Try this Traditional Pelmeni Recipe recipe, or contribute your own.
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- for the dough:
- 350 g bread flour
- 120 g water
- 6 g kosher salt
- for the meat filling:
- 200 g pork butt
- 200 g beef chuck
- 25 g pork fat (trimmed from pork butt)
- 2 small yellow onions (each about 100 g or 3.5 ounces)
- 6 g kosher salt (i like using pink himalayan salt it tastes great)
- Carbohydrate 12.709762625 g
- Cholesterol 12.8 mg
- Fat 3.32535575 g
- Fiber 0.426956266689301 g
- Protein 5.764374375 g
- Saturated Fat 1.20315725 g
- Serving Size 1 1 pelmeni (45g)
- Sodium 129.17555 mg
- Sugar 12.2828063583107 g
- Trans Fat 0.45151175 g
- Calories 106 calories
Step-by-step
- To prepare the dough, sift the flour into a bowl. They say that sifting the flour makes for better pelmeni dough. Make a hole in the center of the flour. Pour the salted water and a slightly beaten egg. Mix until all the flour is incorporated. The dough will be quite stiff. Using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook will make the job very easy though. As the dough is stiff, watch your mixer very closely. If your mixer isn't powerful enough and struggles, it's better to finish by hand.
- Cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes or longer. I like to refrigerate my pelmeni dough for 2-3 hours before using it.
- Roll the dough out about 2 mm thick, #4 on the Kitchen Aid pasta roller attachment. Cut 3-3.5" circles.
- Fill each circle with 16 g of meat filling (1 heaping Tbsp).
- Fold the circle in half and crimp well. Bring the ends together and crimp. Set aside. It's best to refrigerate or freeze finished pelmeni before you are ready to boil them.
- Alternatively, use a pelmeni mold.
- Bring water to rolling boil in a large pot over high heat. Drop pelmeni into boiling water. Wait till it starts to boil again, turn the heat to medium, and cook for 8 minutes or a little longer for softer dough. The total time from dropping into water to removing is about 16 minutes.
- Remove from the water, drain and gently toss with a little bit of butter to prevent sticking. Serve immediately with sour cream, chopped fresh dill and a saucer filled with vinegar. Yes, pelmeni are fantastic with sour cream and a little bit of vinegar. I love using malt vinegar for pelmeni.
The ingredient list leaves out the structural physics of combining high-protein bread flour with a minimal water-to-flour ratio, which creates a stiff matrix necessary to withstand boiling without bursting. When handling the dough, use a stand mixer with caution because the low hydration places heavy torque on the motor; finish kneading by hand if the machine housing warms up noticeably. Rest the formed dumplings in the refrigerator for two to three hours before cooking, or freeze them solid on a sheet pan to ensure the meat proteins inside set firmly before thermal shock hits the wrapper.
The Role of Rest and Hydration
Gluten development relies entirely on adequate resting time after the initial mix, allowing the water molecules to distribute evenly through the dry starch granules. Rolling the dough out to precisely two millimeters ensures the wrapper cooks through in the eight to sixteen minute boiling window without leaving a chewy, raw center at the folded seams. Tossing the drained dumplings immediately in butter prevents surface starch from gelatinizing into a sticky mass as the temperature drops.
Transforming Leftovers
Surplus cooked pelmeni handle second-day storage remarkably well when refrigerated in a sealed container for up to three days. Reheat cold dumplings by pan-frying them in rendered pork fat or neutral oil over medium heat until the exterior develops a golden, crisp crust while the interior steams back to a tender temperature. This method alters the texture entirely, converting a boiled dumpling into a pan-seared morsel that pairs effectively with sharp vinegars and cultured dairy.
