Traditional Ukrainian Pierogies

One of my favorite childhood memories is of my mom working in the kitchen preparing pierogies. She learned the recipe from my grandmother who learned it from her mother. It is a traditional Ukrainian recipe and easily one of my favorite foods to eat. Taking a bite of these homemade pierogies brings me back to those childhood days.

My mom would work away in the kitchen making probably 100 or more of these wonderful Ukrainian dumplings filled with potato and cheese. The tables and kitchen counters would be filled with row upon row of the pierogies. They took a while to make (partially because she would make so many!), but it was a labour of love for my mom. One that she would do for her family.

Homemade Ukrainian Pierogies

For me, it is great to learn how to make pierogies the very same way and to carry on the tradition of our family in this way. On top of that, these are the best tasting pierogies around and WAY better than anything you will buy frozen in a store!

There are many different spellings of this little dumpling including pierogi, pirohy, pyrohy, perogy, varenyky, vareniki and more.

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Pierogies are best served with fried pork fat or bacon. The little crispy chunks go perfect with the soft chew of the pierogies. We also traditionally serve them with sour cream.

How to make the filling

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The filling is so simple to make: boil potatoes, drain, but set aside, the water. Add cubed cheese and cover with the lid.

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The potatoes should still be very hot and they will cause the cheese to melt after about 5-10 minutes.

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Blend the filling using a hand blender or a hand potato masher.

How to make the dough

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The dough can be made by hand, but a food processor does it far easier and more quickly.

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Add the flour, salt and egg to the food processor bowl. Turn it on and slowly pour in the cooled potato water. Stop adding water when the dough forms a ball, as seen in the photo above.

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Knead the dough on a floured surface and roll it out to 1/8 inch thick.

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Make rounds with a biscuit cutter or a round glass.

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The round of dough should be 3 – 3 1/2 inch in diameter.

How to make the pierogi

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Place the round of dough in your hand and spoon a heaping tablespoon of filling in the middle of the dough.

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Pull the dough over the filling and pinch it together at the edge.

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Make sure you pinch firmly so that the pierogi stays sealed during the boiling.

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The pierogi is done. Check along the edge to make sure there are no open spots and the seal seems solid.

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The above instructions are how we traditionally make pierogies. There are pierogi machines available that can make the process a little simpler. We tried out one and it worked out very well. Check out our review of it here: Norpro Pierogi Maker Review.

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The pierogies take a while to make and the first ones will dry out before you are done if left out in the open. We lay them on a towel. Sprinkle a little flour on the towel and place the pierogies on the towel. Cover with another towel and keep adding more while you make them.

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Boil them in water for about 8-10 minutes. They will rise to the surface when they are fully cooked.

Traditional Ukrainian Pierogies

4.75 out of 5
51 reviews
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This recipe has complete instructions for making Ukrainian potato and cheese pierogies from scratch and by hand. Simple and delicious this recipe is handed down for generations!
Prep Time: 3 hours
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 4 hours
Servings: 36 pierogies

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds potatoes peeled and quartered
  • 200 g (1/2 pound) medium cheddar cheese, cut into 1 inch cubes
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 4 cups of flour plus more if needed
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup potato water at room temperature
  • diced bacon or pork fat

Instructions

  • To make the filling, boil the potatoes until tender. Drain water into a bowl. Set aside for later. Place cubed cheese on top of the cooked potatoes and cover with a lid. Let rest for about 5 minutes so that the cheese will melt. Sprinkle with 1 tsp salt and mash the potatoes and cheese with a hand blender, potato masher. Let cool to room temperature.
  • To make the dough, add the flour, egg and 1/2 tsp salt to a food processor bowl. Turn on the food processor. Slowly pour in the potato water until the dough forms a ball and then turn off the food processor.
  • Place the dough on a floured surface. Knead with floured hands. The dough should have the feel of pizza dough, elastic but not wet. Work in a little extra flour if the dough is too moist.
  • Divide the dough in 3. Roll out one ball of dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Use a pierogi press to make pierogies or use the instructions below to make them by hand.
  • Use a biscuit cutter or glass. Dredge the rim of a 3 to 3 1/2 inch glass in flour, then press the glass into the rolled out dough to cut a circle of dough. Place the dough round in your hand and spoon about a heaping tablespoon of potato and cheese filling into the middle of the dough. Pull the dough over the filling and pinch the edges. If the dough is dry, moisten a finger in water to help seal the edge.
  • Place the pierogi on a towel sprinkled with flour. Cover with another towel so the pierogi does not dry out. Continue to make the remaining pierogies.
  • To cook the pierogies, place them in boiling for about 8-10 minutes. The pierogies should rise to the surface of the water when they are finished cooking.
  • While the pierogies are boiling, fry the bacon or pork fat, until browned and crisp.
  • Toss the cooked pierogies in bacon, and bacon grease or the pork fat.
  • Serve with sour cream.

