Russian Pelmeni Recipe + New Dough!
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
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!).
2. Switch to dough hook and add 4 cups flour. Mix on speed 2 until well blended.
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).
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.
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.
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.
5. Turn the pelmeni maker over and push the pelmeni out onto a well-floured cutting board.
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.
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).
Russian Pelmeni Recipe + New Dough Recipe!
Ingredients
Ingredients for 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:
- Melted butter, sour cream, vinegar, ketchup
Instructions
How to Make Basic Vareniky or Pelmeni Dough:
- 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
- Switch to dough hook and add 4 cups flour. Mix on speed 2 until well blended.
- 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).
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface.
How to Make Pelmeni Filling:
- Heat 1 tbsp oil in a medium skillet. Add onion and saute until golden and soft. Add garlic and saute another minute.
- Mix together pork, turkey, onion & garlic mix, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground pepper and 1 tsp hot sauce (optional).
If using a pelmeni mold:
- Cut off about tennis-ball-size chunks of dough and roll out into a circle.
- Place over mold. Place 1/2 tsp meat into each pocket space on the mold.
- Roll out another chunk of dough and place over the mold.
- Use a rolling pin, roll the top, working from the center - outwards until the pelmeni are well-defined.
- Turn the pelmeni maker over and push the pelmeni out onto a well-floured cutting board.
- 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.
- 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:
- 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.
- Place 1 tsp pelmeni filling in the center,
- Close the edges and pinch together.
- Pinch the corners together to form, well... a diaper shape.
- Place pelmeni onto a well-floured cutting board. Arrange pelmeni evenly on the cutting board, sprinkle with flour and place in the freezer.
- 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 mintues 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).
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Looking for the “vishni” pelmeni recipe, I found reference to it in the comments and it looks like the dough is the same regardless of the filling. Now vishni are different than cherries from my understanding – or rather old memory from the soviet days 🙂 Can you confirm?
If so, where can one find vishi here in the US; what would they even be called?
Thanks!
Vishni are more like a sour cherry where the bing cherries are very sweet. Yes, the dough is the same 🙂
This dough was great, easy to work with and just the right amount of chewiness. I mix butter with white vinegar. Do Russians use white vinegar or a different type?
Just wanted you to know that yours is the only dough recipe I’ve been able to make work. My family loved the Pelmeni, and I am so excited about finally getting a recipe that works! 😀
Yes!!!! That’s so exciting to hear. You know, I had the same problem for a long time and I finally got together with Mom and learned how to do it and measured everything out exactly. I’m a nerd, but being a nerd is a good thing in this case! 🙂
LOVE the dough. Tried once with a breadmaker – UNSUCCESSFUL. Bought a 6 qt KitchenAid and the dough came out so soft. Altought, for some reason I got about 315 pelemenies. 😉
315?!! Wowee!! It’s really great to know that a breadmaker doesn’t work. Thank you so much for sharing. Now I have a concrete answer for people who ask. Thanks again! I can take some of those pelemenies off your hands you know 😉
i loved the diaper comment! makes me laugh 🙂
Interesting recipe, Natasha. Would love to do this again in the kitchen.
So, the dough doesn’t need to rise, right? Also, is it fine to refrigerate the dough for the next day if I haven’t had a chance to work on pelmeni?
I don’t recommend refrigerating the dough because it’s not as soft after refrigeration. It’s best to use it the same day it’s made. No, it doesn’t have to rise 🙂
I had this at a Russian Orthadox church center:Looked like jelly doughnut–breadlike not boiled or fried -maybe baked & has filling of meat onion & rice kindof like stuffed cabbage. I have been looking for this recipe for years. It isn’t pierogi. Anyone have a recipe or know what this is called?
Natasha, great recipe! I absolutely love to work with this dough! I despised making pelmeni before finding this recipe. My sister-in-law and I get together and make them. She makes the dough in the bread machine. Just perfect to work with, plus there’s not a single pelmen’ that broke apart.
