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Ravioli isn’t reserved for Italy. Germany has its own take on ravioli: Maultaschen. This Traditional German Maultaschen Recipe is spectacular and can be served with soup or simply with melted butter. This recipe comes from the Swabian region of Germany.
🇩🇪 What makes this recipe special?
Alright, folks. Today, we are going to make what amounts to German ravioli! Maultaschen is a traditional German dish from the Swabian region, much like our Spaetzle recipe and the traditional Knoephla soup recipe.
Maultaschen are flavorful little pillows of goodness, and I had a great time reproducing this traditional dish. Experimenting with the filling and homemade pasta helped me land on a version that tastes great while still honoring the Swabian classic.
🥟 Ingredients
This is really just a BIG ravioli, but with more of a German flair. The pasta is pretty close to what you might find with its Italian cousins.
- 2 cups flour
- 3 eggs + 1 egg for egg wash
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Bacon
- Ground beef
- Nutmeg
- Parsley
- Onion
- Fresh spinach
- Heavy cream
- Italian-style breadcrumbs
- Salt and pepper
- 6 cups broth or stock. We used our homemade chicken stock.
- Green onions
See the recipe card for quantities.
I roll my own pasta by hand, but store-bought fresh pasta sheets also work.
🍲 Instructions
I already described it as a German ravioli, and it is exactly that. It differs from the ravioli that we might recognize in a few ways. Most noticeably, they are bigger.
The Maultaschen I made were about three inches by five inches. The filling is generally a mixture of minced meat, smoked meat, spinach, breadcrumbs, and spices. Finally, this dish is traditionally served in a bowl of broth.
I really enjoyed exploring this recipe and coming up with a recipe that tastes great, has a Ramshackle spin, but still honors the recipe. You, too, can make this tasty traditional German pasta.
I have to be upfront that I don’t use a pasta-making machine for this recipe. What does that mean? Well, mostly, it means making my pasta dough is more of a pain in the butt. It takes more time and there is more waste. You can, however, make excellent egg noodle pasta without a pasta maker.
Or, consider getting a pasta maker and rolling out the sheets that way.
I will outline the recipe below, but it is vital that you have patience if you are rolling it out by hand. We want to get this dough as thin as we can and you have to spend some time caring for and rolling this dough out.
Once it is rolled out, take a knife and make a big rectangle out of the dough. Then, cut accordingly. Sizes can vary, but you want them to be a larger rectangle shape. I loosely measured out 3 × 5-inch rectangles.
I had quite the time getting my filling proportions right for the amount of pasta that I made. I was able to get 6 Maultaschen from my dough recipe. That means I had to scale my filling to best match those sizes. I scaled back from a full pound of ground meat to ¼ lb of ground meat.
Broth for Maultaschen
One way this traditional dish can be served is with butter. Another way, and what I like better, is to serve it in a broth. You can use really any kind of plain broth or stock, but I chose to use the chicken stock we previously made.
For another Swabian-style pairing, serve Maultaschen with our German Potato Salad – Kartoffelsalat.
One thing that I really like about serving this in a broth is that it turns the dish into a sort of surprise soup! It faintly reminds me of Italian wedding soup once the dumpling is all broken up and floating around in the broth.
🤷 Substitutions and variations
There are a few different ways you can change this up.
- Dough – We roll our own, but you could use store-bought pasta sheets.
- Hamburger – Ground pork or ground sausage would work well for this recipe.
- Spinach – Kale could work well for this recipe.
- Broth – I use chicken broth, but any broth could be used. Heck, you could just eat the Maultaschen by themselves.
📦 Storage
Maultaschen are best enjoyed fresh. You can make the filling ahead of time; once it is cooked and promptly chilled, keep it refrigerated for 3 to 4 days, following USDA leftovers guidance. Then make the pasta, fill the Maultaschen, and boil them when you are ready to serve.
Assembled, uncooked Maultaschen can also be frozen. I have not tested cooking them directly from frozen, so I recommend thawing them overnight in the refrigerator before boiling.
🎓 History tidbit
According to Baden-Württemberg tourism, one popular legend says monks created Maultaschen during Lent and hid the forbidden meat filling inside the pasta dough.
The story gave Maultaschen the tongue-in-cheek nickname “Herrgottsbscheißerle,” or “God-cheaters,” but it is best treated as legend rather than established history. Whatever the exact origin, Maultaschen are a traditional Swabian dish and a delicious one.
❓ FAQ
Maultaschen are German-style ravioli that are commonly stuffed with a meat and spinach filling but have been known to have other fillings, including sweet fillings like apple and cinnamon.
They are from the Swabian region of Germany.
📝 Tips and tricks
- If rolling your own pasta, use a pasta maker or make sure to roll your dough thin.
- Adjust the seasonings to your taste.
🛠 Products used in this recipe
😋 Did you make this recipe?
That is awesome, and thank you so much for giving this Traditional German Maultaschen recipe a try. If you could leave a rating in the comment area below, it would be greatly appreciated. This lets me know how I am doing and also helps others decide if they want to make this recipe. Most of all, thanks for visiting Ramshackle Pantry.
Traditional German Maultaschen Recipe
- Prep Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 Maultaschen 1x
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Boil
- Cuisine: German
Description
Maultaschen are German pasta pockets filled with a savory meat-and-spinach mixture. Serve them with melted butter or in a bowl of warm broth for a comforting Swabian meal.
