These Ukrainian pyrizhky (or pirozhki or piroshky, whatever you call them) are stuffed with a hearty buckwheat and egg mixture and fried to golden perfection!
Many Ukrainians remember this food from their childhood and have warm memories of the fascinating smell and mouth-watering taste the hand pies have.
Ukrainian pyrizhky also can have other fillings, including both sweet and savory ones. They can be stuffed with mashed potatoes, mushrooms, cabbage, ground meat as well as with jam, fruits, and berries. The options are almost endless, you can fill your pyrizhky with anything your heart desires.
But today I’m sharing with you the recipe for a soft and airy buckwheat and egg filling. Covered with the dough, it stands for the perfect portable meal. You can take these earthy hand pies for a picnic, stroll, potluck, etc.
Great comfort food which can be eaten on the go! Give it a try!
Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 heaped tsp salt
- 55 g (2 oz) yeast
- 1 kg (35 oz) flour
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 200 g (7 oz) buckwheat
- 1/2 l (liter) of warm water
- vegetable oil – for frying
- ground black pepper – to taste
- salt – to taste
Cooking
To make the dough, pour warm boiled water in a pan. Stir in yeast, sugar, salt, and 500 g (17,5 oz) of flour. Pour vegetable oil above and mix to combine. Cover the pan with a lid and a warm towel. Leave the dough in a warm place to rise, around 40 minutes. Then stir in 500 g (17,5 oz) of the remaining flour and knead the dough – it should be smooth and elastic (you may need more or less dough depending on the type of dough you use).
Let’s prepare the filling. Wash buckwheat under running water. Pour water in a pan and bring it to boil. Transfer the buckwheat to the pan, season it with salt and pepper and cook until done. Set aside the buckwheat to let it cool.
Wash and put eggs in a separate pan. Hard boil the eggs. Then cool, peel, and dice them finely. Combine the buckwheat and eggs together.
Once the dough has risen, transfer it to a lightly floured surface. Roll out the dough and cut out circles (about 2-inch in diameter) using a round cookie cutter. Spoon about one teaspoon of the filling and arrange it into the center of the dough. Fold the dough in half to form a patty and pinch the edges of the dough to seal. Then softly flatten the pyrizhok between your palms, making sure the sealed crimps are on the flat side. Shape other hand pies in the same manner.
Once all hand pies are formed, pour vegetable oil in a skillet and preheat it. Put our pyrizhky there. Fry them on both sides until golden brown. Transfer the cooked pyrizhky to paper towels to drain excess oil.
Serve these generous hand pies with a buckwheat and egg filling warm or at a room temperature.
Have you liked the recipe for hand pies with buckwheat and eggs?
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