Thank you so much! Greetings from Roseburg, OR.
That’s wonderful!! Thanks for letting me know how much you enjoyed the recipe! 😉
Thanks for sharing the pelemini recipe, I made it for the first time ever and they turned out amazing. It also gave me a reason to buy a Kitchen Aid Custom mixer which made my dough perfect:)) My parents loved the recipe
Your KitchenAid will become your best friend in the kitchen and you’ll wonder why you didn’t get one sooner! 🙂 I’m glad you and your parents loved the recipe!
Should I purchase a plastic Pelimeni mould or metal one??
I have a metal one and it works well. 🙂
Thank-you. You’ve just enabled me to make my very favorite food.
You’re very welcome 🙂 You and me both!
I used to go to this place where they served pelemini topped with butter, rice vinegar, sriracha sauce, curry powder, and cilantro with sour cream on the side. Best ever! I’m craving ’em something fierce so I might have to try out this recipe! 🙂
Those are some delicious toppings for pelmeni Sara :). Let me know how these pelmeni will turn out for you.
Hi girls!
Actually, my bread machine worked beautifully!
I set it to the “dough” setting and followed the rest of the directions for adding the dough ingredients exactly as Natasha’s recipe stated. After I was sure that all of the “wet” ingredients were fully mixed, I added the four cups of flour, all at one time. I let the bread machine do its thing for as long as it took for it to look mostly mixed. I used a large tablespoon to help the machine out a bit, scraping the extra flour in the corners so it would all get mixed well. After I added the fifth cup of flour and waited for the machine to mix that in, I noticed that the machine had stopped mixing and was trying to force my dough to rise! lol That’s when I stopped everything and reset the bread machine to the “dough” setting. It mixes for no more than half an hour before trying to make the dough rise, so I guess the first five cups took the bread machine half an hour to mix, although the rest mixed in faster. I added the sixth cup after the fifth was fully mixed (helping the machine with the spoon technique occasionally). After the seventh cup, my dough was a ball in the bread machine, but it was wet. That’s when I followed the rest of Natasha’s recipe, adding one tablespoon of flour into each corner of the machine and then sprinkling the final two tablespoons just over the dough ball as the machine continued mixing. The result was a perfectly kneaded ball of dough, ready to be made into pelmeni. 🙂
I just decided to share because I noticed that the people who said they used a bread machine didn’t explain how they made it work for them, and those who it didn’t work for had to resort to using their hands, etc. I decided to try it out myself and see what happened, and I’m definitely happy with the results 🙂
Hope this helped!
Diana thank you so much for sharing your detailed instructions. I’ll have to try it in the bread machine one of these days.
Thank you so much. I was just going to make the dough by hands because of the negative comments about the bread machine. But saw yours, and decided to do the same because don’t like doing it by hands at all. QUIET A SET UP, but will try…
I found your recipe today and tried it. My old recipe was with regular milk and no sour cream but this one was so much more elastic and seemed to roll out better. I just finished them ( as well as making some potato vereneki) and can’t wait for tonight to try them!! My husband and I lived in Ukraine for 4 years and I learned many recipes there which we love! I made Ukrainian bread yesterday. Oh, I also cut up a whole onion in my water when I boil the pelmeni, and then eat them along side. I just ordered my mold so anxious to try it out. Does the dough stick together okay without wetting it or anything? Thanks a lot for your site…I love it.
Yes, the dough sticks together well without use of water; water will actually make it worse and just slippery. I love your tip about the onion. Thank you Linda!! 🙂
Thank you for this wonderful recipe! I was so intrigued by the beauty of little pelmeni, I sought out a pelmeni mold and made this recipe for my family. It was wonderful! So well worth the effort, and everyone just raved. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Thank you for the great review 🙂
Hi Natasha,
I’m really looking forward to making these.
Just one question.
For the dough, do I use the paddle attachment, or do I use the attachment with a hook?
I used attachment with the hook.
