Pierogi
Polish pierogi ruskie from scratch: soft dough filled with potato, cheese and fried onion, boiled then buttered. Makes three dozen; freeze the rest.
- prep
- 1 h
- cook
- 30 min
- total
- 1 h 30 min
- serves
- 6
- level
- medium
Pierogi are a production, which is why Poles make them by the dozen with family drafted in. This is the ruskie filling, potato and cheese with fried onion, the one every Polish grandmother is judged by.
The dough is the quiet hero: soft, slightly elastic, rolled thin. Rest it properly and it seals without a fight.
Pierogi is one of the world's classic dishes from 67 countries.
method
Boil the potatoes until tender, mash them dry, and mix with the cheese, half the fried onions, salt and plenty of pepper. Cool.
Knead the flour, water, egg, butter and salt into a soft, smooth dough, about 8 minutes. Cover and rest 30 minutes.
Roll half the dough 2 mm thin on a floured surface and cut 8 cm circles.
Put a spoonful of filling on each, fold into a half-moon, and pinch the edge firmly shut. Repeat with the rest.
Boil in batches in well-salted water; when they float, give them one more minute and lift out.
Serve tossed in butter with the remaining fried onions and sour cream, or pan-fry the boiled pierogi in butter until golden at the edges.
chef's tips
- If the edges will not seal, the dough is floury; wet a fingertip and run it along the edge.
- Freeze extras raw on a floured tray, then bag them. They boil from frozen with two extra minutes.
- Browned in butter the next day, leftover pierogi are arguably better than fresh.