Farmers Cheese Pierogi

Nothing is better than a salty, sweet, and savory Farmers Cheese Pierogi

5 from 4 votes

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 20

Course Dinner

Cuisine European

Servings 30 Pierogi

Calories 140 kcal

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook attachment, mix the ingredients at low speed.
As the dough ingredients combine, they will begin to form a ball around the dough hook. You are looking for a slightly sticky, very smooth dough. After 2-4 minutes, the dough may still look a little rough, but should still be quite moist in the middle.
Continue mixing for another 3-7 minutes, until the ball is smooth and only a little sticky.
Note: If the dough is still very dry after the first 2-4 minutes, add 1 tbsp of water to the bowl and continue mixing. Mix for 30 seconds to 1 minute after adding the water, and the consistency should improve. You can repeat this 3-4 times if needed.
Note: If the dough is too wet and is struggling to form a smooth ball, add about 1 tbsp of flour and continue mixing for 30 seconds to 1 minute. The dough should begin to smooth out. Continue adding flour in small increments until the dough is smooth.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, combine all ingredients in a bowl and knead by hand for 5-7 minutes, or until the dough is a smooth ball.
Finally, once the dough is a smooth, slightly sticky ball, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, and up to 48 hours.

Cut your pierogi dough into quarters to make it easier to roll out. Keep the unused sections wrapped up and in the fridge while working, to avoid drying out the dough.
Lightly flour a large, flat work surface (a counter top or large, heavy cutting board work best for this).
Using a rolling pin, roll your dough out until it’s about ¼ inch thick. Make sure to lift and flip your dough a few times early on when you’re rolling it to prevent it from sticking to your work surface.
Using a small bowl or ramekin about 4 inches in diameter, cut out circles in the dough for pierogies. Reform any leftover cutouts into a ball and roll it back out to make more dough circles.
Place your farmers cheese in a bowl and break it apart in your hands. The cheese should look a bit like a bowl of feta cheese by the time you’re done.
Place a dough circle in your palm, and fill it with farmers cheese filling. You should need 3ish tablespoons of filling per pierogi, and it should look like it fills about half the dough.
Using your free hand, grab both sides of the pierogi, and fold them up to cradle the filling. If you need to, press the filling down into the pierogi.
Form a seal around the lip of the pierogi about 1cm wide. You should be able to stretch the dough a little as needed. Pinch the seal to form it.
Use a fork to press a pattern into the pierogi seal. This will help you identify the type of pierogi as well as keep the seal intact. If making other fillings, vary this pattern by filling type.

Lay each pierogi out side by side on pans with some parchment paper or foil underneath. Your pierogies should not really touch each other until they’re frozen.
Freeze the trays. If you have to stack trays, use offsets so that the lower pierogies don't get smashed. `
After the pierogies are frozen solid, bag them into freezer bags.

You can start with either frozen or thawed pierogi. If thawed they’ll cook much faster, but the method is the same.
Heat cooking oil in a pan on high heat. Use enough oil to almost cover the bottom of the pan in a thin layer.
Once the oil is heated, place the pierogies in the oil and cook for 2-3 minutes.
With a lid for the pan ready, pour ¼ cup of water into the pan, and then cover the pan immediately. The pan should steam immediately. Continue cooking until the steam stops, about 3-5 minutes.
Open the lid and flip the pierogies. Add additional oil if none is left in the pan. Cook for another 2 minutes.
Add another ¼ cup of water and close the lid. Cook this side of the pierogies for another 3-5 minutes, or until the steam stops.
Repeat the process until the pierogies are at least 120F inside.

Calories are for 1 pierogi

Keyword cheese, pierogi