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4.75 from 51 votes (8 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




113 comments

  • 5 stars
    Oh the memories!! This is truly a great recipe!! Thank you so much. I remember making these with my Baba on days when we did not have to be at school, such as a snow day!! I recall sitting on a high stool at the counter, cutting out the circles with a glass, watching the snow fly out in the backyard and woods!! Thank you, something my sister and I can pass on to our kids, as my Baba’s recipe was lost sometime along the way.

    • Reply
  • Same recipe I use from my husband’s Busha

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  • If I want to freeze some do I freeze after boiling?

    I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing!

    • Reply
    • 5 stars
      If you are going to freeze the pierogis, you should follow these steps. Remove from the hot water and pour into a colander. Pour cold water over the pierogies. Next, dunk the pierogies in an ice bath, until the centers are cool (at least at room temperature). Drain. Put into a bowl and pour a few tablespoons of oil or melted butter over the cooled pierogies. Place in plastic zip lock baggies. Freeze.

      Basically, you have to treat the pierogis as if they are pasta (which essentially the outside is). You absolutely MUST prevent them from sticking together. Otherwise you will have a mess on your hands after they thaw out. Hope this helps.

      • Reply
    • As peroghi take only minutes to cook it’s nice to freeze before boiling them. I put a tray of finished peroghi into the freezer and when they are hardedned put into ziplock bags. Freezing before bagging insures they won’t stick together!

      • Reply
      • I do the same thing! Works great

        • Reply
      • Thank you. I’m having a perogie making party on Feb 3 and wanted to know if I had to boil them first like my German mother-in-law does. I find they stick together and you have to cook the whole bag. Thankful we used medium bags on the last batch so didn’t have to cook too many. Also seems like a ot of extra work.

        • Reply
  • 4 stars
    We made these yesterday. I think there is a typo in the recipe. We found that 4 cups of flour was way too much. We wound up making the dough using 2 cups of flour and 1 egg. It worked beautifully.
    The pototo filling recipe is PERFECT. They were delicious

    • Reply
  • About how many does this recipe make? I’ve got my taters boiling as I type! Really looking forward to sharing these with my family tonight.
    -Emma

    • Reply
    • this recipe should make around 3 dozen or so.

      I hope the turn out great and the family enjoy them!

      • Reply
      • I grew up eating these and now have such wonderful memories. My Grandpa (from Ukrain) and my Grandma used to make them all of the time. Fried in butter and then served with sauted onions and sour cream!! 🙂 I never got to learn how to make them. I will now try this recipe as I miss my grandparents and eating these with the whole family! I hope it will bring back even more wonderful memories of them!! Thank you!

        • Reply
  • I love the idea of the potato water. I have to make them for a dinner at the VFW next month and will use that hint. I have a hint if my own that it use. When the potato mixture cools take your tablespoons of filling and roll into individual balls and flatten slightly. Lay them on a sheet pan covered with waxed paper or parchment paper. This keeps the filling off your fingers to make the seal on the dough easier. Hope this helps.

    • Reply
  • 1 star
    Can’t imagine using a food processor or hand blender on potatoes without making a gummy mess. A potato ricer would do a much better job.

    • Reply
    • You have obviously never used a Masha before then. They are essentially an electric potato ricer made for making creamy perfectly mashed potatoes. I love it and it is not gummy at all.

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      • 5 stars
        Disappointing that your rating would get reduced because of the method to mash the potatoes… Very happy with the full 5 stars!

