a lower temperature. That is why the spätzle take longer to soften there. With a lid and an insulated cooking box you save fuel in the mountains.
Step by step
Set up the stove stably
Set the stove up outdoors on firm, level ground, away from the tent, dry grass and backpacks. A windshield helps but must never fully enclose a gas canister, otherwise it gets too hot. Lay out the lid, spoon and all ingredients within reach before you light it. For cheese spätzle you need a wide pot that sits firmly on the supports and does not wobble when you stir.
Caution: If the pot wobbles, do not cook – find a level spot first.
- 1
Set up the stove stably
Set the stove up outdoors on firm, level ground, away from the tent, dry grass and backpacks. A windshield helps but must never fully enclose a gas canister, otherwise it gets too hot. Lay out the lid, spoon and all ingredients within reach before you light it. For cheese spätzle you need a wide pot that sits firmly on the supports and does not wobble when you stir.
If the pot wobbles, do not cook – find a level spot first.
- 2
Prepare the cheese
Cut the cheese into small cubes or grate it – about 50 to 60 g per person. The smaller the pieces, the faster and more evenly it melts later. Put the fried onions within reach.
- 3
Bring the water to the boil
Put about one litre of clean water for one to two people into the pot with a good pinch of salt and bring it to the boil with the lid on. The lid saves fuel and time.
- 4
Cook the spätzle
Add the spätzle to the bubbling water, stir once so nothing sticks to the bottom and boil for as long as the packet says until they are soft. Stir now and then. Try one – careful, hot.
- 5
Drain, keep a little water
Turn off the flame. Hold the pot with both hands and a pot grip, open the lid a crack and pour the water off away from your body – far from streams and lakes. Leave two to three tablespoons of cooking water in the pot.
Boiling water – keep face and legs away.
- 6
Layer with cheese
Put the pot back on the lowest flame. Layer spätzle and cheese alternately; if you have some, add a knob of butter. Stir gently from the bottom up until the cheese starts to melt and forms strings.
- 7
Do not let it burn
Cheese burns onto the bottom of the pot quickly. Always stir from the bottom with the wooden spoon. If it smells burnt or hisses at the bottom, turn off the flame at once, put the lid on and let the cheese melt in the retained heat for 2 to 3 minutes.
Better too little heat than too much.
- 8
Top with fried onions and eat
Sprinkle the fried onions on top, add pepper to taste and eat straight away while warm – the cheese is still very hot inside. Soak the pot with a little water at once so the cheese crust comes off, and wash it up later far away from water.
Common mistakes
- Melting cheese on a big flame – it burns and turns rubbery
- Not stirring from the bottom
- Too narrow a stove for a full pot
- Pouring cooking water into a stream
- Cheese in large pieces – it melts unevenly
- Leaving the pot with cheese leftovers for hours
- Cooking the fried onions along – they go soggy
Quick view
Materials
Dried spätzle (from a packet)
Per person about 125 g dried spätzle
Allergens: wheat (gluten) and usually egg.
Pack dry and protected from breaking.
Hard cheese (mountain cheese, Emmental, aged Gouda)
Per person about 50–60 g tangy mountain cheese or Emmental, cut small or grated
Allergen: milk.
Hard cheese keeps better without cooling than soft cheese, but still carry it in the shade and cool; slimy or odd-smelling cheese is not eaten.
Crispy fried onions (ready-made, in a tub or bag)
Per person a handful (about 10–15 g)
Usually contain wheat flour (gluten).
Close well, otherwise they go soft.
Butter or herb butter (cool box)
Per person about 1 tablespoon – only from the cool box; otherwise oil or leave it out
Allergen: milk.
Only from a cool box and on day trips; without cooling, use cooking oil instead.
Table salt
For the cooking water
Salt improves keeping quality but does not replace heating through.
Spice mix in small tubs (paprika, cumin, salt, pepper)
Pepper, a pinch of nutmeg
Ready-made seasoning mixes can contain celery, mustard or gluten – check the ingredients list.
