Filling, comforting and delicious, fresh pierogies are easy to make at home and only use a few ingredients. Many people shy away from making pierogies at home because they think it is a difficult dough to work with and takes a long time. However these are actually super easy to make at home and require only a few ingredients. The best part is you can make extra and freeze them for a quick weekday meal!
When it comes to how to make homemade pierogi dough, there are a few options. Being from Pittsburgh, I am biased to use the source cream dough. Pittsburgh is known for its pierogies, and its many church’s selling these delicious dumplings. Why are pierogi so popular in Pittsburgh? In short, during the steal boom there was an influx of Eastern European immigrants who brought these to the city. Since then, they have become as Pittsburgh as ham bbq and the fries on a salad.
Homemade Cheddar Pierogies
Description
Fresh homemade cheddar and potato pierogies with caramelized onions.
Ingredients
Dough
Filling
Other
Instructions
Making the pierogi
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Prepare the filling
Rinse, peel and slice the potatoes. Place in a pot of cold water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until fork tender. Carefully strain off the water. Mash the potatoes with a potato ricer or with a potato masher. Combine cheese, salt and black pepper to taste.
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Make the dough
In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, sour cream and eggs. Mix to combine well. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead for 6-10 minutes, or until smooth. The dough will be very soft and smooth.
Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
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Roll out the dough
Lightly flour your work area and roll the dough to 1/8 inch thin. Using an inverted class or cookie cutter, cut into 2.5-3" rounds. You can roll the scraps back out to get a few extra pierogies.
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Filling and shaping
Place roughly 1.5 tsp of filling into the center of each round. The amount of filling will depend on the size of your pierogies. Fold the dough in half and pinch together the top center. Pleate the edges starting at one side and go around. If there is too much filling it will start to leak out the far end you are pleating from. That is okay, simply press the edges together and the dough will seal.
Continue with remaining pierogi and place on a lightly dusted surface.
If you are not going to be cooking the pierogi today you can freeze them for several weeks. -
Caramelize onions
Slice a large onion. Place in a skillet over medium heat with a tablespoon of butter and a pinch of salt. Slowly caramelize, mixing occasionally to prevent the onions from burning. Continue cooking for 20-30 minutes or until the onions are a dark golden brown.
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Boil Pierogi
Place the fresh or frozen pierogi in a large pot of salted boiling water. If fresh, cook for around 3 minutes and frozen 8. They will start to float when the are cooked.
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Combine onions and Pierogi
Move the onions to one side of the pan. Turn the skillet to medium-high and melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Once the butter is melted and sizzling add the pierogi. Cook each side for 1-2 minutes or until as golden brown as you like. If you like your pierogi extra crispy, cook for a few more minutes per side.
Toss to combine and serve.
