Russian national dish the Pelmeni

There is a saying in Russian that "пельмешки не терпят спешки." Literally this means "pelmeni can't tolerate speed demons." The saying is used, however, in the general sense of "good things come to those who wait."

Пельмени are traditionally made in very large batches in a long and tedious process that can involve the entire family, including men, although the process is generally lead by the females. Preparation often involves не один час раскатывания, нарезки, наполнения фаршем, сворачивания и скрепления кончиков (hours of rolling, cutting, filling, folding, and pinching). This whole process is encompassed in Russian with the phrase "лепить пельмени" (to make/build/fashion/sculpt pelemeni). After cooking and eating many of them, many more are frozen for later use.

Of course, smaller batches can be made relatively quickly or one can "cheat" with a pelmeni mold. However, moving too fast will means that тесто будет рваться в середине или не будет должным образом скрепляться на краях (the dough will tear in the middle, or will not be properly sealed at the edges), leading to a sloppy and soggy dish.



Пельмени are best made with fresh, whole beef, pork and diced onions run twice through a meat grinder. For those without a grinder, ground beef and ground pork may be purchased and mixed together. This mixture is called "домашний фарш" ("home ground") in Russian and is available pre-made in most Russian supermarkets (and you are more likely to find this than plain ground beef). Домашний фарш, mixed with finally chopped onion, is considered the most definitively Russian element of пельмени. Don't get it wrong.


For the dough:
3 eggs
700 ml all-purpose flour
200 ml water
1 tsp salt
For the filling:
1 kg minced meat (a 50/50 mixture of pork and beef works well)
1 onion
salt
black pepper
2 tbs vegetable oil
Serve with melted butter, mustard, sour cream or vinegar.