I’ve made pelemeni many times before using my mom’s recipe that required boiled milk and it was just very time consuming. I stumbled upon your pelemeni recipe and decided to give it a try tonight. I followed your recipe exactly but the dough was very hard to roll out, like unbelievably hard to the point where I had to have my husband do it because I just wasn’t getting anywhere, and even he found it very hard to roll out and he’s a pretty strong guy. Any ideas as to what I might’ve screwed up? I really wanted this to be our go-to dough recipe because my usual one is just too time consuming, so we will give it another try one day but thought maybe you would have an idea as to what went wrong.
Hi Tanya; what kind of flour are you using?
I just made this recipe and the pelmeni are in the freezer getting ready for cooking tomorrow. I did the folding by hand, and only ended up with about 54 pelmenis. Obviously I made them much bigger than intended. Do you think the same cooking rules will apply, boiling till they reach the top + 3 minutes? Is there a way to check for done-ness without breaking one open?
This is my first time experiencing any sort of Russian food. Hopefully it is as yummy as it sounds!
Thanks!
Hmmm …just how big are they? 🙂 the same rule should apply; give it one extra minute if your worried and I’d probably crack one open and eat it just to be sure 😉
Thanks for the response, Natasha!
They looked about the same in size as your picture, so I wasn’t too concerned when making them until I had half the meat mixture left at the end. After cooking, I see that it wasn’t the size I was wrong on, but the thickness of the dough. It took plus at least ten minutes after floating to be cooked through since the “shell” was so thick. They were still delicious though!
Just wondering, what is traditionally served as a side dish to pelmeni? Or is pelmeni considered a side dish? I was thinking about making mashed potatoes but settled for just pelmeni (with sour cream/vinegar mix) instead. Suggestions?
Mostly pelmeni are served with sour cream, vinegar or ketchup :).
Hi Natasha! Once I rolled out my dough to put over the mold, it was tearing really easily…not sure what I did…any suggestions?
I don’t think you did anything wrong Olga. My mom suggested to add 1 tbsp of sour cream in the mixer. Sour cream makes dough more elastic and should take care of the problem. I hope this helps. I also updated the recipe.
Add a bay leaf and a few pepper corns to the boiling water that you cook the pelemeni in.
Thank you for the tip Liza 🙂
I always do this (the Bay leaf), it’s an absolute MUST
ха-ха.
а мы пельмени годовыми в магазине покупаем.
Hi does the dough fall apart when cooking?
Only if you overcook it. Bring to a boil and let them boil about 3 minutes. They will be floating at the top when they are done.
Yes I mix the sour cream , soy and dill together while boiling the pelmeni and then add the pelmeni with a little of the broth. You will have to mix amounts to suite your taste.
Thanks for the dough hook tip , I’ll have to get a whisk attachment.
By the way, my Russian grandparents who left Russia under threat of Communism before the Revolution, escaped to China and then to the United States in the early 1950’s ate their pelmeni with sour cream, soy sauce and dried dill weed. Enough soy sauce to turn sour cream dark brown and a fair amount of dill. It’s wonderful!
I also put a couple of beef bouilion cubes in the boiling water before plopping in the pelmeni, it adds a nice flavour for the beef and pork filled pelmeni!
Ooh thanks for the tip! So do you mix the soy sauce and sour cream together?
what attachment do you use when making the dough? You say the wisk but wouldn’t you use a dough hook? Thanks so much!
Hi Don, switch to the dough hook in step 2 🙂
Natasha, is this the same recipe for dough to make cherry vareniki? Thanks
Hi Lina, sorry for the late reply; yes, it is the same dough you would use for pelmeni, cherries, potatoes, blueberries; anything you want to put in it 🙂
No problem on the late reply. I always give myself a few days for a reply before attempting a dish. You are great!
Thank you Natasha, don’t know if you ever tryed it, but we fry them sometimes, Yes , just take raw pel’meni and put them in hot oil, they will tunr out like MINI CHEBYREKI, it’s just different way to serve them, and add the soure cream and plack peper on the top, yam……
Oh what a great idea!! I’ve never tried that, but it sounds really really good! Next time I make them, I will try your method.
