Pierogi

Please note:  for this, all images are stolen horribly from the Internet.  I haven't made these in a while, but I want to show some things here.

I know I haven't updated this in forever, but my wonderful friends at the Barony of Stargate have asked me to teach a class on Saturday on making pierogi, so hey, I figure this is a good way of having a writeup!

What's a Pierogi, Anyways?

For a start, a grammatical mistake!  Pierogi are the plural form of pierog (I can't do the accents on here, sorry), which is basically just about any form of dumpling.  The word actually translates, more or less, to pie.  Pierogi are very common in Russia, the Ukraine, and Poland, and have a supposed history dating back to the Kievan Rus.  They are commonly filled with all sorts of things, from mushrooms to potatoes and onions to fish and any sort of meat you can think of.  They are typically served with sour cream and/or melted butter and onions, with usually some sort of green garnish.

Pierogi Russkie

The type of pierogi I am making for the class is pierogi Russkie, which is pretty much the most traditional one (I may do some filled with mushrooms as well, but since the class is online, I'm not sure if there is a real point here--not like anyone can taste it).  This is pierogi filled with mashed potatoes, fried onions, and quark cheese.  Now, I can't exactly purchase quark easily and I don't have the time to make it, so we're going to use cream cheese here.

Please note:  for those of you looking into a much more "traditional" recipe, you'll want to use something other than potatoes, which are a New World crop.  However, this works well, especially since I have a lot of leftover mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving.  Waste not, want not.

Pierogi at an Event

The nice thing about pierogi, in my opinion, is that they freeze exceptionally well and are simply prepared by boiling for a while, then frying in some butter and topping them.  This makes them ideal for the sort of event where you can prep a LOT of food for people and then make it relatively quickly, or even to-order.  Boil them in a big pot, take a few out and fry as people come up.  Event fast food, anyone?

Recipe for the Class

Please note:  I will not be making anywhere near this much pierogi, as I am cooking only for myself.  All measurements are for a "full batch," and frankly, you should all be smart enough to know how to adjust recipes for servings.

For the Wrappers:

5 cups flour (AP if you want to be modern, unbleached etc. for more traditional)

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup water

3 large eggs (if going more historical, try 4 medium eggs--our modern large eggs are pretty big)

1/2 cup softened butter

For the Filling:

4 medium peeled and chopped potatoes

2 medium onions, chopped (reserve some for toppings)

2 tablespoons butter

5 ounces softened cream cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

For the Toppings (for each serving):

1/2 tablespoon butter

1 sprinkle reserved onions

1 sprinkle chopped parsley

1 sprinkle chopped green onion

Directions:

1:  Make the dough.  Combine the salt and pepper, then add everything else and mix as you see fit.  A food processor would be nice here.  Let rest 15-30 minutes.

2:  Fry the non-reserved onions in the butter until they are nicely brown and a little crispy.

3:  Make mashed potatoes.  Seriously.

4:  To the mashed potatoes, add everything else for the filling.  Mix until nicely combined.

5:  Roll out the dough until it is about 1/8" thick and cut into 3" rounds with, well, anything.  You can separate the dough into multiple parts if that makes it easier.

6:  To each round, add 2 tablespoons of filling.  Moisten the edge around the round and press to seal.  You're making dumplings.  If you want to be fancy, you can crimp them.  I'm not super-fancy.

7:  Get a big pot full of boiling water.  Toss in the pierogi and wait until they are floating.  Remove and strain.  You probably want to do these in batches unless you have a REALLY big pot.

8:  Get a serving of 4-6 pierogi ready.  Melt the topping butter in a skillet and add the reserved onions.  Cook them down for a bit (you want them to get like the onions in the filling).  Fry the pierogi on each side for a few minutes until they are nicely browned.  Plate with the butter, onions, and the greenery.

9:  Serve with sour cream, if you want.