You Bet Your Golombki I'm Polish.................. or Wish I Was!

Welcome to part 4 of Contessa Marysia's Kitchen and her Pierogi Party Bash. Today you will receive the recipe for the pierogi dough. We did a test run of dough the night before and then before you know it, the guests began arriving.

Cameras were snapping, aprons were tied, flour was flying, aromas were wafting, cutters were cutting, rolling pins were rolling, and the party was in gear...tonight's lesson on how to make the dough was starting.

Pierogies – Dough Recipe

Maria aka “Pani Marysia”

8 cups of all-purpose flour
1 egg
Approximately 3 ½ cups warm water
1-teaspoon sea salt

Measure out your flour and water, set aside. Place the flour on a board or counter top. Add the sea salt. Make a well out of the flour. Break the egg into the middle of the well. Gentle break the egg with a fork or the tip of a knife. Add the water into the middle of the well, a little at a time, start to blend with the flour by hand, until all the water is incorporated into the flour and you can begin to knead the dough.

You may have to sprinkle your counter or work surface with some extra flour (called bench flour) as you are working the dough. Knead the dough for about 15-20 minutes until the dough becomes very shiny and elastic and you can no longer see any cracks in the dough.
Divide the dough into three pieces, and cover two of the pieces with a bowl, or wrap in Sarah Wrap and cover with towels while you are working the first piece of dough.

Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface out into a large very thin circle. You may have to again sprinkle your counter or work surface with some extra flour as you are rolling the dough. Take a large glass, or a large (about 3-inch circular cookie cutter) and begin to cut circles out of the dough.

To fill the pierogies:

Place about 1 tablespoon of pierogi filling into the middle of the pierogi dough circle. Fold the dough over to encase the filling, pushing any remaining air out gently with your fingers. Crimp the pierogies closed with your fingers so that you can no longer see two edges of the dough, but only one thin line, or your filling will seep out when you cook the pierogies. Have some waxed paper sprinkled with flour lined up so you can place the filled pierogies on them. Do not stack the uncooked pierogies on top of one another. Use as many cookie sheets as you need so they remain in a single layer.

For the boiling:

Large pot of water
Unsalted butter at room temperature

To cook the pierogies:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place the filled pierogies into the boiling water loosely. You may need two pots if you are making a large quantity. Let them cook for a few minutes. They will begin to rise to the top when they are done. They will need to cook for about 3-4 minutes, depending on the size of the pierogies. Remove with a slotted spoon, or drain into a colander, onto a cookie sheet that has been buttered with unsalted butter. Place the pierogies in a single layer. Top with some softened butter. You may eat them at this point, or you can do one of two things:

You can freeze them in a container, in single layers, layering waxed paper between the layers of pierogies. You can fry them or re-steam them when you defrost them.

You can take a frying pan, sauté the sliced onions in butter and fry the pierogies in the butter, or you can cut some bacon slices into 1-inch pieces and fry the pierogies with the onions and bacon pieces (add a little butter to the onion bacon mix too).

Serve with sour cream on this side if you like it.

Here are some great pictures of all the Queens, Contessas, Princesses, Ladies-In-Waiting
learning how to make the pierogies. This you scroll down, you will see very detailed
pictures and instructions on the actual dough making process.

Our instructor Contessa Marysia

The Contessa teaching the fine art of kneading...

"Countessa Marysia promises that after 20-30 minutes of kneading the Pierogies
Dough into a fine elastic ball and then rolling it with a
finesse into 1/2 inch large pancake ready
for individual Pierogi cut outs...
every Regal Highness of The Pierogies Court
will have broken into a sweat !!!

Pierogi making might eliminate any future
personal trainers or gym sessions!
Regardless how much we ate or drank afterwards-
we worked, and worked out hard, having not too dainty a tasting blast!!


Furthermore, The Countessa proclaims that
ONE Hand Made Pierogi a Day Keeps any Doctor at Bay !!!!

Pierogies are Polish peasants staples, a survival food
with over a two thousand year tradition in...crimping by the stove!

Perhaps it is THE PIEROGI that has helped Poland
to survive and flourish for over two thousand years
through its fascinating history.

Long live the rolling pins, aprons and
The Regal Highnesses of The Pierogi Court !!!"

Mastering the fine art of cutting the pierogi




and crimping

Pierogies – Dough Recipe

Maria aka “Pani Marysia”

8 cups of all-purpose flour
1 egg
Approximately 3½ cups warm water
1-teaspoon sea salt

Measure out your flour


and your water

Place the flour on a board or counter top.


Add the sea salt

Make a well with the flour out of the flour.


Break the egg into the middle of the well.


Gentle break the egg with a fork or the tip of a knife.


Add the water into the middle of the well, a little at a time,




start to blend with the flour by hand,


until all the water is incorporated into the flour


and you can begin to knead the dough.

You may have to sprinkle your counter or work surface
with some extra flour (called bench flour)
as you are working the dough


Knead the dough for about 15-20 minutes




until the dough becomes very shiny and elastic
and you can no longer see any cracks in the dough



Divide the dough into three pieces,

and cover two of the pieces with a bowl,
or wrap in Sarah Wrap and cover with towels
while you are working the first piece of dough

Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface





out into a large very thin circle

You may have to again sprinkle your counter or
work surface with some extra flour
as you are rolling the dough

While all this is going on, fill a large pot
preferably one with a strainer
and place it on the stove and bring to a boil


You might also want to butter the bottoms of a few cookie sheets
to place the boiled pierogies on as well


Take a large glass, or a large (about 3-inch circular cookie cutter)
and begin to cut circles out of the dough

when you finish filling the pierogies from the first cutting,
reroll the dough and cut it again, repeat if necessary

To fill the pierogies:

Place about 1 tablespoon of pierogi filling into
a tad below the middle of the pierogi dough circle
(Note: the sauerkraut/cabbage pierogies are
done exactly the same way)


Fold the dough over to encase the filling,
pushing any remaining air out gently with your fingers


Crimp the pierogies closed with your fingers



so that you can no longer see two edges of the dough,
but only one thin line, or your filling
will seep out when you cook the pierogies


Have some waxed paper sprinkled with flour lined
up so you can place the filled pierogies on them
Do not stack the uncooked pierogies on top of one another
before they are cooked
Use as many cookie sheets coated with flour
as you need so they remain in a single layer.

To cook the pierogies:

The pot you put up earlier should be coming to a boil


Place the filled pierogies into the boiling water loosely



You may need two pots if you are making a large quantity
Let them cook for a few minutes
They will begin to rise to the top when they are done
They will need to cook for about 3-4 minutes,
depending on the size of the pierogies

Remove with a slotted spoon, or drain into a colander,
onto a cookie sheet that has been buttered with unsalted butter
Place the pierogies in a single layer
Top with some softened butter
You may eat them at this point, or you can do one of two things:

You can freeze them in a container, in single layers,
layering waxed paper between the layers of pierogies.
You can fry them or re-steam them when you defrost them.

(We fried the sauerkraut/cabbage pierogies in butter only, no onions)

For the Potato Pierogie, you can take a frying pan,
melt some butter

sauté the sliced onions in butter



and fry the pierogies in the butter,
or you can cut some bacon slices into 1-inch pieces
and fry the pierogies with the onions and bacon pieces
(add a little butter to the onion bacon mix too)
I am a bacon girl, I always fry mine in onions and bacon

Serve with sour cream on this side if you like it

These pierogies were so incredibly delicious that
I am definitely going to make them on my own!

The Contessa also taught the
fine art of drinking vodka shots
as you eat your pierogies
an old Polish custom, she explained

Proudly displaying the fruits of our labor


What a fun time, I can't say it enough times,
get your group of foodfanataholics together
and do this!