These came out wonderful! My son wants me to make them often and now that I ordered the pelmeni mold on ebay, I am all set. What used to be tedious work now is simplified with the pelmeni mold…I never knew there was such a thing, but thanks to you, I have one. My son doesn’t have to go the the Russian store to purchase these anymore and he’s so happy…in fact, he wants to learn how to make them…he already makes pirozhki using crepe-like wrappers, so this will be no problem! LOL
That’s awesome. They are still very time consuming even with the mold, but they are well-worth it 🙂
Your recipe made almost 180 of these yummy dumplings and yes, even with the mold it took me 3 hours…but, on the bright side, without the mold I would be making the little ears all day!
So very true! Mine look more like little diapers 🙂 I’m no good at making them look cute.
how long to boil fresh pelemni?
Just until they float to the top then another 2-3 minutes.
Just found your site as am looking for a pelmeni recipe – thank you. Will try it out tomorrow and see what my parents think. I remember my late grandma sitting with her friends making thousands at a time. She served it to us with soy and sesame oil so will have to try sour cream. Anyway can’t wait to try them. Also am trying to find a recipe for something that sounds like pelmechi? I remember they were round pastries with similar meat filling but we’re fried golden. They were round disc shaped completely covered in pastry except for a little hole on top. Does this sound familiar at all? Would love to know how to make them.
I make fried piroshki but there is no hole on top. I have posted meat piroshki, apple piroshki and potato piroshki (with a really yummy dip). Hope that helps 🙂
I believe these are called beliashi….I make them and they’re out of sight! Yummy!…My family loves these. Basically, it’s a pirozhki yeast dough rolled into a circle, filled with a thin RAW ground beef patty (seasoned with salt and pepper and some fried chopped onion). The sides of the dough are brought around the patty forming a flat, circular dough and leaving a hole about the size of a quarter in the center. Fry these, hole side down first, flip and fry the other side until done. My family prefers these over the regular pirozhki! The meat filling can also be a combination of ground beef and ground pork. Evdokeya Ivanovna, and elderly Russian lady called these Siberian Beliashi and would make them often…that’s when I was first introduced to them years ago when I was a kid.
I’ve had those before! They are great, but what is the purpose of leaving a hole in the center? Also is a fluffy dough or a dough like pelmeni that you use?
I imagine the hole is to let the meat cook through…don’t really know.
The meat lets out juices so the hole side should be cooked first. It’s a yeast dough.
Here’s a link to the recipe that I have used for years and found on food.com (from Time Life). I do add salt to the dough because it tastes better that way. http://www.food.com/recipe/beliashi-322402
Found your site looking for a pelmeni mold dough recipe. Now I want to make everything here. Have you ever made ряжик? It’s a cake that has tons of layers like Spartak. My Mom has her old recipe but we’ve never been able to replicate it succesfully in the US: different ingredients? Thanks!
Hi Enia, unfortunately I haven’t heard of that one, but I’ll ask around 🙂
I can’t wait to try this! I haven’t had home cooked pelmeni since I was about 6 or seven (my mom used to cook the best pelmeni, before she passed away) I am 20 now and learning how to cook my very much missed foods sence I live in America now. Thank you for explaning everything step by step! YUMMY!
best with browned melted butter and vinegar and parmesan or asiago cheese and some soy.
That does sound good!! Thank you.
thank you so much for the recipe,i made them for the first time today and they turned out perfect,i love that you discribe every step so its very easy to follow the recipe,i thought i will never be able to make them but now thanks to your recipe i can yay
Pryvit Hi im English but love uraine and Russian food but would like to know the calories of food eaten. you have an excellent web site which I only food today. I have a friend from moldova who cooks for me and tells me its healthy kathleen Rush
I have no idea and I just don’t have the time to sit and calculate that with most of my recipes being from scratch. Sorry 🙁
If you use the My Fitness Pal app, you can create your own recipes or transfer them from online. It’s a super fast way to calculate calories in home cooking (which can be tedious when calculating personally). It even allows you to omit/add ingredients if you improvised the dish. Hope that helps! Best of health and home cooking.
