Potato & Cheese Pierogi

📝 Ingredients

• 420 g plain flour (400 for the dough, 20 for dusting)
• 1 egg
• 180 ml lukewarm water
• 500 g floury potatoes (4 medium, about 125 g each)
• 300 g fromage frais, 3 % fat
• 2 brown onions (about 150 g each)
• 40 g unsalted butter (15 for the onions, 25 for browning)
• 200 g whole milk natural yoghurt
• 10 g fresh chives
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Mixing bowl
• Rolling pin
• Glass, 8 cm in diameter
• Potato masher
• Large saucepan and slotted spoon
• Non-stick frying pan

📖 Steps

1. In a mixing bowl, combine 400 g flour and 1 pinch of salt. Make a well, crack in the egg and gradually pour in the lukewarm water, mixing with a fork. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes on the floured work surface until you have a smooth, supple dough, then cover and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, peel the potatoes, cut them into even pieces and cook them for 20 minutes in a pan of salted water, starting from cold, until the tip of a knife slides in without resistance. Put the fromage frais to drain in a sieve lined with kitchen paper.
3. Peel and finely chop the onions. Melt 15 g butter in the frying pan over a low heat and cook the onions for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring often, until soft and lightly golden. Set half aside for serving.
4. Drain the potatoes and mash them finely with a potato masher while still hot. Add the drained fromage frais and the other half of the onions, season with salt and plenty of pepper, and mix. Leave to cool slightly: a hot filling softens the dough and makes it sticky.
5. Cut the dough in half. Roll out each half on the floured work surface as thinly as possible (about 2 mm), then cut out circles with an upturned 8 cm glass. Gather up the scraps, roll them out again and repeat: you'll get 40 to 50 circles.
6. Place a level tablespoon of filling (about 15 g) in the centre of each circle. Fold into a half-moon and pinch the edges firmly between your thumb and index finger, pushing out the air. If the dough dries out, moisten the edge with a wet finger. Place the pierogi on a floured tea towel.
7. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Drop in the pierogi in batches of 10 to 12 and stir gently so they don't stick to the bottom. Allow 3 minutes from the moment they rise to the surface, then lift them out with the slotted spoon.
8. Melt the remaining 25 g butter in the frying pan over a medium heat. Brown the poached pierogi as they're ready, 2 minutes on each side, until lightly crisp. Warm the reserved onions in the pan at the end.
9. Snip the chives. Serve the pierogi piping hot, topped with the softened onions, with a spoonful of yoghurt and the chives scattered over the top.