Pierogi

April 15, 2012

Surprise, surprise! Another post about food!  Jak państwo wiedzą, bardzo lubię gotować.  Dzięki pani Danuty, Daglas i ja robiliśmy super fantastyczne pierogi!  Oto jest przepis na pierogi z wołowiną i cebulą.  

Ten przepis jest trochę zdrowsze niż oryginał. 

"Zdrowe" Pierogi - "Healthy" Pierogi        

Pierogi is a plural term and translates as "dumplings"...as you can never eat just one :)
   
To make this less healthy - the topping is - bacon! Cook this first before starting on your dough or filling.  Cook 2-3 strips of bacon and reserve a tablespoon of the fat for the filling you will need for the pierogi.

Allow cooked bacon to cool- for crumbling onto finished product.


Składniki- farsz - Ingredients for filling

1 pound beef roast - we used a less expensive cut (grass-fed, Virginia-grown Hereford flank steak)
1/4 medium onion
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon of the rendered bacon fat
handful or bread crumbs - or about 1 slice of stale bread

Place the beef roast into a saucepan and cover half way with water.  Cook until medium-well (150-155 F) and remove from the liquid and allow to cool completely.  Reserve the liquid (a useful weak beef broth)
Once beef is cooled and rested, chop into chunks and put into food processor.
Add onion (medium chop), bacon fat, garlic clove, and bread crumbs to food processor and process until smooth.
If too dry, add a little of the reserved beef broth until the mixture is moist and slightly "tacky" to the touch.
Set mixture into the refrigerator to chill while you make the dough.

Składniki na ciasto - Ingredients for dough

2 cups of all-purpose flour (white whole wheat)
1 whole egg
teaspoon of sea salt or fine table salt
tablespoon olive oil
2 cups boiling water-have it on hand in a kettle, but you probably won't use it all
fork, rolling pin, extra flour for dusting
cleaned counter top surface

Metoda na ciasto - Method for dough

Clean off a portion of your counter-top or table.
Pour your flour onto the cleaned surface and make a "well" in the middle of the flour.
Crack your whole fresh egg directly into the well in the flour and begin to "cut" the egg into the flour until incorporated and the dough is "mealy."
Once the egg is incorporated, drizzle on the olive oil and repeat with cutting it into the flour

Add 1/4 cup of the boiling water and knead it into the dough using your fork. Once the dough is cool enough to touch, use your hands.
Continue kneading in 1/4 cup at a time until dough is smooth and incorporated - 2-3 minutes of kneading only.
Do not over-knead!  The dough needs to be smooth but not elastic like pizza dough.
Gluten formation is not your friend here.
Cut this finished dough into 1/4ths and put the reserved dough under a moist tea towel.
Spread a little flour onto your work surface and roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness.
Once rolled out, take a pint glass or 3 inch biscuit cutter and cut dough into rounds.

Filling the rounds - take a 1/2-1 teaspoon of filling and place onto half of each round.  Take care to not over fill! Fold over the dough and pinch the edges together to make semi-circles.  Be sure that the edges are pinched tight - or else your filling will come out during the boiling process.
Once all of your dough rounds are filled and resting, prepare the poaching liquid.
Fill a dutch oven or large sautee pan with water and bring to a gentle boil.  Add a pinch of salt to this liquid.
Place 4-5 pierogis into the gently boiling water. They will fall to the bottom. Once they float - allow them to float for 2-3 minutes only.
Remove to drain on a cooling rack with a slotted spoon or mesh Asian-style "spider."

Once drained and dry, transfer them to a skillet and brown them in a little olive oil or bacon fat.
This part reminds me of making Asian pot-stickers.  At this stage, you can add in the reserved bacon crumbles or a little minced onion.

Once browned on each side, serve with the reserved bacon on top and sour cream. 

Smacznego!