That’s so great to know! Thank you Inna! It sounds even better than the caloriecount website I’ve been using! 🙂
Thanks so much for this new recipe dough. It came out much better than the recipe from the outfit who sold me the molds that requires 1 kg. of flour. The dough was quite tough really did not work well with the mold. Had a very hard time unmolding the dumplings. However, I still find it very difficult to get the dumplings out of the mold. I just notice that you have to roll outwards from the center of the mold. Will try that. Also for the buttermilk I tried using kefir instead and it came out real well. The dough came out real good. Ate them with scallion, ginger sauce from Momofuku.com but cook the ginger and scallions first in peanut oil then add the other condiments. Added my home made red wine vinegar and some sirracha chili sauce, soya sauce and it is a blast. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe.
Does Plemeni taste good with ground turkey? i find it too soft, but I dont think i ever tried it in plemeni.. Im consider giving it a try.. I tried pork and chicken mix and didnt like it that much. Maybe it was the pork that didnt taste so good.. hmmm.
HI Olga, I haven’t tried just turkey but it may be a fun experiment. A couple of gals at my church make theirs with just ground chicken and it turns out nice too, so turkey might just work.
I used just lean turkey for the filling and I think it made them taste dry and the sort of grainy. Do you think it was because it was lean meat? Definitely will try mixing different meats next time or try chicken. But I love this dough recipe – it came out so soft.
Lean turkey would probably be too dry. Try a meat with some fat in it next time; it will make all the difference. I’m glad you liked the dough 😉
We only use ground turkey (not ground turkey breast) and love it. I think it’s very tender.
I tried making the dough in the bread machine today, but as the previous user said it did not mix well at all, so i just took it out and kneaded myself… the pelmeni turned out really good by the way, thank you for the recipe
Thanks for letting me know. I’m glad you liked it 🙂
Have you tried making the dough in a bread machine? I want to try but dont know if I should let it go through the whole dough cycle.
Sorry I haven’t tried that so I vNt really recommend it 🙁
Natasha-
What a wonderful blog you have going here, especially for those who have been searching the world for all these recipes…. and now all of them just on one site-YOURS! I just want you to know how amazing you to have this running for those who are struggling in cooking with Russian/Ukranian touch. Yesterday I made these Pelmeni and today I am making Cheesy Potatoe Cassarole… with couple for your salads. Thanks for all your help!
Be Blessed, Vera P
Thank you so much for your nice comment. Try the chicken and mushroom casserole . Mmmmm 🙂
Natasha,
would a Breadmaker work to make the dough??
I haven’t tried it so I can’t really recommend it. Let me know how it works out.
I tried it in bread maker and it didn’t mix very well, I had to do it by hand, kitchen aid is the best thing for it
Hi Viktoriya – thanks for letting me know. I’ve had people suggest using a bread maker for the dough and now I hear it doesn’t mix well. I’ll stick with the kitchenaid 🙂 thanks again!
i should give this dough recipe a try, i usually make dough that is soft and flavorful too but it has LOTS of butter in it.
Mmmm… Butter. Do you just melt it and mix it into the dough?
Sorry Natasha, I just stumbled upon your comment. Yes, I melt it in, here is a link to my recipe that I posted on my blog: http://journeythroughtheglass.blogspot.com/2011/08/pelmeni.html
Martha Stewart eat your heart out…
I made these the other day and they turned out delicious! I even got my hubby to help by rolling out the dough:) Honestly, thank you so, so much for having this blog! I can read in ukranian but having these recipes in english makes the process actually so much easier and am so glad I can make traditional dishes that taste so amazing. Really. I haven’t tried one recipe that didn’t turn out great. Thanks again!
