It’s been a while since I pulled out my Great Grandmother’s old recipe box. Recently a recipe recently caught my eye and I had to make it. The recipe card reads “Noodles”. I have always wanted to make homemade noodles but with how inexpensive they are at the store I have never felt the need to do it. I think these noodles would be amazing in my homemade creamy chicken noodle soup recipe, but other than that I don’t think I will ever be making homemade noodles again. Yes, they are easy to make but they are just as easy to buy at the store and in my opinion taste just as good. That is just my own personal opinion, I know all you noodle makers are shaking your head in shame.
This recipe caught my eye because it says that the noodles need to be boiled for 20 minutes… weird. Most other homemade noodle recipes I have seen say they only need boiled a few minutes. I wonder why these need to be boiled longer. And when I turned the card over it had some interesting stuff about frying these noodles up in brown butter??!!?! I feel like my Great Grandma could have been a little more descriptive in the name of this recipe. Maybe like “brown butter noodles”, or something like that. Sheesh! I have never seen a recipe for noodles cooked in butter afterwards. Anyways, It intrigued me and I had to make them. Here is how to do it.
Homemade Noodles
First beat 4 egg yolks and 2 egg whites together.
Next add enough flour to roll dough into the bowl. I added 1 cup.
I used a fork and mixed the flour into the eggs.
Continue mixing until dough forms.
Once dough forms knead it a few times just to to form a ball.
Dump out on a heavily floured surface. Dust top of dough with flour.
Roll out dough as thin as you can. The thinner the better.
Cut dough into desired shapes. I used a pizza cutter to do this job. It was quick and easy.
Separate noodles from each other and then add them to boiling water for 20 minutes in salted water.
After noodles are done cooking, drain and rinse with cold water. Next add some butter to a pan and crank the heat up to medium high.
When the butter starts turning brown, add in the noodles.
Fry noodles in hot brown butter until very brown.
My Thoughts…
The noodles themselves were not bad, but frying them up was confusing. I didn’t know how long to cook them for. Was I supposed to cook them until they got crispy? Or cook them just until the brown butter covered the noodles? Anyhow I could have done without that last step of frying them up. I also wonder if these were meant to be served with something specific or just eaten as is?
I really didn’t care for this dish at all, but my husband said that he actually liked it. Have you ever made a dish like this? What did I do wrong? Is my Great Grandmother up in heaven disappointed in my lack of appreciating a good ol’ fashioned brown butter pasta dish? That’s my thoughts, I would love to hear yours. Please share in the comments below if you have ever had a dish like this, or any other thoughts you may have on this homemade pasta.
To see more recipes including ones from my Great Grandmothers recipe box click here.
Homemade Noodles {Great Grandmother's Old Recipe Box}
Ingredients
- 4 egg yolks
- 2 egg whites
- 1 cup enough flour to roll
Instructions
- Beat eggs together and add flour.
- Roll dough out on a heavily floured surface.
- Cut noodles and then separate.
- Boil noodles for 20 minutes in salted water.
- Put in sieve and pour cold water over them.
- Fry in hot brown butter until very brown.
Nutrition
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About Karrie
Food is my love language. But so is saving money. So I like to combine the two a lot and make thrifty make ahead and freeze meals to save time. Because life is busy, and freezer meals can come to the rescue for all of us. And yes, they actually CAN taste good. Read more...
Comments & Reviews
Sue says
My Gramma made a noodle like this used just egg yolks thou. We would lay sheets on the beds spread the noodles to dry once dried you can put in plastic bags to store them. We would make up quite a few batches at a time we used them in soups, casseroles etc..
We also fried them in butter with bread crumbs and some times added cream or sour cream brings back memories of my Gramma, Mom and I as a small girl Great Memories!!! I need to do this with my daughters and mother!!
Deb says
My grandmothers recipe is close to yours only they were her creamed noodles that we all loved. She only used the yolks, but she said to cook the noodles in salt water till done. drain, don’t rinse then cover with half and half and butter. we still make these but with store bought noodles. I’m going to make noodles this year, but not sure I’m going to use her recipe.
