Russian Piroshki {Beef & Potato Filled Pockets}

Adapted from AllRecipes

Savory Russian pocket sandwiches stuffed with 2 different savory fillings. One is a beef filling seasoned with dill, chopped hard-boiled egg, onion and garlic, the other we made was potato with caramelized onion and garlic. I used a yeast dough and baked them, but you can also fry these little boat-shaped pockets. I tried both ways. Honestly, I liked the flavor of the fried version better, but I would still probably bake them, just because it’s easier and healthier that way.

We made these yummies for my daughter’s International-themed birthday party. I don’t recall how we thought of making Piroshki, but we just couldn’t resist making them.  They just sound so yummy … and such fun to say. And they ARE really yummy. I am thinking I might heat one up for breakfast!

To save prep time on the party day, I made the filling ahead of time and then did the dough on the afternoon of the party. My daughter and I rolled out the dough and stuffed the pockets. She and her friends chowed down a bunch of them … but we still have so many left. We are having a small party. This recipe would be great for a larger party … or a party with men who eat so much more than teenage girls do!

My daughter made little flags to show which country each dish was from. And big flags to hang around everywhere. And she could name the country for each flag. I found myself asking her which flag went on each dish.

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Russian Piroshki {with Beef & Potato fillings}

• Prep Time: 45 minutes
• Cook Time: 2 hours
• Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
• Yield: About 25 Piroshki 1x

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the beef filling:

• 1/2 lb. very lean ground meat (beef, elk, venison)
• 1 small onion, peeled and chopped fine
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped fine
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried dill (or fresh … I just don’t have any fresh available right now)
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
• Fresh-ground pepper, to taste

For the potato filling:

• 2 1/2 medium potatoes, or 3 small
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dill
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

For the dough:

• 3 cups bread flour
• 1 cup white whole wheat flour
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup lowfat milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons yeast
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

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Instructions

1. Put the ingredients for the dough into your bread machine and set it on the dough setting. (If you don’t have a bread machine, see AllRecipes for traditional instructions.)
2. Poke the potatoes with a fork, run them under water & sprinkle them with salt, then microwave for 5 – 10 minutes until they are soft when poked with a fork. Set them aside to cool a bit while you make the beef filling.
3. Heat a frying pan over medium heat, then cook the ground meat with the onion and garlic until the meat is browned and the onion is soft and translucent. Add the salt, dill and fresh-ground pepper to taste.
4. Meanwhile, hard-boil the 2 eggs, then peel and chop them. Mix them in with the meat mixture and set it aside to cool to room temperature.
5. Now, back to the potatoes: scoop out the flesh of the potatoes into a bowl and mash them with a fork. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a saucepan, then add the onions and sautee until they are tender and brown. Cover them and let them cook for a minute, then stir and cook until they start to lose moisture. Add a splash of water, stir, cover and cook another minute. Uncover and stir until the moisture is gone, then add another splash of water and cover and cook a minute or so. Continue this process until the onions start to get brown and caramelized. Add the garlic and cook and stir another couple minutes. Stir the onions into the mashed potatoes and season with salt, dill, and then add pepper to taste. Set aside and keep at room temperature.
6. When the dough is done, pull out golf-ball-sized pieces, and, using a rolling pin on a floured surface, roll each piece into a circle roughly 4 inches in diameter.
7. Dip your fingers into a cup of water and dampen the edges all around, then spoon a Tablespoon or two of filling into the middle of the circle. Fold the dough over the filling and pinch the edges to seal. Set the filled dough seam side down onto a baking sheet lined with a silicon mat or sprayed with cooking spray, leaving a good amount of space between them to allow the little pockets to rise. We filled up three baking trays full of piroshki.
8. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 20 minutes or so (this part is optional … the dough will get thicker as it rises, so if you want less dough to filling, don’t let them rise before cooking).
9. Bake the piroshki at 350 F for about 30 minutes or until they are golden brown. (Or you can fry them in hot oil.)

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Notes

Cook time includes dough rising time.

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 - 2 Piroshki

This recipe was shared at Tasty Thursday, Scrumptious Sunday, Marvelous Monday, Mix it Up Monday, Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Tuesday’s Table, Try a New Recipe Tuesday, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Wednesday Extravaganza, All my Bloggy Friends and Clever Chicks Bloghop.