I used this dough recipe for varenuki with potato filling and it was awesome! a lot better than the recipe I used to make them with. 😉 thanks so much! and yeah, very true, the kitchen aid mixer is outstanding for the job! I dont know why I never thought of mixing the dough in there before lol thanks again.
There was a question about milk. I would not recommend using milk for this. Push comes to shove use water. Milk will make dough tough.
Thank you for this recipe, I finally found use for the pelimeni mold that I bought in Ukraine. This recipe was really easy! I love it.
Hi Yana – I’m glad you liked it. It is easy when the mixer does all the work 🙂
This is the best pelemni dough ever! lovin it! I just pork & beef instead of ground turkey. It was super good!!!! Also ground chicken is good for the chicken lovers lol:))
Hi Natasha,
I find if you flour the mold before putting a dought circle on it, the pelmeni will come out with a light shake of a mold. Just turn it upside down and shake.)) With a metal mold you will need to use more flour then with plastic one.
Thank you and that is a great suggestion for the plastic mold – I always wondered if those are any good! 🙂
The plastic is better if you don’t want to pock each pelmen ))) As I said, just turn upside down and shake)))
I used canadian flour these were so delicous super soft yummie!!!!!!!!!!!:)
Thank you! God bless ur sweetheart!!!!!!!!!!!!
Natasha is there any way you can split this recipe in half for me in the comment area i really dont feel like making that much lol too lazy to freeze hehe thanks
HI Natalie – If you want to make a very small batch, the store-bought wonton wrappers work pretty well, just wet the edges with water to seal them (I think it’s on the package). Otherwise, Just cut the recipe in half exactly:
Ingredients for Pelmeni Dough:
1/3 cups buttermilk
1 large egg
1 cups warm water
3/4 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups plus 3 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
Ingredients for Pelmeni Filling:
1/2 lb ground turkey
1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves, pressed
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp hot sauce, optional
Cant wait thanks so much, this means alot to me:)
Can you please put up a recipe called “Chebureki” my grandma made it for us wihen we were kids but she passed away and i didnt get a chance to learn how to make it! I would really appreciate it Natasha!!!!-Jazzy:)
Will do!
What type of flour did u used for pelmeni bleached or unbleached
Unbleached all-purpose flour. I’ll edit that into the recipe.
I haven’t tried it yet, but my readers (see comments above) have been raving about Canadian flour. 🙂
Can u plez post more dinner recipes! Thanks!
Cash and carry is having half price on Canadian flour! So cheap and the flour is so amazing esp for piroshki they are soft and fluffy like never before! awhhh
thanks 🙂 oh and i want kitchen aid mixer now so bad lol 🙂
I never thought I needed it and now I use it all the time. 🙂
Hi Natasha! This recipe look delicious, I have one question though were did u get the mold I really need one
Thanks,
🙂 Inna
Hi Inna I put a link to the molds on eBay. It’s in the top paragraph of this post. We purchased ours on eBay. I don’t remember which seller but it did come in a set of 2 straight from Ukraine 🙂
Thanks 4 having the time to post!:)
Cooking and posting are a fun challenge for me. I really enjoy it 🙂
finally a pilmeni recipe, u rock natasha! im so inspired by u and ur dedication to make whattever u do flawless, i used to make fun of u as a kid but now im jealous when i look at my half butted job of somethings!!!! love u
Thanks Sveta although this I one of the more unusual comments, it’s always nice when one of my sisters comment. 🙂 Thanks skittles for your support and encouragement.
Do you think flour from Canada would be softer when cooked?:) lol
Probably yes 🙂
Hi, I just found your site recently. My fiance is from Odessa, and so I’ve learned to make many Russian “classics” from his Mama over the years. 🙂 It’s so nice to see your take on the dishes I know how to make, and to learn new ones as well.
About pelmeni, we found that they are also very nice with soy sauce! His parents came to visit us once, and of course while we were at work all day Mama was cooking up a storm. She loves to try new things, and our kitchen had many ingredients that aren’t in hers…so that’s how we came to try pelmeni with soy sauce.
