Pierogies for the Masses
Each year, my dad's side of the family takes a family beach trip to Ocean City, Maryland. All of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and my two grandparents, pile into our cars and drive from our various locations to our Ocean City beach condo. We have been doing this for as long as I have been alive and even before that. It is the one time of year that we are assured to all be together under one roof. For my dad, sister, and I, the drive only takes about five hours.
We hit the road around seven in the morning to ensure that we have at least a half of a beach day when we arrive. My grandparents who live only ten minutes from me, leave at the same time as us. We often go back and forth passing one another on the highway during the drive. As we are nearing the shore, I roll down my window to smell the sweet salty air, and the warm breeze hit my skin. Before we arrive at our townhouse, we stop and meet up for lunch at Cracker Barrel, another one of our beach trip traditions.
We spend the time left of the day laying on the beach and catching the last few warm rays of sun. We all love the beach, but everyone is also a little anxious to get back to the condo to grab a quick shower and be at the dinner table before anyone else. Why is it such a rush to get to the table you may ask? Besides being hungry from a day in the sun, everyone is anticipating my Grandma's homemade pierogies that have made the trip all the way from Clarks Summit, for this special beach meal.
The smell of the buttery pierogie goodness wafts into my nose the second I open the condo door. I run up the stairs to the third floor to grab the first shower before my sister can get there, and five minutes later (the shortest shower I take all year) I am sitting at the table fork in hand as my Grandma places two large tin pans of pierogies on the table. One pan is filled with sauerkraut, and the other with cheesy potato pierogies (my, and most of my family's favorite).
Now that I have made these pierogies sound so amazingly good, I am sure you would all like to know how they are made. Fortunately, my Grandma has been teaching me how to make them over the past few years so that the recipe lives on for generations to come.
Let's start with the dough.
Dough Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups of flour
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons of oil
- 3/4 cup of water
Dough prep:
We hit the road around seven in the morning to ensure that we have at least a half of a beach day when we arrive. My grandparents who live only ten minutes from me, leave at the same time as us. We often go back and forth passing one another on the highway during the drive. As we are nearing the shore, I roll down my window to smell the sweet salty air, and the warm breeze hit my skin. Before we arrive at our townhouse, we stop and meet up for lunch at Cracker Barrel, another one of our beach trip traditions.
We spend the time left of the day laying on the beach and catching the last few warm rays of sun. We all love the beach, but everyone is also a little anxious to get back to the condo to grab a quick shower and be at the dinner table before anyone else. Why is it such a rush to get to the table you may ask? Besides being hungry from a day in the sun, everyone is anticipating my Grandma's homemade pierogies that have made the trip all the way from Clarks Summit, for this special beach meal.
The smell of the buttery pierogie goodness wafts into my nose the second I open the condo door. I run up the stairs to the third floor to grab the first shower before my sister can get there, and five minutes later (the shortest shower I take all year) I am sitting at the table fork in hand as my Grandma places two large tin pans of pierogies on the table. One pan is filled with sauerkraut, and the other with cheesy potato pierogies (my, and most of my family's favorite).
Now that I have made these pierogies sound so amazingly good, I am sure you would all like to know how they are made. Fortunately, my Grandma has been teaching me how to make them over the past few years so that the recipe lives on for generations to come.
Let's start with the dough.
Dough Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups of flour
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons of oil
- 3/4 cup of water
Dough prep:
Sauerkraut Filling Ingredients:
- 2 cups of sauerkraut
- 1 onion chopped finely
- tablespoon of olive oil
- 2 cups of sauerkraut
- 1 onion chopped finely
- tablespoon of olive oil
Now we must cut the dough into circles to be filled. My Grandma always uses the rim of a mug to cut the dough, but you can also use a circular cookie cutter.
Pierogi Assembly Steps:
- Flour the countertop well
- Cut a reasonable size of dough
- Flour the dough a little on all sides so that is isn't sticky
- Roll out the dough so that it is about a 1/4 inch thick
- Cut the dough into circles
- Take the dough circle and place it in the palm of your hand
- Take a teaspoon of the potato or sauerkraut filling and place it in the center of the dough circle
- Fold the dough in half so that the filling is secured in the center
- Pinch the ends together with your fingers to close the pierogi
Cooking/preparing the pierogies for freezer:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil
- Prepare a pan(s) with melted butter to put the cooked pierogies in (the pierogies will stick together if they are not buttered)
- Caramelize onion on the side and add to the melted butter
- Place the pierogies in the pot
- Let boil until the pierogies float to the top
- Test one pierogi by cutting it in half to make sure the dough is cooked well and the inside is hot
- Remove all of the floating pierogies
- Place in butter pans and gently mix the pierogies around in the butter
- If freezing pierogies for another time, place pierogies in a large ziplock bag (after they are buttered)
- To reheat pierogies at a later date, all you need to do is let them defrost and then put them in a pan in the oven with a little more butter and onion
- ENJOY!!
- Take a teaspoon of the potato or sauerkraut filling and place it in the center of the dough circle
- Fold the dough in half so that the filling is secured in the center
- Pinch the ends together with your fingers to close the pierogi
Cooking/preparing the pierogies for freezer:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil
- Prepare a pan(s) with melted butter to put the cooked pierogies in (the pierogies will stick together if they are not buttered)
- Caramelize onion on the side and add to the melted butter
- Place the pierogies in the pot
- Let boil until the pierogies float to the top
- Test one pierogi by cutting it in half to make sure the dough is cooked well and the inside is hot
- Remove all of the floating pierogies
- Place in butter pans and gently mix the pierogies around in the butter
- If freezing pierogies for another time, place pierogies in a large ziplock bag (after they are buttered)
- To reheat pierogies at a later date, all you need to do is let them defrost and then put them in a pan in the oven with a little more butter and onion
- ENJOY!!
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