How to Make Dry Cottage Cheese Pierogi

Pierogi is a traditional Polish dish made from a thick, creamy dough that is filled, shaped into small crescents and boiled or cooked in butter. The fillings for pierogi can range from sweet to savory, but one of the most customary fillings is dry cottage cheese. Cottage cheese is milk that is left out until it forms a liquid known as whey and small, sour pieces known as curds. For dry cottage cheese, all of the whey is completely drained. Pierogi is a basic recipe, so you don't need years of cooking experience to prepare them.

Things You'll Need

• 1 white onion
• Sharp knife
• 16 oz. dry cottage cheese
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 2 large mixing bowls
• Spoon
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup water
• Rolling pin
• Large pot
• Large skillet
• 4 tbsp. butter
• Slotted spoon

Instructions

1. Peel a large white onion, then slice it in half widthwise. Chop each half into pieces as small as possible, add them to a large mixing bowl, then stir in 16 oz. dry cottage cheese, one egg, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. black pepper.

2. Add 3 cups all purpose flour, three eggs, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 cup water to a second large mixing bowl. Stir the ingredients until they are fully combined into a stiff dough. Sprinkle a rolling pin lightly with flour, then flatten the dough to about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thickness.

3. Cut the dough into eight pieces for larger pierogi or 10 pieces for smaller ones. Spoon 1 tbsp. of filling onto one side of each piece of dough (near the edge, not the center) then fold the other side of the dough in half over the filling so its edges line up evenly to form a crescent.

4. Grasp the edges of the dough between your fingers and apply light pressure to seal the edges. Fill a large pot with enough water to cover the pierogi (approximately 4 cups), then set your stove to "high" and heat the water until it starts to boil.

5. Place a pierogi onto a slotted spoon and submerge it into the boiling water for approximately three seconds so the heat can completely close the edges and prevent the filling from leaking out. Repeat with the rest of the pierogi.

6. Add 4 tbsp. of butter to a large frying pan and set your stove to "medium high" until the butter melts. Transfer the boiled pierogi into the melted butter and cook for about 10 minutes per side or until the outsides are lightly browned and crispy. Serve while the pierogi are warm.

Tips & Warnings

• Serve pierogi with sour cream on the side for dipping. To save fat and calories, bake the pierogi until it's golden brown instead of frying it.

• Do not drop the pierogi into the boiling water by hand or it could splash and burn you.

References

• Fine Cooking Magazine: Cottage Cheese
• Ochef.com: How to Make Pierogi
• Ancestry Magazine: Passing the Pierogi