Capuns

Medium·40 min

Spätzle dough studded with dried Alpine meats, wrapped in Swiss chard leaves and simmered in a milky broth, then blanketed with melted cheese. A wholesome one-pot specialty where almost every Graubünden family guards its own filling recipe.

Egg

A signature dish of canton Graubünden, originating in the Romansh-speaking Surselva valley as a frugal peasant dish that wrapped the week's leftover cured meat and sausage scraps in homegrown chard. Its name comes from the Romansh capun ('capon'): the plump bundles resemble a fattened bird, earning the wry nickname 'the poor man's capon.'

Tender little bundles burst with the grassy bitterness of chard giving way to chewy dumpling and salty cured meat. The milky broth and molten cheese pull it all into pure Alpine comfort, savory and faintly herbal.

Blanching makes the chard pliable so it holds the filling without tearing, while the gentle milk-and-broth simmer cooks the raw spätzle dough through and keeps the cured meat from drying out.

Variations

Plain meatless versions with just herbs, fillings using only salsiz or bacon, additions of onion, mint, chives or parsley

On the Palate

Where Capuns sits in the Swiss flavor cloud

Ingredients

Serves 4

How it's made

8 steps · 40 min

1
10 min
Whisk flour, eggs, milk and salt into a thick spätzle batter and fold in diced Bündnerfleisch, salsiz and herbs.
2
8 min
Blanch large Swiss chard leaves briefly in salted water, then trim the thick central ribs flat.
Watch out
Blanch the chard just until the leaves go limp and pliable, then plunge cold — over-blanched leaves tear when you roll.
3
12 min
Spoon a tablespoon of batter onto each leaf and roll into a neat parcel, tucking in the sides.
4
5 min
Bring a broad pan of bouillon, milk and water to a gentle simmer.
5
15 min
Lay the parcels seam-side down in the liquid and simmer covered for about 15 minutes until firm.
Watch out
Keep the liquid at a bare simmer, never a hard boil — a rolling boil bursts the parcels open before the dough sets.
6
3 min
Lift onto a warm gratin dish and pour over a little of the cooking liquid.
7
4 min
Scatter generously with grated Alpine cheese and dot with browned butter.
8
5 min
Flash under a hot grill until the cheese melts and serve at once.
Watch out
Pull it the moment the cheese melts and turns spotty-golden — a few seconds too long and the browned butter and cheese scorch.