Barbara says
can you tell me what you do if you want to freeze them, I have froze noodles before and when i went to use them they had turned black. what did i do wrong./? i make them for noodle soup which i love.. mom and grandma always had them on sundays.. My dad hated them!! but we loved them!! when i make them i make so many so i can use them whenever i need them. Please help!
Karrie says
Pasta is a tricky one…. the only way I would suggest if you want to freeze them is to freeze them on parchment individually separate. Then once frozen placing into food saver bag to really get the air out, air is the big enemy for pasta like this. Then you would keep boil your water and add in pasta frozen, not allowing it to thaw first. That is my suggestion. Good luck!
Teri says
I make sure mine are fully dry and put into ziplock bags. I have never had an issue. I make noodles in the winter and freeze enough to use almost all year.
Pat says
Freeze them before cooking. I do this all the time. Make noodles, let air dry. Cut about half way through the day so they do not break apart. Finish drying then put into serving sizes in freezer bags. Thaw them on a paper towel covered plate to absorb moisture. Do NOT thaw in bag.
Amy says
I make brown butter noodles all of the time (my husband’s family is PA Dutch and his grandma taught me how.) Your recipe is on target, but we did not fry them in brown butter. You fry the butter until it is brown, then add a touch of milk and mix into the noodles. If they will be sitting for a while in a hot pot, you add a little extra milk and it soaks into the noodles. My family LOVES this. Every single person…add some gravy and it is a sinful treat!
Sandra R says
My mil made these. She let them air dry all day then used them to make chicken and dumplings. (Cooked in chicken broth and chicken chunks.) My family loves them.
Ahliviyah Smith says
The recipe is close to my mother’s, which she had in her head and she is gone now. I haven’t ever tried fried noodles but it sounds like it might be something I’d like so I can’t wait to try it. Thanks for sharing and I hope you share more if her recipes too.
Lori Olek says
These are almost exactly like my German grandmother’s. We add them to homemade chicken soup. We fry the leftover noodles until golden brown and season with garlic salt. Mmm mmm?
Pat says
My Polish/Russian mom would make dough for perogies. Leftover dough she cut in strips then fried in butter which we couldn’t get enough of. Since I don’t make my own noodles I adapted that to any leftover cooked noodles I have, esp. PA Dutch Homestyle. I sprinkle with Morton Nature’s Seasons blend (salt, pepper, onion, garlic, parsley, celery seed) and paprika My family loves this done golden brown also.
Candy Champa says
I think she meant “Try” not “Fry,” because serving it with brown butter sounds delicious and makes more sense. Thanks for the recipe! Can’t wait to make it 🙂
Candy Champa says
I think she meant “Try,” not “Fry,” haha that would make more sense because serving this with brown butter sounds delicious. Thanks for recipe; can’t wait to make it! 🙂
Lisa says
These noodles remind me of my childhood. My mother makes a recipe (from my great grandmother) that really only our family members love because to outsiders it seems bland but to us it is comfort food. Our noodles get combined with cubed potatoes and tossed in oil, paprika and onions. It’s a simple, depression-era dish; a way to have a hearty meal without meat. When served some of us like to top it with sour cream. Now I’m getting hungry!
Mindy says
Have you tried to sprinkle some cinnamon and sugar, powdered sugar, or some kind of icing on them? It sounds like something I used to make with my great-grandmother when I was young. We liked ours with honey.
Kristy says
My Grandma made these. But, my Aunt said to just add eggs to flour until a dough forms. Add to chicken broth. Making turkey pot pie tonight and that is how I’m doing it. I know it won’t turn out like my grandmas.
dee boden says
sometimes I cut them thin like noodles and sometimes made the noodles bigger. We like them best in Ham Broth. Sometimes we put cut potatoes in the broth with the noodles. I beat the eggs together then add the flour
Leigh says
My great grandmother was polish and one of the best cooks around. To make our families “hunky noodles” , you sauté onions in butter til brown then throw in your cooked noodles. You only fry them up for a few minutes until you get a few with some slightly crisp edges. I then throw in about half a cup of cottage cheese and get it half way melted before serving. I don’t know who in my family started the cottage cheese thing, but they are amazing.
