Mohnnudeln

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Potato ricer or food mill
• •Large pot for boiling
• •Wide pan or skillet (28cm) for browning butter
• •Slotted spoon
• •Wide shallow bowl for poppy seed mixture

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the potatoes

   Boil the potatoes whole and unpeeled in salted water until a knife slides through with no resistance, about 25 to 30 minutes depending on size. Drain them and peel while still hot. Use a towel to hold them if you need to, but don't wait until they cool. Hot potatoes rice smoothly. Cold potatoes turn gluey and your Nudeln will be heavy.

   Use the floury variety, not waxy. In Austria we'd use mehlige Kartoffeln. If you're shopping outside Austria, look for Russets or King Edwards. They fall apart when overcooked, which is exactly the starchy quality you want here.
2. 2

   Rice the potatoes

   Press the hot peeled potatoes through a potato ricer or food mill directly onto a clean, lightly floured work surface. Spread them out and let the excess moisture escape for five minutes. You'll see the mound stop giving off visible warmth. This brief rest is important. Too much moisture trapped in the dough means you'll need more flour, and more flour means dense, tough Nudeln.

3. 3

   Make the dough

   Sprinkle the flour over the riced potato. Add the egg yolk, melted butter, salt, and a grating of nutmeg. Work everything together with your hands quickly and lightly, just until it forms a smooth dough. Don't knead it the way you'd knead bread. The less you work this dough, the lighter your Nudeln will be. Overworked potato dough develops the gluten in the flour and you'll end up with something closer to rubber than to the soft, yielding noodle you're after. The dough should feel slightly tacky but hold together cleanly when you press it.

   If the dough is too sticky, add flour a teaspoon at a time. If it cracks and won't hold together, your potatoes were too dry or too cold. Add a tiny bit more egg yolk to bring it back.
4. 4

   Shape the Nudeln

   Divide the dough into four pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece into a rope about two centimeters thick. Cut the ropes into segments roughly five centimeters long. Now roll each segment under your palms into a finger-shaped noodle, slightly tapered at both ends, like a small cigar. They should be about the length and width of your little finger. Flour your hands lightly as you go. Set the shaped Nudeln on a floured tray so they don't stick to each other.

   Gretel always said the shape doesn't need to be perfect, it needs to be consistent. If they're all roughly the same size, they'll cook evenly. That matters more than elegance.
5. 5

   Boil the Nudeln

   Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle boil. Slide the Nudeln in carefully, working in batches if your pot isn't big enough to hold them without crowding. They'll sink to the bottom. Don't stir them for the first minute or they'll break apart before they've set. After that, give the pot a gentle swirl. The Nudeln are done when they float to the surface, about three to four minutes. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on a clean towel.

6. 6

   Prepare the poppy seed mixture

   While the Nudeln cook, mix the ground poppy seeds, powdered sugar, Vanillezucker, lemon zest, and cinnamon if using in a wide, shallow bowl. The lemon zest is what lifts the whole dish. Without it, the poppy seed coating can taste flat and one-note. With it, everything brightens.

7. 7

   Brown the butter

   Melt the 80g of butter in a large pan over medium heat. Let it foam, then watch it closely. The milk solids will begin to turn golden and the kitchen will smell nutty and warm. This is Nussbutter, browned butter, and it's the flavor foundation of the whole dish. The moment the specks at the bottom turn a deep amber, take the pan off the heat. If you see any hint of black, you've gone too far and the butter will taste bitter.

   Use a light-colored pan if you have one. You need to see the butter changing color, and a dark non-stick pan hides it until it's too late.
8. 8

   Toss and coat

   Add the drained Nudeln to the browned butter. Toss them gently, letting each one pick up a slick of that nutty golden fat. Be careful. They're delicate and they'll break if you handle them roughly. A gentle shake of the pan and a soft turn with a spatula is all they need. Transfer the buttered Nudeln to the bowl with the poppy seed mixture. Toss them through gently until every noodle is coated in a dark, fragrant layer of Mohn and sugar.

9. 9

   Serve immediately

   Pile the Mohnnudeln onto warm plates. Dust with extra powdered sugar at the table. Serve with Zwetschkenröster on the side, the tartness of the plum compote cuts through the richness of the butter and the earthy sweetness of the poppy seeds. In Austria, this is a full meal, not a side dish and not a dessert course at the end of dinner. It stands on its own. Mahlzeit!

Chef Tips

• •Buy whole poppy seeds and grind them yourself if you can. A spice grinder or a dedicated poppy seed mill (Mohnmühle) will break open the tiny seeds and release their oils, which is where all the flavor lives. Pre-ground poppy seeds lose their fragrance quickly. If your ground Mohn smells like nothing, it will taste like nothing.
• •The potato-to-flour ratio changes every time you make this, because every batch of potatoes holds a different amount of moisture. Start with less flour than you think you need. Add more only if the dough won't hold together. You're looking for a dough that's just barely cooperative, not stiff and obedient.
• •Don't skip the lemon zest in the poppy seed mixture. It sounds like a small thing, but it wakes up the entire dish. Without it, the coating can taste heavy and monotone. With it, every bite has a brightness that keeps you reaching for the next Nudel.
• •Browned butter is not melted butter. The difference between the two is about ninety seconds and it changes everything. Watch the pan. Listen for the foam to quiet down. Smell the nuttiness. Then act fast.

Advance Preparation

• •The potatoes can be boiled, peeled, and riced up to two hours ahead. Cover the riced potato loosely and keep at room temperature. Do not refrigerate, cold potato dough is much harder to work with.
• •The poppy seed and sugar mixture can be prepared a day ahead and stored in an airtight container.
• •Shaped, uncooked Nudeln can rest on a floured tray for up to 30 minutes before boiling. Longer than that and they begin to stick, even with flour underneath.
• •Mohnnudeln are best eaten immediately. They don't reheat well because the poppy seed coating dries out and the noodles lose their softness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 210g)