Russian Pelmeni Meat Dumplings
Discover how to make traditional Russian Pelmeni dumplings with a savory meat filling and tender dough. Perfect with sour cream, butter, or your favorite sauces!
Servings: 150 dumplings
Calories: 45kcal
Equipment
- Pelmeni maker
- Rolling Pin, Measuring Cups & Spoons, Spoons & Spatulas
- Stand mixer I provide instructions for using your hands or a stand mixer
- Large bowl for mixing the dough
- Medium or large bowl for the meat mixture
- Skillet for making the caramelized onion & bacon topping
- Baking sheet, preferably one with a raised wire rack for freezing the pelmeni
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 5 cups all-purpose flour plus more as needed
- 1 cup sour cream or sour milk, buttermilk, kefir, yogurt, or just plain water
- 1 ⅕ cups lukewarm water
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon lard or olive oil, softened butter, ghee, avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg optional
For the Filling:
- 1 lbs ground pork
- 1 lbs ground beef
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
For the Topping:
- 1 large onion diced
- 1 cup bacon diced
- 2 tablespoons butter unsalted
- sour cream & chives to serve as per your taste optiona
Other:
- 4 cups bone broth to boil the dumplings, but you can also use plain water or add a stock cube to water
Instructions
Prepare the Dough (By Hand)
- Mix wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine the sour cream (or substitute) with the lukewarm water, eggs, and lard. Stir until well blended.
- Add flour: Gradually add the flour and salt to the wet mixture, stirring continuously until a dough forms. Add more flour to get a dough that is silky, smooth but not sticky.
- Knead the dough: Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel (or place in a covered bowl) and let it rest for at least 30 minutes as you prepare the meat filling.
Prepare the Dough (By Stand-Mixer)
- Combine ingredients: In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the soured milk, yogurt, or kefir with the lukewarm water, eggs, and lard or olive oil. Whisk by hand to combine or use the whisk attachment.
- Mix the dough: Using the dough hook attachment, gradually add the flour and salt to the wet mixture on low speed until a dough forms. Add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough is no longer sticky and pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Knead the dough: Increase the speed to medium and knead for about 5-7 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rest for at least 30 minutes as you prepare the meat filling.
Prepare the Filling:
- Mix the meats: In a large bowl, combine the ground pork and ground beef. Add the salt and black pepper, mixing thoroughly to ensure even seasoning.
- This is the time to add any additional spices, seasonings, or herbs. If you are adding the caramelized onion and bacon topping inside the meat mixture, add it now after it has cooled. Fry up a small portion of the filling and taste it to make sure it is seasoned as you like.
Assemble the Pelmeni Dumplings Using a Pelmeni Maker:
- Divide the dough: Divide the dough into tennis ball-sized chunks or just slightly smaller. Keep the remaining dough covered to prevent drying out.
- Roll the dough: Roll out one chunk of dough on a floured surface to a very thin sheet (about 1/8 inch thick) — the thinner the better.
- Place on the pelmeni maker: Lay the sheet of dough over the pelmeni maker. Use your hands to stretch the dough over all the sides of the mold.
- Add filling: Place 1/2 teaspoon of meat filling into each pocket space on the pelmeni mold. Do not overfill the mold pockets to ensure proper sealing. Roll out another chunk of dough and place it over the filled pelmeni maker, stretching it again so that it hangs over the sides slightly.
- Seal and cut: Use your hands to press the dough down gently and then switch to your rolling pin to firmly press and seal the dumplings. Press very firmly but slowly. Once done, invert the pelmeni maker to release the dumplings. You may need to use your hands to pop each dumpling out.
- Keep the finished dumplings on a well-floured surface, not touching.
- See the recipe article for a video on how to make them by hand, you will find the instructions on how to roll these by hand explained in the notes below.
Cook the Pelmeni:
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. A wide, shallower pot is best. You may also use bone broth or add bay leaves, other aromatics (onion, celery, carrot, garlic etc), or a stock cube. Add the pelmeni in batches, stirring gently to prevent sticking. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, or until the dumplings float to the surface and the dough is cooked through.
- As the water is coming to a boil, cook the bacon and onion with he butter in a pan. Let the bacon get crispy and the onion golden brown to caramelized — as you prefer.
- Serve: Remove the pelmeni with a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving dish. Serve hot with the caramelized onion-bacon-butter mixture pouted over top along with a generous dollop of sour cream and fresh chives.
Video
Notes
Top Tips:
- Cook the pelmeni in bone broth or stock for the best flavor.
- Rest the excess dough before re-rolling more pelmeni.
Nutrition
Calories: 45kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.05g | Cholesterol: 9mg | Sodium: 66mg | Potassium: 29mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 0.1g | Vitamin A: 19IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 0.3mg
