Date Published: March 28th, 2021 | Last Updated: Feb 11th, 2025
Author: Abby |Category: basics, easy, breads, sides
Serves: 4 small loaves (6-8 serves)| Prep time: 1.5 hours | Cook time: 20 mins (per loaf)

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What are Czech Dumplings or Knedlíky?

Knedlíky or dumplings are a staple side dish in Czech food. I see it as THE carb in a Czech meal. Similar to noodles in Asian food or pasta in Italian food, if there’s something rich, saucy, or soupy, you bet it’ll be served with a knedlíky in Czech cuisine.

There are a few different kinds of dumplings, but the two most common ones I’ve seen in Czech are the fluffy bread dumplings (houskové knedlíky) and the denser potato dumplings (bramborové knedlíky). The lighter bread dumplings are made with a yeast dough so it’s fluffy but still with a bit of structure and chew and best served with a saucy dish such as svičkova to soak up all the flavours whereas the potato dumplings are much more dense and is more like eating a side dish of potatoes that can balance the richness of a dish such as rajská or sauerkraut. Of the two, the bread dumplings are more commonly seen and you can very easily buy them at the supermarket instead of making them fresh. This recipe is for the bread dumplings. If you want to make the potato dumplings, you can find the recipe here.

As an Asian person, the term “dumpling” has always been known to me as pockets of meat wrapped in a thin dough so it confused me greatly when I learned the European definition of a “dumpling”. European dumplings can vary greatly in ingredients and textures and can be vastly different between different regions and countries. I was actually low-key disappointed when Toby first told me he was going to make Czech dumplings and it ended up being a bread dough 😂. Nevertheless, these dumplings came out super fluffy and was fantastic at absorbing all the delicious sauce on the plate.

Do I need to use a special type of flour?

These dumplings are traditionally made with ‘sharp flour’ or ‘continental flour’ which is a coarser flour made from hard wheat that is common in Europe, but actually super difficult to find in regular grocery stores. As a result, this recipe uses a 3:1 ratio mix of all-purpose flour and farina/cream of wheat to achieve the same texture.

If you can’t find farina or cream of wheat, just use more all-purpose flour instead. The texture will be much softer and fluffier but still does its job at soaking up sauces in a dish.

How do I freeze leftover knedlíky?

Every recipe for knedlíky I’ve seen always makes WAY more than what you need. My guess is that since you’re going through all the effort of making them, you might as well make a bigger batch and freeze them to have on hand. This recipe is no different. If you follow the instructions, you’ll have enough knedlíky for 8 – 10 people. I had thought about halving the recipe when I was writing it, but then remembered how well they keep in the freezer and how easy it is to have dumplings in a pinch when you’re short on time or too lazy to put in the effort, so I left the proportions alone.

I find it best to freeze leftover dumplings in slices rather than a log so it defrosts quickly. You can either freeze them in single portions or altogether in a bag, but make sure you separate the slices a little so it’ll be easier to separate when you only want to defrost a few slices. I freeze them in a ziploc bag or you can wrap it up in cling wrap individually.

To defrost and reheat: The best way to get the best texture is to steam them, especially if you are reheating from frozen. However, I’m lazy and I take out my desired portion and leave it in the fridge the night before then microwave them with a sprinkle of water before serving.

Although these dumplings are pretty easy to make, allow enough time to cook them all. If you don’t have a big pot, you may have to cook them one or two at a time (which is what I always end up doing) and it takes 20-30 mins each time (allow 1.5 hours to cook all 4). If you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time! I don’t know why it took me so long to think of this.

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

• 1.5 cups (325ml) milk
• 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp (1 packet) instant active dry yeast
• 1 large egg
• 3.25 cups (425g) all-purpose flour
• 1.5 cups (210g) cream of wheat/farina
• 1 tsp salt

Directions:

Microwave the 1.5 cups milk until warm to the touch. Mix in the 1 Tbsp sugar and 1 Tbsp yeast and set aside for ~10 mins until frothy. Once the milk/yeast mixture is frothy, beat in one egg to the mixture.

• Tip: Test the temperature of the milk by dipping your finger into the milk. If it’s too hot, let it cool down or else you’ll end up cooking the yeast. If it’s too cold, then the yeast won’t activate.
• If your mixture doesn’t froth, then you’ll likely need fresh yeast.

In a large stand mixer bowl, add in the 3.25 cups/425g flour, 1.5 cups/210g farina and 1 tsp salt and mix it around. Turn on the stand mixer on medium speed and gradually pour in the milk/yeast/egg mixture to the flour mixture. Let it knead until you get a smooth elastic dough. If your dough is too sticky, add a little more flour. (You can also knead this dough by hand.)

Cover the dough with a damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place to proof until doubled in size (~1 hr).

• Don’t have a reliable warm place? See my method on how to proof your dough in the oven here.

Once your dough has doubled in size, remove it from the bowl, knead it a couple of times on a lightly floured surface to release any excess air bubbles and divide it into 4 even portions (you can use a kitchen scale for this or just eyeball it). Shape them into skinny logs that are no longer than the diameter of your pot. Set them aside covered with a tea towel and let it rest for another 15 mins.

In a large pot, boil half a pot of water with 1 Tbsp of salt and drop in 1 to 2 dough logs at a time (do not crowd them. If you don’t have a large pot, you may have to cook one at a time). Boil for 10 mins, flip the dough and boil for another 10 mins (20 mins total). Remove the dough log from the water and use a toothpick or chopstick to poke lots of holes into the cooked dumpling to let the steam out. Repeat for the rest of the dough.

Let the cooked dough cool then slice. Ready to eat!

Tip: If you’re not using it right away, they freeze really well covered with some cling wrap. Steaming would be best when ready to use or microwave.

Summarized Recipe: