From Scratch Pierogies

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From scratch pierogies may seem like a daunting recipe to make. Making delicious and soft pierogies does take time, and requires a few different steps. None of these steps are difficult. You can make homemade pierogies, that are restaurant quality, in your own kitchen!

How are pierogies made?

Pierogies are polish dumplings. They are cooked by boiling and then frying the dumplings. They are typically filled with a potato mixture, but can be stuffed with an array of savory and sweet fillings. The filling of choice is surrounded by a thin tender dough, pinched together to make a half moon shape.

Pierogies are a favourite in our home. My son even claims they rival the pierogi booth at Costco. So, that is a win in my books!

How to cook from scratch pierogies

Boil and Fry – This is traditionally how pierogies are made and my favourite way to make them. Cook your pierogies first, in a pot of boiling water. To finish off, and give them a nice golden brown outside, fry each side of your pierogi in butter or oil.

Baked – After boiling the pierogies, place on a greased pan, in a preheated 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) oven. Cook for 15 minutes.

Air fryer- After boiling the pierogies, place them in the air fryer for 10 minutes. This is, by far, my favourite way to reheat pierogies. About 5 minutes in my air fryer and they are crispy on the outside, warm and soft on the inside, just like the day I made them!

How to freeze from scratch pierogies

If you are using this recipe to make a big batch of from scratch pierogies, you will probably need to freeze some for later.

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. Drop pierogies, in batches, into the water. Let them parboil 30 seconds to 1 minutes.
3. Remove them to a greased baking sheet and let them cool.
4. Place the pierogies on a lined tray in a single layer. Pop them in the freezer to partially freeze, for a few hours. (This step will ensure they do not become a big frozen lump later on.)
5. Remove them to a freezer bag, seal, and return to the freezer. Freeze up to 3 months.

What to serve with pierogies

Savoury

Fried onions– This is, perhaps, the most common topping.

Bacon and sour cream– This is, in my opinion the best potato pierogi topping. If it is good on a baked potato, it has to be good on a potato stuffed pierogies as well, right?

Cheese sauce– A simple warm cheese sauce made with a roux, milk and cheese is a great dipping sauce for pierogies.

Salted brown butter– This is a simple, but maybe the most delicious, option. It really compliments the flavours in the pierogi without overpowering them.

Treat them as a side dish– Use pierogies as a side dish to your favourite dinner! Such as pork tenderloin, beef pot roast, kielbasa and fried peppers, chicken breast with veggies.

Sweet

Greek yogurt or sour cream – You can use these interchangeably. To 1 cup of Greek yogurt (or sour cream) add 3 Tablespoons icing sugar. You can give it added spice by sprinkling in a ½ teaspoon of ground nutmeg or cinnamon, if desired.

Cinnamon sugar– A gentle dusting of cinnamon sugar on top is a perfect way to enjoy any sweet pierogi! Mix ½ cup of white sugar with ½ teaspoon cinnamon.

Whipping cream – Whip 3/4 cup of cold 35% cream with 2 teaspoons of icing sugar until stiff peaks form.

Chocolate sauce – A side of chocolate sauce to dip is a rich and delicious option.

Vanilla bean sauce – This is a sweet flavourful sauce that is perfect to drizzle over top.

Caramel sauce – A drizzle of sweet caramel sauce might be my favourite decadent option!

Pierogi Variations

I recently made a pumpkin and potato filling for fall, with crispy sage leaves and ricotta cheese on the side. It was amazing! Simply follow the instructions for the traditional potato pierogies but substitute these ingredients!

Seasonal pumpkin-potato filling

8 medium potatoes

¾ cup pumpkin purée

4 oz cream cheese, (half a block)

¼ cup butter

1 teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon sage

salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients for From Scratch Pierogies

The dough

1 egg

2½ Tablespoons buttermilk

1 cup milk

1 cup water

5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting.

Potato filling

10 medium potatoes

4 oz cream cheese, (half a block)

¼ cup butter

salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Wash, peel, and quarter the potatoes.
2. Add the potatoes to a large pot of cold salted water. Bring to a boil.
3. Cook until fork tender, about 20 minutes.
4. Drain the potatoes and mash, or use a potato ricer.
5. Add the cream cheese and butter. Mash and mix to combine.
6. Add salt and pepper and adjust the seasoning to your taste.
7. Set aside to cool.
8. In the bowl of a stand mixer, (or a large bowl by hand) add the egg, buttermilk, milk, and water. Mix.
9. Stir in the flour and knead for about 5 minutes (it is a soft sticky dough, but should hold together). If doing by hand, tip the dough out onto a floured surface and knead by hand about 8 minutes.
10. Cover and let rest 1 hour.
11. Remove about 1/4 of the dough ball, and place on a floured countertop. Roll the dough out to about 1/8 of an inch thick.
12. With a large circle cookie cutter, biscuit cutter, or inverted glass, cut circles. Place the circles on a floured surface.
13. Place a scoop of potato mixture into the centre of each dough circle, making sure it does not touch the edges.
14. Stretch two sides of the dough up and around the filling. Pinch closed with your finger tips.
15. Continue to pinch closed, all the way around the filling, making sure the filling does not escape to the edges, or it will leak while you are boiling.
16. Place the sealed pierogi on on a floured tray.
17. Continue this process until all the pierogi dough and filling is used up.

Cooking the pierogies

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. Working in batches, transfer 4-6 pierogies in to the boiling water. Give them a stir to make sure they do not stick to the bottom.
3. Once they float back up to the surface, boil for 3 minutes.
4. Remove to a buttered baking sheet.
5. In a large frying pan, on medium heat, fry pierogies in butter or oil. Fry for about 2 minutes per side or until golden.

Looking for more potato recipes? Try these! Family Favorite Mashed Potato Casserole, In a Hurry Country Scalloped Potatoes