Pelmeni

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 500 g minced beef and pork (250 g each)
• 2 tbsp crème fraîche or cream cheese (insider tip!)
• 1 tsp salt and pepper
• ½ tsp caraway seeds
• 1 medium-sized onion(s), grated or very finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 3 jars of flour
• 1 egg(s)
• 1 pinch of salt
• ¾ jar water
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 peppercorns
• Vegetable broth or meat broth
• Crème fraîche
• ketchup
• Parsley, finely chopped

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 2 hours

with minced meat

This recipe works best with a pelmeni mold, which you can buy online. Alternatively, you can cut out rounds of dough, fill two circles of dough, and then join them together. To make the dough, put the flour in a large bowl and make a well in the middle. Mix the water and egg together and add a pinch of salt. Slowly knead the dough into a smooth dough. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rest for about 30 minutes. For the filling, knead the ground meat, spices, onions, garlic, and crème fraîche or cream cheese together thoroughly and refrigerate the meat dough for 10 minutes. Roll out ¼ of the dough and carefully place it on the pelmeni mold. Fill the holes with small (careful not to make them too big!) balls of meat dough. Then roll out the next quarter of the dough and carefully cover the first sheet with it (the dough shouldn’t be too thin so the filling doesn’t leak out). Roll vigorously back and forth on the plate until the pelmeni loosen from the mold. Remove them carefully from the mold, using plenty of flour to prevent the parcels from sticking together. Repeat this process until all the dough and filling are used up. You can freeze the pelmeni in bags (always with a little flour) or cook them immediately. To cook, bring salted water or broth to a boil and add peppercorns and bay leaves. When the water boils, carefully add the pelmeni and cook for about 6 minutes. When they float to the surface, they are almost done. Remove from the water and serve with ketchup or crème fraîche and fresh parsley, with or without a little broth. Tip: When cooking frozen pelmeni, be sure to separate the parcels so they don’t stick together during cooking.