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 3 eggs + 1 egg for egg wash
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For Filling:
- 3 strips of bacon, cooked and chopped
- 1/4 pound ground burger
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 medium onion, diced
- 2 1/2 ounces spinach
- 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 Tablespoons Italian style breadcrumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1/4 pepper, or to taste
For Serving:
- Six cups of any broth or stock. We used our homemade chicken stock.
- 3 green onions, chopped
Instructions
- Add the flour, 3 eggs, salt, and olive oil to a stand mixer. Reserve the remaining egg for the egg wash.
- Mix with the dough hook, or knead by hand, for about 10 minutes, until smooth.
- While the dough mixes, cook the bacon if it is not already cooked.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil for the spinach.
- Wrap the dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Once the water is boiling, add the spinach.
- Boil the spinach for 3 minutes.
- Drain and rinse under cold water.
- Once the spinach is cool, chop it.
- In a large pan, brown the ground beef over medium-high heat.
- When the beef is about halfway browned, add the onion and continue cooking.
- When nearly done, add the spinach, breadcrumbs, nutmeg, parsley, bacon, and cream. Continue cooking until the ground beef reaches 160°F and everything is heated through.
- Transfer the filling to a bowl and refrigerate until needed.
- After the dough has chilled for 30 minutes, remove it from the refrigerator.
- On a floured surface, roll out the dough as thin as possible, or use a pasta maker. Have patience; this may take some time if rolling by hand.
- Once rolled, cut the dough into an even number of 3 × 5-inch rectangles.
- Place a few tablespoons of filling in the center of one sheet, using enough to comfortably fill it without overstuffing.
- Brush the edges with egg wash and place a second sheet on top.
- Use a fork to crimp the edges, then set aside.
- Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. You should have about 6 Maultaschen.
- Bring a large pot of water to a gentle boil.
- Add the Maultaschen and cook for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, warm the broth or stock.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the Maultaschen to bowls and add the warm broth or stock.
- Top with green onions and serve.
Notes
- If rolling your own pasta, use a pasta maker or make sure to roll your dough thin.
- Store-bought fresh pasta sheets or fresh lasagna sheets can be used instead of homemade dough.
- Adjust the seasonings to your taste.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Maultasche with 1 cup broth
Said to cook the bacon, but where to put it wasn’t in the instructions, so I left it out. I had a lot of dough left over, so I’ll make another batch. I had to double the recipe for my son’s German class. He said everyone liked it. I didn’t get to try it myself. There wasn’t enough time and I had to roll the dough by hand…took forever! I think I’ll be getting a pasta maker for Christmas 💩
Pasta makers are awesome! I have since gotten one, as well. 🙂 Also, for the first time in YEARS… someone caught the bacon. I made sure to add it to the step it was supposed to be added. To the filling.
Can they be individually frozen then later thawed and cooked in broth?
Yes!
Have eaten maultaschen all my life. Instead of hamburger, I use either ham or smoked butt cut into very fine cubes. Instead of chicken broth I use home made beef bone broth in which to cook the maultaschen. Some Swabians vary the recipe somewhat— but to each their own. Now that I’ve worked up an appetite, I think I’ll go make some. Some good Swabian potatoe salad goes good with .
I am assuming you use fresh spinach in this recipe although it isn’t specified.
I do.
An old German woman I knew made something similar which she called “Gefulte Noodles”. She rolled her filling into a single large sheet of pasta as one would roll a jelly roll or strudel, tying it at about two inch intervals. She froze the roll briefly, then cut it crosswise into 2” pieces. She simmered these, standing on end, in rich chicken broth until the noodle dough was tender, and served it in a bowl of the flavored broth. As I remember it, her filling had finely diced smoked sausage as well as crumbled cooked bacon. It also included toasted bread cubes, similar to those used to stuff poultry, and lots of sliced green onion. It may have had mushroom duxelles as well. Your recipe has inspired me to make something I haven’t had in decades!
> Your recipe has inspired me to make something I haven’t had in decades!
AWESOME! I love it.
If not making the dough from scratch, could you use fresh lasagna sheets?
While I haven’t tested it, as long as you are able to crimp the two sheets together (fresh sheets), I don’t see why not.
This recipe brings back a lot of memories. This REALLY is a scratch recipe, but I love trying to make real heritage recipes. This was fun to make and tasted great.
Thanks Jen! I appreciate you giving the recipe a try and glad you liked it.
My German grandmother used to make this for us and we loved it. I’m 78 and after all these years, I finally found your recipe. As kids, we called it “mool – dosha” which is probably why I never located a recipe.
I can’ wait to try it.
I haven’t tried the recipe yet but it sounds about right and I agree with your potato salad comments. My mother used to make it that way along with aunts and both my grandmothers. Now that I am finally retired and kids are grown and have some time, I am going to try and make these. We also used to pronounce it “mool – dosha”. I failed to get the recipe and now these relatives are all dead that made it. So here I am trying to make it too!
Hey,
I really like your approach and it was fun reading about knephla.
Yet, you forgot something about traditional “Maultaschen in Brühe”, very few non-Swabians like to admit: Usually potatoe salad is served as a side dish (made with vinegar-broth-dressing) and you are supposed to pour the salad into the broth. For non-Swabians, this sounds quite disgusting, but I have to admit, there is something to it, since the salad adds some tanginess / sourness. Just give it a try 😉
Also, a traditional name for Maultaschen is “Herrgottsbscheiserle”, which loosely translates to god-cheaters, since Maultaschen are a traditional dish on Holy Thurstday and Good Friday, yet these days have been supposed to being fasting days.
sandra
Thanks so much for adding some knowledge here!