What Makes Knoephla Soup Different From Chicken And Dumplings?

Knoephla is a creamy potato and chicken soup with small dumplings and vegetables so thick that some say it's more of a stew. Enthusiasts lovingly refer to it as "potato and dumplings", though it does have chicken and other ingredients in the mix. It's a traditional dish with roots in Germany, Russia and in the American Midwest, and it's very popular in places like North Dakota and Minnesota. Whether it's served at home or in a diner on a cozy winter night, knoephla is known for being a perfect cold weather comfort food that sticks to the ribs just as well as an easy slow-cooked pulled pork or a spicy and slow-cooked beef chili.

Chicken and pastry in a thick broth is popular by many names throughout all of America, and by that definition, knoephla seems like just another version of the classic and easy to make chicken and dumplings soup. Chunks of potato and chicken float in a fragrant and creamy broth with plenty of butter and herbs, vegetables, and chunks of boiled dough. In the American South, it's known as chicken and dumplings, in Appalachia it's chicken and slicks, and the Pennsylvania Dutch call it bott boi. Knoephla is more like the German cousin to chicken and dumplings, though. A true knoephla soup boasts a specific kind of dumplings, smaller and sturdier than the fluffy version in traditional chicken and dumplings.

The dumplings themselves really set knoephla apart from other types of chicken and dumplings. They are a hallmark for knoephla soup, which can vary in texture and other ingredients depending on the chef. These solid little dumplings are made with flour, salt, eggs, and milk. They are small, chewy, and tender unlike their Southern counterparts, which are usually fluffy and oversized. Every bowl of knoephla is chock-full of these dense dumplings.

Knoephla is a traditional German dumpling, a cousin to traditional German egg-based noodles like käsespätzle and spätzle. Spätzle, like knoephla, is made with flour, egg, water, and salt. The difference between the two lies in the shape, spätzle is a short noodle-style pastry while knoephla is more like little dough nuggets in more of a rectangular shape. The traditional way to make knoephla is to roll out the dough into thick strips and cut it into chunks with kitchen scissors directly into the soup. You could use a stainless steel spätzle maker to make knoephla, though, which moves dough over what looks like a cheese grater to make short noodles. Just cut your dough into shorter chunks after grating to achieve knoephla dumplings.

There are a few varieties of knoephla soup. Sometimes little dough nuggets float in a creamy, but clear vegetable broth, surrounded by discernable chunks of vegetables and meat. Other times the soup is almost as thick as gravy with the potatoes and all the other vegetables melted into the broth. Some people add nutmeg and bay leaves while others will swap milk for heavy cream in the broth. You could juice up your chicken broth with turmeric to add another layer of flavor to your knoephla soup, make your own broth or use a store-bought version. You are making knoephla soup long as you're using knoephla dumplings, creamy broth and a few vegetables. 

Chicken and dumplings, on the other hand, only qualifies as a soup some of the time. The dish is sometimes mostly a rich broth that hosts a handful of chicken, fluffy dumplings, and vegetables. Other versions of chicken and dumplings resemble a stovetop casserole, with more bulk than broth. Knoephla soup, like chicken and dumplings, is well-suited for the slow cooker, making both dishes great choices for easy meals. Once you've made your dumplings, you can toss it all in a 7 quart Crockpot slow cooker and you're set for family dinner or for your next winter gathering.