
As
a child I grew up making these tasty morsels from about the age of
nine years, and they are one of a very few things that bring back
memories of my childhood.
Many
different cultures throughout Eastern Europe have their own versions
of these 'dumplings' with as many variations in the filling used.
When I made these at my chef's station I had some people compare them
to Chinese Wontons and that was understandable.
I
stayed with what was a traditional method in my family using ground
pork, chopped green onion and seasoning with salt and pepper to taste
for the filling. At the chef's station I cheated and used wonton
wrappers, although most Russians or any Eastern European would have
made their own dough, which is a simple mixture of flour, water, a
pinch of salt, and sometimes the addition of one egg. This is well
mixed and then rolled out into a tube shape with about 1 1/2 inch
diameter. Finally the tube is cut into 1 inch thick portions and
rolled out into round disks with approximate 3 inch diameter. It is
handy to keep them all the same size and not go the route of fashion
with small, medium, large and extra large.
As I used wonton wrappers I saved a little work, sorry mom I was in a hurry. The wonton wrappers are square but the end result is the same.
Place
a small amount of filling in the centre of the wrapper or dough.
Keep a cup of cold water beside you as you will need to run a wet
finger each time around the inside perimeter of the wrapper, then
fold over the wrapper to have the ends meet in a triangular shape and
pinch down hard to seal. This is where the use of a little amount of
water on your finger helps to make the dough sticky.
Now
taking the two outside corners, left and right fold them over each
other. Again a little, and only a little water as needed on your
fingertips to pinch down and seal. Once you have done that, you can
see you have formed a sort of face with an old traditional scarf.
Place
the Pelmeni on a baking sheet with parchment paper in rows and then
place into the freezer. Freezing can be for a couple of hours or
longer. I froze them overnight and then boiled them.
In
a large pot bring to a boil about 3 litres of water seasoned with 2
teaspoons of salt and some chopped green onions. As the water
reaches a rolling boil drop about 24 of the frozen Pelmeni in. They
first sink to the bottom, when you see them all rise to the surface
they are ready to be served.
Pelmeni
can be served in a bowl with a tablespoon of sour cream or with
dippings such as balsamic vinegar, soy sauce or white wine vinegar.
This
recipe will make approximate six dozen Pelmeni. Put them in freezer
bags of 24 per bag and they will be ready to use as you need them.
Now Enjoy.
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Filling
2 lb ground pork
1 bunch of green onions, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Dough
2 cups of all-purpose flour
water, gradually added
salt and 1 egg – or cheat and use
prepared wonton wrappers