These Homemade Pierogi with Potato & Cheese Filling are chewy and hearty–the ultimate family-friendly comfort food!
I was asked to participate in this campaign with Cabot Creamery as a member of the Healthy Aperture Blogger Network. I was compensated for my time.
If you were lucky enough to have a grandma from Eastern Europe, your body is probably at least one-third pierogi.
Growing up in Western Pennsylvania, I spent many happy dinnertimes around my grandma’s table, feasting on her dense, chewy, homemade pierogi. Sometimes she tossed together a salad for the side. But usually we just dug straight into the bowl of the potato and cheese dumplings, tallying up how many we ate and announcing it at the close of the meal (I’m pretty sure my husband, while we were still dating, set a record of 20).
This pierogi recipe comes from my grandma. Like most grandmas, mine didn’t cook from written recipes, and she never shared exact measurements. But while we were still lucky to have her with us, various family members made pierogi with her and cobbled together a recipe that is pretty darn close. So now my kids can experience them too.
Making homemade pierogi is a labor of love. I’m not going to call these “easy”, “no fuss”, or “quick” because they’re not. What they are is an ultimate comfort food–and, at least for me, a time-machine back to my grandma’s dining room table.
W
How to Make Homemade Pierogi
Ingredients You Need to Make Pierogi
- Potatoes: The best potatoes to use for this are russet potatoes, you’ll need one pound
- Cheese: I used Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese, but you can use any kind of cheddar
- Butter
- Salt
- Flour: Use bread flour for this recipe, which has more protein than all-purpose flour
- Eggs
How to Make Pierogi Filling
These are traditional potato and cheese pierogi. My sister-in-law adds diced bacon to her filling. My grandma also filled pierogi with sauerkraut.
To make potato and cheese filling, slice peeled russet potatoes into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. This helps them cook quicker and more evenly. Place in a medium saucepan, cover with water, and set over medium-high heat. When it comes to a boil, continue cooking for about 15 minutes or until potatoes are very tender. Remove from heat and drain potatoes.
Add cheese, butter, and salt right to the saucepan and either mash by hand or use a hand mixer to blend until smooth and fluffy.
Transfer the potato mixture into a small bowl or baking dish, cover, and refrigerate (the potato filling is easier to work with when it’s cooled).
How to Make Pierogi Dough
NOTE: These are not delicate, tender pierogi. This is thick, chewy pierogi dough–the kind I grew up eating.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine bread flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add eggs.
Mix gently, adding water as needed, until the dough comes together (you may not use the full amount of water, I usually have a few tablespoons left).
Knead the dough by hand, either in the bowl or on a lightly floured surface, just until the dough forms a firm ball, about 30-60 seconds. Lightly coat the ball in flour and cover with plastic wrap (to prevent dough from drying out) and set aside for about an hour.
When dough is done resting, cut it in half. Keep one half covered in the bowl. If you have a pasta machine, feel free to use it to roll out the dough (that’s what my genius sister-in-law does). Otherwise, turn out the other half onto a lightly floured work surface and roll it with a rolling pin. If it’s sticky, sprinkle a little bit of flour over it and work it in gently.
How to Assemble Pierogi
Roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thickness. (If the dough springs back a lot, allow it to rest about 10 minutes and try again.) Cut rounds in the dough with a 3-inch biscuit cutter or the top of a glass or jar. Remove potato filling from the refrigerator. Using a spoon or tablespoon-sized cookie scoop, place a scant tablespoon of filling (a bit less than a tablespoon) into the center of each dough round.
Gently fold edges together, pinching with your fingers to achieve a good seal.
You may need to gently stretch the dough slightly to get it up and over the filling to pinch together. Avoid getting filling in the seal or your pierogi may leak while cooking!
Re-roll your scraps, allowing your dough to rest if it’s difficult to roll. Repeat steps with other half of dough. You should get about two dozen pierogi. You will have filling left–eat it with a spoon!
Place pierogi on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Freeze baking sheet of pierogi until firm and then transfer into a freezer bag or container until ready to use.
