Pierogi Recipes
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How to make pierogi and how to serve them.
In Poland, pierogi find their way to the table all year round. There are even restaurants that limit their menus to pierogi.
All pierogi start with a basic dough. How to prepare that is below.
But what distinguished them is the filling. You might want to start by looking at the various fillings and them come back here after you decide what kind of pierogi you want to make. Go to Pierogi Fillings.
Being little more than a boiled dumpling, they are simple to make. But they do take time. As such, in modern day Poland people have come to rely on the shops and markets that sell packaged pierogi rather than to make their own.
This is particularly true around the holidays when the mini version, called uszka, are also needed in large numbers to be added to borscht at the large holiday tables.
And that goes for the regular pierogi also. Assume that you have 20 people at the table and you want to serve the standard 5 or 6 to each person. You are talking about 100 and more dumplings to make and boil. And then you have to factor in the uszka. There are a couple days work here.
So let us assume you want to make a smaller number.
Pierogi Before Cooking
The dough for the pierogi is easily made and is standard. The difference in the Polish and Russian, or Ruskie versions lies in the filling and how they are cooked and served.
Russian or Ruskie pierogi are those filled with mashed potatoes mixed with farmer's cheese and fried onions . The dough is the same.
Uszka are small and are filled with mushrooms. The dough is the same. These really take time and patience to make.
Let's start with the dough.
The dough is simple. 2 1/2 to 3 cups of flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 egg, about 1/2 cup of water.
Put in a bowl and mix to a smooth dough. It will be rather moist. Let it rest for a half hour or so.
Cut off pieces and roll them on a well floured board to about 1/16 inch thick.
Cut out circles with anything handy that is the diameter that you want. A can, a mug, biscuit cutter.
Now all you have to do is add the filling. Fillings can be found at Pierogi fillings .
Filling the pierogi
Put the filling in the center of the circle. Wet the edges around the filling with water.
Fold the dough to cover the filling and seal with your fingers or a fork. Look at the picture top left to see what they should look like. (Caution - be sure that no filling gets in the seal and make sure that there is a good seal so that when you boil them the filling does not come out.
Boiling The Pierogi
Add a tablespoon of salt to a large pot of water. Heat to boiling and add a couple dumplings at a time.
Boil them for about 10 minutes. Remove them, rinse them under cold water and put on a plate or tray for the next step - Preparing Pierogi For The Table.
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