Chef Sue’s Pierogi Recipe

 TEXT BY CARRIE HAVRANEK | PHOTOS BY MIANA JUN

CHEF SUE ROTH’s PIEROGI ARE MADE WITH PRECISION AND LOVE. She’s got this down. She truly is the Pierogi Queen.

After Chef Sue retired as chef-instructor of Northampton Community College’s Culinary Arts Program, she found herself making a lot of pierogi. A lot. So much that she started having a few pierogi parties, a combination of teaching and eating—but mostly eating. And of course wintertime and the holidays are a perfect reason to gather around the table and start rolling and filling some of these beautiful little dumplings. So much of this recipe can be done in steps and stages, but we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves. Here is Chef Sue’s Pierogi Recipe.

Master Pierogi Recipe

Sour cream in Chef Sue’s dough makes the pierogi tender (as long as you handle the dough lightly). Her savory version involves a simple filling of potato and sour cream, whereas the sweet version is a combination of farmer cheese and sour cherry.

If you’d like to make any elements of this ahead of time, the dough can rest overnight either covered on the counter or in the fridge. It also freezes well.The potato filling can be made a day or two ahead and stored covered in the fridge, but don’t make the filling ahead and freeze it; it will get too watery.

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Ingredients

  

For the dough

• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup sour cream
• 5¼ cups all-purpose flour

For the potatofilling

• 4–5 pounds russet potatoes peeled and quartered
• ¼ cup unsalted butter
• ½ cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper

Instructions

 

• In a large mixing bowl, combine egg, milk, water, salt, and sour cream. Gradually add flour.

  Mix and knead to create a smooth dough. If needed, add ¼ to ½ cup additional flour until the dough is no longer sticky. Cover and let rest for 2 hours.

  Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the potatoes for 15–20 minutes, or until soft. Drain and set aside. In a large bowl combine the warm potatoes with unsalted butter, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Set aside to cool.

  Roll dough and cut into rounds using a 3- to 3½-inch cutter. Using a 1-tablespoon scoop, scoop out the filling. Place filling in the center and stretch dough around the filling, pinching the seam edge to seal. Repeat until all the pierogi are filled.

  Transfer to a floured rimmed baking sheet. Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Add a few pierogi at a time into the boiling water. Once they are floating, cook for 1 more minute. Remove from the pot with a slotted spoon or spider.

  Serve immediately with sautéed onions and butter. Or chill in ice water, then coat lightly in vegetable oil. Transfer to a zip-close bag and refrigerate or freeze for later use.

Notes

Sweet Filling Variation with Sour Cherries

The sweet filling variation Chef Sue used in this recipe includes sour cherries but you can use blueberries or peaches easily, too. Sometimes she throws the blueberries right into the pan with the cinnamon sugar and doesn’t make a sauce. This recipe yields enough to fill a half-batch of pierogi dough.

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Ingredients

  

For the fruit sauce

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 to 2 tablespoons cold water
• 2 cups freshor frozen fruit
• ¼ to ⅓ cup sugar
• Lemon zest or cinnamon

For the filling

• Fruit sauce
• 2 pounds farmercheese
• 1 large egg plus 2 yolks
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Instructions

 

• Make the dough from the master pierogi recipe as directed.

  Whisk the cornstarch and water together in a small bowl to form a slurry.

  Bring the fruit, sugar, and zest and/or cinnamon to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once it bowls, add the slurry to the fruit to thicken and create a sauce consistency.

  Combine the farmer cheese, egg and yolks, salt, sugar, and vanilla in a medium bowl until evenly incorporated.

  To assemble, follow the directions from the master recipe to fill, seal, and cook the pierogi. Serve with the fruit sauce.

Notes

PIEROGI TIPS

The dough can be rerolled 2 to 3 times. After that, Chef Sue rolls out any extra dough and cuts it into noodles. Boil until they rise to the surface plus 1 more minute, and combine with sautéed cabbage, onions, butter, salt, and pepper for traditional halushki. Enjoy!

Pierogi are incredibly versatile and can go sweet or savory. Chef Sue’s favorite additions are 1½ cups shredded sharp cheddar, ¾ cup caramelized onions, and 6 slices American cheese. That’s what we’ve featured here.

Other traditional versions include sautéed cabbage and onions, sautéed mushroom and onions, sautéed sauerkraut and onions, or kielbasa—or some combination of these ingredients.

Nontraditional filling options include Buffalo chicken, cheese steak, spinach and feta, jalapeño and cheddar.

Related Link: Who’s Cooking Our Food? NCC’s Culinary Arts Program Trains Chefs for the Future