Pirohy Slovak

Medium·1 hour active + 30 min resting

Slovak boiled filled dumplings — flour-and-egg dough rolled thin, cut into circles, filled with bryndza-and-potato, sauerkraut, or sweet plum jam, sealed, and boiled. Served with sour cream and rendered bacon.

Egg

Pirohy (called pierogi in Polish, vareniky in Ukrainian) is the universal Central-Eastern European filled-dumpling tradition. Slovak versions use bryndza cheese for distinctive flavor.

Bite into a pirohy — soft chewy dough wrapper, bryndza-and-potato filling steamy and tangy, bacon's salty crunch outside, a cool dollop of sour cream alongside. The cheese's distinctive sharpness defines the Slovak version. Hearty and comforting — Central European home cooking at its most essential.

Egg in dough creates elasticity. Sealing firmly prevents bursting. Brief boil cooks dough; longer makes them mushy.

Variations

With sauerkraut filling. With plum jam (sweet). With mushroom filling. With cottage cheese. With potato-only. With added quark cheese.

On the Palate

Where Pirohy Slovak sits in the Slovak flavor cloud

Ingredients

Serves 4

How it's made

10 steps · 1 hour active + 30 min waiting

1
40 min
Make dough: combine 400 g flour + 1 egg + 1 tsp salt + 150 ml warm water. Knead 8 min into smooth dough. Rest 30 min.
2
6 min
Make filling: combine 400 g mashed boiled potato + 200 g bryndza cheese + 1/2 tsp salt + 1 tbsp chopped chives.
3
12 min
Roll dough thinly; cut 7-cm circles.
4
14 min
Place 1 tbsp filling on each circle. Fold; seal edges firmly with fork.
Watch out
Press the edges firmly with a fork and make sure no filling touches the seam — a weak seal splits open in the boil and the filling leaks out.
5
4 min
Bring large pot of salted water to a boil.
6
6 min
Boil pierogi in batches 4-5 min until they float and look slightly translucent.
Watch out
They're done seconds after they float up and the dough looks slightly translucent — pull them then, a long boil turns them gummy.
7
7 min
Meanwhile, render 100 g diced bacon until crispy.
Watch out
Render the bacon slowly until the fat runs clear and the bits are crisp — rushing it browns the outside while the inside stays soft and greasy.
8
3 min
Lift pierogi out with slotted spoon; toss gently in bacon and fat.
9
1 min
Top with crispy bacon and sour cream.
10
1 min
Serve hot.