Potato Vareniki

About this dish

Potatoes reached Ukraine in the eighteenth century and spread through the villages in the nineteenth, so potato vareniki are the filling most families make on an ordinary day, and with oil in place of butter on a fast day. The dough is plain and the filling is mostly seasoning: the whole dish rests on the fried onion, which goes both inside the dumpling and on top.

• Vegetarian
• Not vegan because of Eggs, Unsalted butter, Sour cream, to serve
• Contains gluten because of Plain flour
• Contains dairy because of Unsalted butter, Sour cream, to serve

• 400gPlain flour
• 1pieceEggs
• 200mlWater
• 55mlSunflower oil
• 15gFine sea salt
• 700gPotatoes
• 250gOnion
• 30gUnsalted butter
• 2gGround black pepper
• 150gSour cream, to serve (optional)

Instructions

1. 1

   Mix the flour with a pinch of salt on the work surface and make a well. Add the egg, the oil and the warm water a little at a time, and knead for about 8 minutes into a smooth, soft dough that does not stick to your hands. Cover and leave to rest for 20 minutes.

   20 min

   Tip: Resting relaxes the gluten, so the dough rolls out thin without shrinking back and does not tear when you pinch it. Warm, not hot, water keeps it pliable; hot water would start cooking the egg.

2. 2

   Boil the peeled potatoes in salted water until soft, drain well and mash with the butter and pepper. Fry the chopped onion in the oil until golden and mix half of it into the mash; keep the rest for serving. Let the filling cool.

   30 min

   Tip: A hot filling softens the dough and the steam pushes the seam open. Well-drained potatoes keep the filling firm; the flavour comes from the fried onion, so don't take it off the heat before it is golden.

3. 3

   Roll the dough out to about 2 mm and cut rounds with a glass or a 7 cm cutter. Put a spoonful of filling in the middle of each round, fold it over and pinch the edge firmly shut, making sure no filling or juice is caught in the seam. Keep the dough you are not using covered.

   25 min

   Tip: A seam with any trace of filling on it will open in the boiling water. Covered dough stays soft; left in the open it dries at the edges and will not seal.

4. 4

   Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle boil and add the vareniki in batches, stirring once so they do not stick. When they float, cook for 3–4 minutes more, then lift out with a slotted spoon.

   5 min

   Tip: A large pot and small batches keep the water from going off the boil and the vareniki from sticking to one another. Floating means the dough is cooked through; the extra minutes cook the filling and set the seam.

5. 5

   Serve hot with the rest of the fried onion and sour cream.

   2 min

   Tip: The sweetness of the onion and the cool sour cream are what make plain potato taste like more than potato.