Keep tightly closed and dry.
Collapsible water container or bag
About 1 l clean water for 1–2 people
Protect from sharp objects.
Use only food-grade and only for water.
Metal pot (stainless steel, aluminium, titanium)
Wide pot with lid, ideally with a thick base
Hot – scalding risk.
Spatula or wooden spoon
Wooden spoon for stirring from the bottom
Do not leave plastic spatulas lying in hot fat – they melt.
Stove
Never operate inside a tent, shelter or enclosed room – carbon monoxide and fire risk.
Stove fuel (canister, liquid fuel, alcohol)
Store fuels apart from food and in original containers or bottles intended for them.
Store cool, well ventilated and out of children's reach.
Lighter, matches or ferro rod
Observe local fire bans.
Knife (fixed or locking blade)
For the cheese
Cut away from your body.
Rules on carrying knives differ by region – check local rules.
Soap / detergent
Biodegradable, for washing up far from water
Rinse drinking-water containers thoroughly after cleaning.
Suitable for
- Hut evenings and cold days in the mountains
- Multi-day trips with a little more weight
- Groups and families
- Vegetarian cooking
Not suitable for
- Small, wobbly stoves with very narrow supports
- Cooking in the tent or the porch
- People with milk, egg or gluten allergy
- Very limited water supplies
Prerequisites
- A stable stove that also burns on the lowest flame
- A wide pot with lid
- About one litre of clean water
- A safe, level cooking spot
Safety
- Melted cheese sticks to the skin and holds its heat for a long time – that causes deep burns. Let it cool a little first. Pour boiling water off away from your body. With a burn or scald, cool it at once with cool running water, not with ice. With large burns, burns to the face or in children call 112 (in Austria also 144).
- Eat cooked food straight away while it is hot. Do not leave leftovers lukewarm in the pot or in the sun for hours – germs can multiply. Whatever is not eaten within about two hours and cannot be cooled goes into the rubbish bag. Allergens: milk in the cheese and butter, wheat (gluten) and usually egg in the spätzle, wheat also in the fried onions.
- Do not pour pasta water or washing-up water into streams or lakes; scatter it far away from water. Take food scraps and packaging with you. Only use clean drinking water or safely treated water for cooking and for vegetables; wash your hands before cooking.
How it works
Dried spätzle absorb water when boiled and become soft. Cheese melts slowly and evenly over gentle heat; over too much heat the fat separates, the cheese turns rubbery and burns onto the bottom of the pot. That is why you melt it on the lowest flame, or with no flame at all, using the retained heat of the hot spätzle under the lid. A spoonful of cooking water makes the cheese sauce smooth, because the starch in it binds the cheese.
Advantages
- Warm, hearty and very filling
- Dried spätzle keep for a long time
- Only one pot needed
- Vegetarian
Disadvantages
- Cheese burns easily
- Needs quite a lot of water and fuel
- Many allergens: milk, gluten, egg
- Cheese is delicate in the heat
Deep knowledge
Background
Cheese spätzle (in the Allgäu also called Kässpatzen, in Vorarlberg Kässpätzle) come from the area around Lake Constance and the Alps – where tangy mountain and Alpine cheese is made. They are on the menu of many mountain huts in Bavaria, Austria and Switzerland.
At home spätzle are made fresh from dough; for trips, dried spätzle from a packet are much more practical because they are light and keep for a long time. Hard cheese keeps better without cooling than soft cheese. For hygiene and washing-up, the WHO's Five Keys and the Leave No Trace principles apply: keep clean, do not leave cooked food standing for long, scatter waste water far away from water.
Variants
- For children
- Use milder cheeses such as young Gouda or Emmental. Children may dice the cheese (with a blunt knife) and sprinkle fried onions at the end. An adult does the draining and stirring at the hot pot.
- Vegan
- Use egg-free spätzle or short durum-wheat pasta and stir in a vegan grated cheese or a sauce of nutritional yeast, a little oil and cooking water instead of cheese. Fried onions are usually vegan – check the label.