After that experience, they took home a 1 L bottle of the stuff back to Ukraine, as it’s expensive there!
I enjoy your site (although it threatens to take me off my pre-wedding diet), and look forward to more of your posts!
Hi Rozmin, thanks for the tip with soy sauce. I’ll try that next time! I know alot of my recipes aren’t “diet food” 😉 but it’s still better than eating out.
Grew up with soy sauce being the only dip. I’m so use to it, I’m always surprised to hear what else is good.
You’re not the first person to mention soy sauce. I should really try that!
I was planning on making pelmeni this week, thanks for the dough recipe, ill try yours this time! Is there a special reason you saute onions besides preventing pelmeni burps? I always add raw onions but I started noticing that when pelmeni have been frozen for a while and when you cook them, they smell like onions pretty badly and don’t taste as good. I was planning on making pelmeni without them this time but now I’m wondering, does sauteing onions prevent pelmeni from smelling and tasting weird?
They don’t seem to have that strong onion smell when you sauté the onion. They tasted fine being cooked after they were frozen. Let me know what you think 🙂
Is the dough yoou made soft? When you cooked the pelemni was the dough really soft?
It wasn’t super soft but yes it was soft after it cooked. I think it was just right 🙂
Thanks darlin!
Would this dough be good for vareniki as well or is the first one better?
You can use this dough recipe for either one. I like this dough – I think it’s softer.
Ok thank you. 🙂 Also, would I be able to use this pelmeni filling for pirojki?
Try 1 lb each of turkey and ground beef. Sauté meet in olive oil. Add finely grated carrot and add 1/2 onion finely diced. Cook till all meat is fully cooked and veggies are tender. Add dill to taste near the end. Sorry it’s not a full recipe but I will put one up eventually.
Ok thanks a lot 🙂
Don’t forget to season your mix 🙂
Can’t wait to try this! My husband has been begging for them 🙂 You are awesome!!!
Make sure he helps you make them – he will appreciate them more! 🙂
Do you think you can substitude milk instead buttermilk?
Try milk and 2 tbsp sour cream to make it more elastic.
Or you can clabber the milk with some vinegar (I prefer using cider vinegar over white vinegar).
I learned to make these from Russians who came to the US through Harbin. When we made large batches at church we used won ton wrappers. I can still hear, said over and over, “No, Joseph, you fold them like THIS!” until Shura, Magda, and Zoya decided I was hopeless at it and put me to making more filling. Knife, onion, meat, pan, fire….I’m good.
I like wonton wrappers for quick pelmeni 🙂 thanks for the tips Joe!
can you post beef plov:)
It’s on my to-do list 🙂
I’d love to try to make these someday. I feel like it’s the type of thing I need to have helpers around for. (I’ve always wanted to make ravioli too but that hasn’t happened either). Good to know there is a mold you can buy. I don’t really want more kitchen equipment, but I imagine it makes things much easier?
This is definitely more enjoyable with helpers!
Did you ever use canadian flour instead of regular all purpose? The dough is incredibly soft its amazing!
Thank you for the tip Olga – I know my mom likes to use Canadian flour for some things – I’ll look into that.
Perhaps it would be good to mention that the pelmenis go into the water still frozen- don’t defrost first =-)
Oooh, good point. done!
Mmmm! Our favorite! I use the bread machine to make the dough.
I’ll have to try that – do you let it go through the full dough cycle?
Never answered this: No, just the first half of the dough cycle- I get the dough going, and then let it stay in the breadmaker until the filling and the mold is ready, usually about 1/2 hour, sometimes a couple of hours if I get distracted 🙂
Diaper shape?? haha, how’d you come up with that one?
These were my favorite food as a kid. Not so much anymore because of the tasty pelmeni burps.
Julia – try sautéing the onions first. Much less potent pelmeni burps. It’s primarily due to raw onion going into the meat mix.
We love to eat pelmeni with satsibel’ (сацибелъ) oh and where can I find a mold for pelmeni???