Cheap Eats, Comfort Food, Great Leftovers, Freezes Well
Michelle Aaron, who worked with me at Aidells Sausage Company, grew up in Canada in an area settled by Eastern European immigrants. One of her favorite foods was the popular Polish dumpling called pierogi. Usually filled with potatoes, mild cheese, or sauerkraut, pierogi are eaten as a main course alongside cabbage and apples. When Michelle moved to the Bay Area, she missed her pierogi and began to experiment with flavors. This pork and apple filling is one of her stellar combinations.
Both Michelle and I love these pierogi for breakfast, topped with sour cream, but you could also serve them as lunch or dinner. Drizzle the pierogi with melted butter and top with sauerkraut in the Polish style, or serve with crisp lardons of bacon—just don’t skip the sour cream.
These dumplings freeze well and can be plopped into boiling water straight from the freezer (allow an extra minute or two to cook through). Keep some in the freezer, and you always have some ready for a speedy breakfast or unexpected guests. Pierogi are also wonderful as hors d’oeuvres.
SERVES: 4 to 6 (makes about 30 dumplings)
INGREDIENTS:
DUMPLING DOUGH:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 large egg
- ¾ cup water
- ¼ cup canola oil
PORK AND APPLE FILLING:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- 6 ounces ground pork (80%–85% lean)
- ½ cup peeled, finely diced apple, such as Granny Smith or Pippin
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Sour cream and/or melted butter
- Sauerkraut
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Dough: Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the egg, water, and oil, then stir into the flour until it forms a shaggy mass. Turn out onto a floured work surface and knead until the dough comes together and is soft but not sticky, adding more flour if necessary. If the dough is too dry, add water 1 tablespoon at a time. Cut the dough in half, form into 2 disks, and wrap each with plastic wrap. Let rest in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Filling: Meanwhile, heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool.
- Combine the pork, apple, cinnamon, nutmeg, and the cooled onion in a large bowl. Stir in ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. In a small skillet, cook a small patty, then taste, and add more salt or pepper to the filling if needed. Form the filling into teaspoon-sized meatballs and roll each one gently between your hands to elongate slightly. Put the meatballs aside, covered, while you roll out the dough.
- Put one of the dough disks on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out to about 1/16 inch thick. Using a 3-inch round biscuit cutter, cut out about 15 circles. Place a meatball in the center of one of the circles and, with your finger, lightly moisten the circumference of the circle with water. Fold over the dough to make a half-moon shape, pressing the edges together to seal. Put the dumpling on a baking sheet and cover with a damp towel. Repeat filling and shaping the remaining dough circles. Roll out the other dough disk and fill and form the remaining dumplings.
- Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add the dumplings and bring back to a boil. Cook for 4 to 6 minutes, or until the dumplings are tender and float to the surface. Drain well and serve topped with sour cream and sauerkraut.
ALTERNATIVE CUTS:
- Ground beef, a mixture of ground beef and pork, ground veal, or a mixture of ground veal and pork.
COOK’S NOTES:
- For a slightly smoky variation, replace 2 ounces of the ground pork with 2 ounces finely chopped ham or bacon.
- Replace the apple with ½ cup cooked sweet corn.
- Add ½ cup rinsed, drained, and chopped sauerkraut to the filling.
- Once you’ve mastered the dumpling dough, the sky’s the limit on stuffing possibilities. Besides the three suggestions above, you can combine other meat, chopped onion, and a cheese such as hoop cheese or farmer’s cheese. If you have any leftover pot roast or stew, you can chop it finely and mix with just enough gravy to moisten and use that. You can also mix leftover pot roast or stew with a bit of mashed potatoes.
- Instead of serving pierogi as they are, you can add them to chicken broth for a great soup.