- With retained heat
- To save fuel: boil the spätzle only briefly after they come to the boil, then let them finish with the lid on in an insulated cooking box or wrapped in clothing. Then drain and melt the cheese only in the retained heat under the lid.
Common mistakes
- Melting cheese on a big flame – it burns and turns rubbery
- Not stirring from the bottom
- Too narrow a stove for a full pot
- Pouring cooking water into a stream
- Cheese in large pieces – it melts unevenly
- Leaving the pot with cheese leftovers for hours
- Cooking the fried onions along – they go soggy
Limits and risks
- Cooking times as on the packet; at high altitude it takes longer
- Amounts are guidelines
- No instructions for home-made spätzle dough with raw eggs
Material alternatives
Derived from material properties: a substitute must have all relevant properties. Observe the notes on the substitute.
- Collapsible water container or bag
- Single-wall stainless steel bottle (Heat only single-wall bottles without paint/plastic; remove the lid before heating.), Double-wall insulated bottle (Never heat directly.), PET bottle (clear, max. 2 litres) (Do not heat or place in a fire.), Food-grade water container (Only use containers that never held chemicals or fuel.), Airtight food-grade storage container (Fill only when clean and completely dry; never use containers that previously held chemicals.), Food-grade water bag (Use only for drinking water, never for chemicals or fuel.), Fermentation jar or crock (Use only food-grade containers of glass, food-safe glazed stoneware or food-grade plastic – no metal containers for acidic food.), Resealable food bags (Use only bags intended for food; do not use with boiling water unless the manufacturer explicitly allows it.)
- Metal pot (stainless steel, aluminium, titanium)
- Single-wall stainless steel bottle (Heat only single-wall bottles without paint/plastic; remove the lid before heating.)
- Stove fuel (canister, liquid fuel, alcohol)
- Dry firewood (Collect only where permitted.), Tinder (Carry in waterproof packaging.), Char cloth (charred cotton) (Store dry in a tin.), Finest-grade steel wool (Store separately from batteries – fire risk.), Fatwood (resin-rich wood) (Collect only dead wood where permitted.), Petroleum jelly cotton balls (Use only pure cotton.), Cooking oil or cooking fat (tallow, lard) (Never put out burning fat with water – cover it with a lid to smother it.), Tree resin (spruce, pine) (Resin is flammable and sticks to the skin when hot – melt it only slowly over low heat.), Birch bark (from dead, fallen wood) (Never peel from living trees.)
- Lighter, matches or ferro rod
- Ferro rod (Practise before you need it.), Fire striker and hard stone (Carbon steel, not stainless.), Bow drill set (bow, spindle, hearth board, bearing block) (Use only dry wood.), Burning lens / magnifier (Never leave lying in the sun – fire risk.), Fire piston (Maintain the seal.), Pump drill (spindle, flywheel, crossbar, cord) (Fix the flywheel firmly and centrally – a loose disc can fly off.)
Results come exclusively from structured entries. No improvised instructions are generated.
Sources (6)
- World Health Organization (WHO) (2006): Five Keys to Safer Food Manual · Keep clean, separate raw and cooked, cook thoroughly, do not leave cooked food at room temperature for more than two hours, use safe water
- European Parliament and Council of the European Union (2011): Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers · Major allergens that must be labelled, including cereals containing gluten, eggs, milk, soy, celery, mustard
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning – Prevention guidance · Never use stoves, grills or burners inside closed spaces or tents – carbon monoxide
- European Resuscitation Council – Resuscitation (journal) (2021): European Resuscitation Council Guidelines 2021: First Aid · Cool burns at once with cool running water; call emergency services for severe burns
- Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics: The Seven Principles of Leave No Trace (Principle 5: Minimize Campfire Impacts) · Pack out rubbish, keep fires small, use existing fire sites and put fires out completely
- United States Department of Agriculture – Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA FSIS): High Altitude Cooking and Food Safety · At high altitude water boils at a lower temperature; cooking times get longer