Pelmeni (Ukrainian dumplings)

Ingredients

Pelmeni Dough ingredients:

• 4 cups of plain flour plus ¼ cup extra flour for kneading
• 2 small eggs
• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 teaspoon salt dissolve in the water

Pelmeni Filling ingredients:

• 1 kg of lean ground beef or 50/50 beef and pork
• 2 medium onions grated
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1½ teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• ½ cup water
• 2 bay leaves in the cooking water

Instructions:

1. Mix the flour and salt, place into a bowl and make a well in the centre.
   Crack the eggs into the flour. Using a fork, stir the eggs into the flour.
2. Slowly add the water while kneading, until the dough forms a sticky ball.
3. Continue to knead the dough on a floured surface until dough is soft but not sticky.
4. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes.
5. Cover the dough with a bowl and allow to rest for about an hour.
6. In a separate bowl, using your hands, mix the ground beef, onion, oil, water, salt and pepper until thoroughly combined.
7. Roll out the dough about ⅛” thin on a lightly floured surface. Using a 3″ cookie cutter, cut out circles. Remix, roll out and reuse the extra dough to make more circles. Cover the dough that you aren’t using so it doesn’t dry out. Don’t flour the surface (or very minimal), or the pelmeni won’t seal properly. Keep the remaining dough under the upside down bowl to keep from drying out.
8. Place about 1 teaspoon of beef filling in the centre of the circe. Carefully fold in half and pinch to seal the pelmeni shut. Careful not to have the filling touching the edges, or it won’t seal and fall apart when cooking.
9. Place the pelmeni on an uncovered tray and freeze for at least 30 minutes. Place the individually frozen pelmeni into a Ziplock bag for an easy dinner later.
10. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil with the bay leaves.
11. Drop 25-30 pelmeni into the boiling water. Gently stir, to prevent the Pelmeni from sticking together.
12. Simmer until the meat and dough is cooked approx 6-8 minutes. When you lift them out of the water and the cooked pelmeni ‘wrinkles’ or ‘shrivels’ then you know it’s done. It will take a bit longer when using frozen pelmeni.
13. Remove with a slotted spoon and serve with sour cream and dill.