Jodi Alice says
Thanks for sharing Karrie! I have a similar method of noodle making from my grandmother. A challenging task as the measuring system was a handful of this and a sprinkle of that.
Our family version doesn’t call for eggs. It’s a simple flour, salt & water combination. The trick to this soft dough is to let it rest so that you can roll it out thin (up to 2 hours).
The cutting is the same method as is the boiling. It does take a long time to cook. This is where I get testy, never sure if the’re done! LOL
The recipe calls for cut up bread into cubes, frying them in the butter so they’re crisp. Then add the noodles to heat them. I think it’s the texture difference between the crispy bread crumbs and soft noodles. Needless to say they are yummy! It took 3 trial runs and 2 sisters to ensure I had it right!
One last tradition we had when eating the noodles was to have a bowl of milk with them. I’ve often wondered where this tradition came from, but it definitely works!
Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Sue says
My mom used to make homemade noodles very similar to this. After she rolled them and cut them she’d let them air dry out for a few hours. Then she’d add them to a chicken broth and cook them in the broth until they were done. They tasted amazing and I miss her so much thinking of this recipe…
Happy.MoneySaver says
Thanks for sharing that memory! 🙂 I think I may have to try it one of these times!
Gail says
Hi, my grandmother was Polish and her noodles were made similar to that described by Cammy and Margaret. They would be air dried on the backs of chairs over cloth, cut and stacked in layers then cut vey thin. This would be separated by hand to continue to air dry. They were cooked briefly for only a few minutes. Unfortunately my grandmother did most of her cooking very early in the morning before I was usually awake and never used a recipe. Brings back many happy memories of good cooking from scratch.
Janice says
My grandma made these but add bread crumbs to the butter, brown the bread crumbs to golden add the noodles sprinkle with salt, pepper and parsley, we still eat this today and love it!
Melissa says
Wow my great grandma and grandmother made these every thanksgiving never knew anyone else that made them , but they didn’t fry them only boiled In chicken and or veggie broth. These are super good and can’t wait to make them this thanksgiving.
Margaret says
Hi,
My Grandma use to make noodles all the time. homemade noodles were A MUST for chicken soup and holidays. But each dish HAD to have a different shape of noodles. Chicken soup would have something like angel hair , tomato soup like on the picture, another wider shape was mixed with cooked cabbage and bacon, another dish- cottage cheese and bacon, any leftover noodles put on the pan with some butter , make it really hot , add eggs depending how many people you are feeding- “scramble ” everything , salt and pepper to taste- my kids use to loooove it for breakfast.
I think you need to “rest” noodles after making them.As a kid I was in charge of spreading them evenly on linen cloth; they “dried out” , than were ready to use. Grandma stored them in linen bags.
also -Very traditional dish for Christmas – I am Polish-are noodles with poppyseed, raisins and nuts…..but thats another story.
Kim says
Beautiful story, thank
janey mckeever says
You have there a real gem- that’s the basic recipe for egg noodles my grandmother made them all the time. You can toss them in soups for the last 10 minutes of cooking, or you can throw them in a pasta maker and roll out some homemade angel hair pasta, spaghetti, or lazagna noodles- they even make for fantastic ravioli’s!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don’t lose that recipe. It’s a definite keeper!
with that burnt butter recipe- my grandma would fry up chopped steak strips, and 1 chopped onion with a chopped clove of garlic in the butter first, then when that was cooked perfect- she’d turn off the heat & toss in the boiled noodles with 1 cup of sour cream and stir… – her version of beef stroganoff. Yummmm.
Pam says
My grandmother made them with 2 eggs and then 1/2 eggshell of water 🙂 Then a little salt and the flour. She boiled them with stewing chicken. Loved the dish.
Marca goforth says
I learned same from my mom 1/2 shell of water or broth per egg little salt and white pepper if like she rolled thin let dry on board then cut and put in broth with cooked chicken meat cook til noodle cooked through my favorite. Sometimes I add veggies and make it a soup.