Homemade Pierogis

During these stay-at-home orders, there have been a few foods that I’ve been craving that I would order frequently from local restaurants. One of my biggest recent cravings was for Messina Social Club‘s pierogis. So, when I accidentally ordered 10 pounds of potatoes (?!), I figured it was the perfect time to try to make my own Homemade Pierogis.

This recipe is a very basic version, but once you try it out, you can add different stuffings to create different flavor profiles.

They also freeze really well, so feel free to double the recipe and stock your freezer for future meals!

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

Filling:

• 1 cup mashed potatoes (I halved the recipe and substituted in sour cream for the Greek yogurt)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Optional toppings:

• sauteed shallots
• butter
• sour cream

To make the dough, add the flour and salt to a large mixing bowl, stirring to evenly combine. Stir in the egg to the flour mixture.

Follow with the sour cream and softened butter. The mixture will begin to resemble a dough.

When its combined, use your hands to knead and fold the dough within the bowl until it becomes less sticky. Don’t add more flour, just keep working with it for 5 to 10 minutes.

Remove the dough from the bowl and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least an hour, or up to 48 hours.

Make your mashed potatoes (or use store bought). Working with warmed mashed potatoes, stir in the shredded mozzarella until fully combined. Taste and season with salt and pepper if desired.

When you’re ready to fill the pierogis, remove your dough from the fridge and roll out on a large surface to about 1/8″ thickness.

Using a 2″ round cutter, cut out ass many circles of dough as you can. Remove the circles and set aside. Take the scraps, roll it back into a ball, and roll out again to 1/8″ thickness to cut out more dough rounds. Repeat until you have approximately 3 dozen dough rounds.

Using a 1/2 tablespoon measuring spoon, scoop 1/2 tablespoon of the mashed potato mixture on each dough round.

Fold the dough over itself to create a half moon. Pinch the edges to seal. Use the tines of a fork around the edges to fully seal each pierogi. (If you have a dumpling press or something similar, you can also use that to seal the pierogis.) Repeat with the remaining mashed potato mixture and the dough rounds.

If making immediately, heat a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Heavily salt the water and add in 10 pierogis. Cook until the pierogis float, about 3-5 minutes. Repeat, adding 10 pierogis maximum at a time until you’ve cooked as many as you desire. Add the cooked pierogis a few at a time to a saute pan with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Brown on both sides, about 3 minutes on each side.

Serve topped with sauteed shallots, a drizzle of melted butter, and/or a dollop of sour cream.

If freezing, Lay the pierogis flat on a cookie sheet and add to your freezer for approximately 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, add the pierogis to a freezer bag.

Pierogis are such awesome comfort food.

I was really happy with how these turned out, but I can’t pretend they were as good as Messina Social Club’s — theirs are like double the size and melt in your mouth — but these will have to do for now!