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May 9, 2011

Russian Pelmeni Recipe + New Dough!

Name: Russian Pelmeni Recipe + New Dough Recipe!
Prep time: 120 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 130 min
Ingredients: 2/3 cups buttermilk; 1 Tbsp sour cream; 2 large eggs; 2 cups warm water; 1 1/2 tsp salt; 7 cups plus 6 Tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour; 1 lb ground turkey; 1 lb ground pork; 1 medium onion (finely diced); 1 Tbsp olive oil; 3 garlic cloves (pressed); 1/2 tsp ground pepper; 3/4 tsp salt; 1 tsp hot sauce (optional); Melted butter (sour cream, vinegar, ketchup)

4.91 from 76 votes
399 comments

A green plate with Russian pelmeni garnished with dill

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This recipe is for Russian Pelmeni along with a NEW dough recipe! This dough is softer, tastier and has more exact measurements. I strongly recommend a KitchenAid Mixer for the job. It’s the workhorse of the kitchen. A pelmeni mold also speeds up the process.

They can be purchased on Amazon. Pelmeni are a royal pain in the bottom to make. They are however, cheap and tasty – and you’ll recall your childhood (detstvo vspomnish). You will have enough for about 6 dinners with this recipe, so if you are up for suffering through the process once, you will have a nice stash of these in the freezer.

Serve these in a good quality chicken broth, or boil and butter them up, then dip in sour cream, vinegar or ketchup.

Ingredients for Russian Pelmeni Dough:

2/3 cups buttermilk
1 Tbsp sour cream
2 large eggs
2 cups warm water
1 1/2 tsp salt
7 cups plus 6 Tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour

Ingredients for Pelmeni Filling:

1 lb ground turkey
1 lb ground pork
1 medium onion, finely diced
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1/2 tsp ground pepper
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp hot sauce, optional

Ingredients/ Ideas for Toppings:

Butter, melted
Sour cream, vinegar, ketchup

How to Make Basic Vareniky or Pelmeni Dough:

1. Using the whisk attachment on medium speed, mix together: 2/3 cup buttermilk, 1 Tbsp of sour cream 2 cups warm water, 2 eggs and 1 1/2 tsp salt until well blended (please excuse the fact that this picture has the paddle attachment – I hauled my mixer to my sister’s house to make these and forgot the whisk!).

Two eggs and milk in a mixer

Salt added into mixing bowl with Russian pelmeni mixture

2. Switch to dough hook and add 4 cups flour. Mix on speed 2 until well blended.

Floured added into a mixing bowl

A mixing bowl with mixture for pelmeni dough

3. Add 3 more cups of flour (one cup at a time and wait for the dough to become well blended with each cup). Add the rest of the flour 1 Tbsp at a time, until the dough is no longer sticking to the sides of the bowl (I used 6 Tbsp). Once it is no longer sticking to the bowl, continue to mix 5 minutes. (Total mixing time is about 20 minutes from the time you start adding flour).

A mixing bowl with pelmeni dough

4. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface.

How to Make Pelmeni Filling:

1. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a medium skillet. Add onion and saute until golden and soft. Add garlic and saute another minute.

Onions being sautéed in a skillet

2. Mix together pork, turkey, onion & garlic mix, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground pepper and 1 tsp hot sauce (optional).
The KitchenAid is very useful for mixing meat as well, so your hands don’t freeze even if your meat is cold.

If using a pelmeni mold:

1. Cut off about tennis-ball-size chunks of dough and roll out into a circle.

2. Place over mold. Place 1/2 tsp meat into each pocket space on the mold.

A pelmeni tray with dough on it and meat being filled into the holes

3. Roll out another chunk of dough and place over the mold.

4. Use a rolling pin, roll the top, working from the center – outwards until the pelmeni are well-defined.

Pelmeni being shaped in a mold

5. Turn the pelmeni maker over and push the pelmeni out onto a well-floured cutting board.

Pelmeni being taken out of a mold

6. Arrange pelmeni evenly on the cutting board, sprinkle with flour and place in the freezer. Pinch together any open edges on pelmeni or the meat will float out during cooking.

Pelmeni on a floured cutting board

7. Once they are fully frozen, put them in large ziploc bags, sprinkle with flour and freeze them for future enjoyment.

If making pelmeni by hand:

1. Shape a portion of the dough into a 1 to 2 -inch thick log. Cut off 1 piece at a time (about gum ball sized) and roll into disks to form a 1.5-inch circle with rolling pin. Sprinkle rolling pin and surface with flour if needed.

2. Place 1 tsp pelmeni filling in the center,

3. lose the edges and pinch together.

4. Pinch the corners to gether to form, well… a diaper shape.

5. Place pelmeni onto a well-floured cutting board. Arrange pelmeni evenly on the cutting board, sprinkle with flour and place in the freezer.

6. Once they are fully frozen, put them in large ziploc bags, sprinkle with flour and freeze them for future enjoyment.

To Cook Pelmeni:

Bring a pot of water to boil (add 1 Tbsp salt for a large soup pot, or 1 tsp salt for a smaller 4 quart pot). Add FROZEN pelmeni and return to a boil. They should float to the top, then boil for 3 minutes longer (or until meat is fully cooked). Drain pelmeni and place them in a clean bowl. Toss pelmeni with butter and sprinkle with dill (optional). Serve them warm with ketchup, sour cream or vinegar (my personal favorite).