If you love pelmeni as much as I do, then whole wheat flour pelmeni is just the right recipe to up the game. They have a classic taste but are slightly healthier because the dough is made from wholemeal flour – whether spelt or regular wheat. Preparation is a little time-consuming, but every step highlights the love and care put into this dish, and you can also store the pelmeni in your freezer. So just take one evening, a glass of wine or cup of tea, indulge in some fine rolling, laughing and cooking with your dearests, and you’ll end up with a lovely dinner + fully stacked up freezer for busy weeknights without even noticing it. And trust me – once you’ve tried self-made pelmeni, the ones in the store just simply do not compare… 🙂
First, prepare the filling, allowing the onion and minced meat to be seasoned with salt and pepper. Then, make the dough from wholemeal flour, knead it until smooth, and let it rest so that the gluten can work its magic. Once the dough is ready, roll it out into a thin gentle layer, and shape the pelmeni, filling them with the delicious minced meat mixture. So buckle up, and pelmeni away!
Home-made pelmeni
Ingredients
Filling:
Preparation
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Dice the onion into small cubes. Sauté the chopped onion in oil in a pan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Mix the fried onion with the minced meat, salt and pepper. Transfer the filling to the fridge to chill while you prepare the dough.
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Put the flour in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, add 1 egg, 200 ml of water, and salt. Start mixing from the edges towards the centre, and when the dough starts to come together, continue kneading. Knead into a smooth dough until it no longer sticks to your hands - add a few handfuls of flour if necessary. Wrap the dough in cling film and let it rest for 30-45 minutes to allow the gluten to do its work.
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Once the dough has rested, it's time to start rolling. You can do this successfully with a rolling pin - in that case, divide the dough into smaller pieces and roll it out as thin as you can. However, it's easier to do with a pasta machine. Take ¼ of the dough (keep the rest inside the cling film so it would not dry out), flatten it slightly, and start with the widest setting. Roll the dough through once, fold it, and roll it through again at the same wide setting. Sprinkle with a little flour in between if necessary. Then move up progressively narrower settings one by one, rolling the dough through each time (up to setting 5-6). Lay the rolled-out dough on a lightly floured work surface. Cut out small circles about 4 cm in diameter using a glass. Place ½ tsp of minced meat filling in the centre, fold the other half over, and press the edges together firmly with the rim of the glass. If you like, you can twist the sharp corners of the pelmeni together to make cute little round ones. Repeat with the remaining dough until all the pelmeni are ready.
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Cook fresh pelmeni in boiling water for 5-7 minutes, or frozen pelmeni for 10-13 minutes, until they rise to the surface.
Note
- TIP: You can very successfully freeze pelmeni. While forming the pelmeni, have a large tray lined with baking paper ready and place the finished pelmeni on it. You can cook some immediately for eating. Put the rest on the tray into the freezer, and once frozen, transfer the pelmeni to a resealable plastic bag.
