Vegan Pelmeni with Spelt and Spinach Filling
Zucker&Jagdwurst and dumplings – it's a match as you might know since our big themed dumpling week. Since we could only feature 7 recipes in 7 days at that time, we still have a lot of other dumpling favorites to talk about.
Today, it's all about the Russian dumplings pelmeni, which used to be some kind of a road snack for longer trips through this huge country. They are traditionally filled with minced meat, but instead, we fill the dough with a mix of spelt, spinach, and potatoes. For the filling, we got inspired by the Berlin restaurant "tak tak", which serves pierogi (Polish dumplings) filled with spelt and spinach. We added mashed potatoes to this as it helps to bind the spelt and spinach. This makes it way easier to fold the pelmeni.
What's always great about any kind of dumplings: they can easily be frozen, so you can prepare a few more for later right away. It's just important to freeze them BEFORE cooking, so after the pelmeni have been folded. First, put the pelmeni on a large plate with some space in between them (they shouldn't touch each other). As soon as they are frozen, you can transfer them into a freezer bag or other container and store them for a few weeks or months.
We're very happy that Bauckhof Naturkost supports us with this recipe. Bauckhof produces organic products under sustainable conditions and in Demeter quality. They own three own agricultural farms and one stone mill in the Lüneburg Heath in Lower Saxony. For the filling of the pelmeni, we used their Kornfix Steinofen-Dinkel, which is ready in only 20 minutes! The spelt is characterized by its mild, nutty taste, which it receives from the fact that it is gently roasted as a whole grain in a natural stone oven. Due to its fine consistency, it's a really excellent choice for fillings, but also for patties, salads, and as a side dish instead of rice.
Vegan Pelmeni with Spelt and Spinach Filling
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 400 g (3.25 cups) flour
- 200 ml (0.85 cup) warm water
- 1 tsp salt
For the filling:
- 100 g (0.5 cup) spelt (e.g., from Bauckhof Naturkost)
- 275 ml (1 cup) water
- 100 g (3.5 oz) fresh baby spinach
- 300 g (10.5 oz) floury potatoes
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- salt
- pepper
- nutmeg
- spicy paprika
For serving:
- vegan butter
- vegan sour cream
- fried onions
- chives
Instructions
Mix flour and salt in a bowl. Add warm water little by little until a dough forms. Flour your working surface and knead the dough with your hands until it's smooth. This can take up to 10 minutes. Let the dough rest for approx. 20-30 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare the filling. Add spelt and water to a pot, season with salt, and bring to a boil. Let simmer for 2 minutes, then turn off the heat. Place a lid upside down on the pot and fill the inverted lid with cold water. Let spelt soak for approx. 20 minutes. Carefully remove the lid from the pot and loosen spelt with a fork.
Parallelly peel and roughly chop potatoes. Add to a pot, cover with water, and season with salt. Let potatoes simmer until soft.
Wash and chop spinach. Peel and finely dice onion and garlic. Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry onion and garlic until the onion is translucent. Season with salt and pepper. Add spinach and fry only for a few minutes until it welts.
As soon as the potatoes are soft, drain and mash them. Mix mashed potatoes, cooked spelt, and the spinach mixture in a bowl. Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and paprika to taste.
Roll out the dough on a floured surface (approx. 3-4 mm thick). Use a cookie cutter or a glass to cut out smaller circles. Add approx. 1-2 tsp of the filling in the center of a dough circle, then carefully fold the dough over the filling. If needed, moisten the edges of the dough with water. You should now have a properly filled semicircle. Fold the edges towards each other and press together to form pelmeni.
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and let pelmeni cook in just simmering for approx. 5 minutes. Drain and serve pelmeni with melted vegan butter, vegan sour cream, fried onions, and finely chopped chives.
