Hambal – Stuffed dumplings with potatoes

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 300 g flour, possibly more, depending on consistency
• 1 egg(s)
• 200 ml water, lukewarm
• 2 tsp salt
• possibly flour for the work surface
• salt water
• 2 kg potatoes
• 3 tsp salt
• 2 tsp chili powder or Pul Biber
• 2 tsp pepper
• 125 g butter
• 500 g natural yogurt
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cloves garlic
• 125 g butter
• 2 tsp chili powder or Pul Biber or
• Paprika powder

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes

Circassian family recipe

This is an original Circassian family recipe and ideal for cold winter days. A little time-consuming to prepare, but quite inexpensive and very, very delicious. Boil the potatoes with their skins in a large pot with plenty of water. While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the pasta dough. To do this, in a large, sturdy bowl, mix together approximately 300g of flour, 200ml of lukewarm water, 2 teaspoons of salt, and an egg. This is best done by hand. Add enough flour as needed to form a firm but smooth dough. The dough is ready when it is no longer sticky. The longer you knead the dough, the smoother it will become. Knead for about 10 minutes. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain the hot water and rinse the potatoes in cold water so they are easier to peel. Peel the potatoes, but do not let them cool. Mash with a potato masher or fork, then add 3 teaspoons of salt, 2 teaspoons of chili powder or Pul Biber, 2 teaspoons of pepper, and 125g of butter (cut into cubes) to the hot potatoes. Once the butter has melted into the potato mixture, mix everything well. There shouldn’t be too many large pieces of potato in the mixture, as otherwise, filling the dumplings will be difficult. Prepare a large pot of boiling, salted water (as you would for pasta). Then prepare the yogurt sauce by mixing the crushed garlic cloves and salt with the yogurt. Now fill the pasta dough with the potatoes. You can do this however you like, e.g., as with Maultaschen or tortellini, but for the original recipe, proceed as follows: Roll out the pasta dough with very little or no flour until it is about 3mm thick. Use a knife or rolling pin to cut strips about 6cm wide. Then divide these again crosswise to create squares about 6 x 6cm. Depending on the size, fill with about 1 teaspoon of the potato mixture, fold over, and carefully press the edges together. They will stick together naturally. Set aside. Knead the leftover dough again and fill it as well, until there is no more dough left. Now cook the dumplings in batches in gently boiling water. This takes about 10 minutes each. Feel free to test them halfway through. If the dough is nice and soft, the dumplings are done. Remove the dumplings with a ladle and store them in a metal or glass bowl until all the dumplings are cooked. Now heat the butter in a small pan with the chili powder or pul biber. You can also use plain paprika if you want it less spicy. Heat the butter until it starts to foam, but be careful that the spice doesn’t turn black and burn. This requires a delicate touch. Now arrange the plates: Arrange a few dumplings on the plates, drizzle with the chili butter, and finally drizzle the yogurt sauce over the dumplings. Sprinkle a little more chili butter over the yogurt for decoration.