How to Cook Pierogi
To cook, set a large saucepan of well-salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, melt about a half-stick of butter in a skillet and add 1/2 onion, diced or sliced (your choice), and cook over medium heat until onions are browned. Carefully drop pierogis into boiling water (a half-batch at a time) and boil for 5 minutes. Transfer boiled pierogi into the skillet of butter and onions and toss to coat and keep warm.
When all pierogi are boiled and buttered, serve!
About My Sponsor: Cabot Creamery
This pierogi filling recipe is made with Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese. You may already use Cabot or have seen it in the grocery store, but here are a few things you may not know about the Cabot and their products:
- Cabot Creamery has been around for 100 years! Cabot is a co-operative, owned and operated by about 800 family farmers throughout New England and New York.
- 100% of the profits go back to the farmers in the co-operative.
- Cabot makes cheese, Greek yogurt, sour cream, cottage cheese, butter, and whey protein.
- Cabot cheddar cheese, made simply with milk, salt and cheese making cultures, is lactose-free.
Recipe: Homemade Potato Pierogi
Homemade Potato and Cheese Pierogi
Yield: 6
Prep Time: 3 hours
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours 5 minutes
These homemade potato and cheese pierogi are hearty and filling! Just like Grandma used to make, you too can make a classic homemade pierogi from scratch.
Ingredients
Pierogi Filling
- 1 pound russet potatoes, washed and peeled
- 4 ounces Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese , shredded (half of an 8-ounce block)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
Pierogi Dough
- 2 cup bread flour
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup water, (you may not need the full amount)
Instructions
- Slice the peeled potatoes into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Place them in a medium saucepan, cover with water, and set over medium-high heat. When it comes to a boil, continue cooking for about 15 minutes or until potatoes are very tender. Remove from heat and drain potatoes.
- Add cheese, butter, and salt to saucepan and either mash by hand or use a hand-held mixer to blend until smooth and fluffy. Transfer potato mixture into a small bowl or baking dish, cover, and refrigerate (the potato filling is easier to work with when it's cooled).
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine bread flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add eggs. Mix gently, adding water as needed, until the dough comes together (you may not use the full amount of water, I usually have a few tablespoons left).
- Knead by hand, either in the bowl or on a lightly floured surface, just until the dough forms a firm ball, about 30-60 seconds. Lightly coat the ball in flour and cover (to prevent dough from drying out) and set aside for about an hour.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and set aside.
- When dough is done resting, cut it in half. Keep one half covered in the bowl. If you have a pasta machine, feel free to use it to roll out the dough. Otherwise, turn out the other half onto a lightly floured work surface. If it's sticky, sprinkle a little bit of flour over it and work it in gently. Roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thickness. (If the dough springs back a lot, allow it to rest about 10 minutes and try again.) Cut rounds in the dough with a 3-inch biscuit cutter or the top of a glass or jar.
- Remove filling from the refrigerator. Using a spoon or tablespoon-sized cookie scoop, place a scant tablespoon of filling (a bit less than a tablespoon) into the center of each dough round. Gently fold edges together, pinching with your fingers to achieve a good seal. You may need to gently stretch the dough to get it up and over the filling to pinch together. Avoid getting filling in the seal or your pierogi may leak while cooking!
- Placed finished pierogi on the lined baking sheet. Re-roll your scraps, allowing your dough to rest if it's difficult to roll. Repeat steps with other half of dough.You should get about two dozen pierogi. (You will have filling left--eat it with a spoon or save it for later!)
- Freeze baking sheet of pierogi until firm and then transfer into a freezer bag or container until ready to use.
- To cook, set a large saucepan of well-salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, melt about a half-stick of butter in a skillet and add 1/2 onion, diced or sliced (your preference), and cook until onions are browned. Carefully drop pierogis into boiling water (a half-batch at a time) and boil for 5 minutes.
- When all pierogis are boiled and buttered, serve!
- Frozen pierogis can be kept for several months. Cover and refrigerate any leftover cooked pierogi and eat within 3-4 days.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 356Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 86mgSodium: 702mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 3gSugar: 1gProtein: 14g
More Comfort Food Recipes You Might Like
Slow Cooker Lasagna
Instant Pot Mac-n-Cheese
Whole Wheat Carbonara