        • Reply
        • ‘Dido’
          j.g.

          • Reply
  • My baba and mom made this same recipe for three generations of our rural prairie family, with help of each new round of kids to pinch pinch pinch, often taking more time than without the extra help. Made with love, this humble perogie has no equal.

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    • I totally agree. Oh the memories!

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  • Nice recipe, thank you! I read it, took a leap of faith and made a triple batch, taking a whole afternoon, and freezing what I didn’t reserve for that evening’s supper. They were exactly as I had hoped–yipee! I did gather the dough scraps and re-roll them a couple of times, and it might have been my imagination but some of pierogi seemed a bit chewy! I wondered whether you do this or discard the dough scraps.

    • Reply
    • You can use following method: cut dough into manageable chunks(about 6 inches diameter). Roll each chunk on the flour dusted surface into a rope-like long piece about 2 inches thick(experiment), then cut it into pieces about 1 inch thick. You should have oval shaped pieces that are covered with flour around the oval, but the side where you cut is a little wet and tacky. Dip the tacky sides into a little flour and roll each out on those sides, to make a round shape.No cutouts to deal with, but a little more work. They end up different sizes, too, which make vareniki looking very authentic. We(the whole family, and then once I grew up and got married, with my husbands whole family) used to sit around the table and talk and joke and laugh and compete who works faster and neater.
      If you are pressed for time, roll out two big sheets of dough,put filling in rows with space between them, press firmly and evenly around filling and then use pizza cutter. You will end up with square shapes, and they probably will taste differently, as your brain will not accept them as vareniki or pierogy.
      Or you can put them on the mini-muffin tin and fill muffin areas with filing, press very firmly between, use serrated knife or pizza cutter between(make sure you dust muffin tin with flour before putting dough on).
      Butter and sour cream are my choice of topping.

      • Reply
    • BOIL THE SCRAPS AND FRY IN GREASE OR BUTTER THEN EAT BY HAND – GREAT

      • Reply
  • I want to have a dinner party with this recipe. Can you make this recipe the day before?

    • Reply
    • Tossing the pierogies in bacon grease or pork fat helps them not to stick together. We love them the next day as leftovers so they would be great made the day before. To reheat them, we fry them in a skillet on medium heat. They brown a bit and get a little crispy – they are amazing!!!

      • Reply
      • My mom would take all say to make them. A true labor of love. She made the best pierogies everr. I have yet to eat pierogies that barely compare to hers. Her stuffed cabbage and red beet borscht were to die for. I miss her and her cooking so much?

        • Reply
  • So glad I found your recipe! Growing up on the Canadian prairies we had lots of Ukranian food, I knew my Grandma used potato water as the secret, but didn’t know how much or where to start, thanks!

    • Reply
    • 5 stars
      Exactly the same for me, Alberta born and bred and thus I think if you cut me open I’d bleed sour cream.
      The recipe tastes like the ones the old ukrainian women in my church would make.

      • Reply
      • Using the potato water, I use what the recipe calls for sometimes a little under, because you can always add more. Then I feel for the soft texture of the dough. If is feels too sticky or too hard, I coordinate between the flour and potato water until it is that soft almost like pizza dough texture. I always use it luke warm or room temperature.

        • Reply
  • I just made pierogies with this dough recipe and they turned out FABULOUS!! So much better then all the sour cream recipes I have tried elsewhere!! Thank you!!!

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Years ago I made pierogi at least 4 or 5 times a month. The last 35 years with the kids all gone, married etc, and my moving, I did not make them anymore at all.

    When I lately tried it again, I realized had forgotten how to make the dough,.. result a thick chewy dough.

    So happy I found this sight, and am back in the Pierogi enjoyment for my friends.

    Thanks.

    • Reply
    • Same recipe I use from my husband’s Busha

      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Those look so tasty! The only homemade pierogies I have ever had are the ones we get from the farmer’s market.

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    I was looking for a pierogi stamp when I saw this site. This is how I remember making them with my grandma as a little girl. We would boil them and then fry them in butter or a little bacon grease to give a little bit of a crunch and then toss with bits of bacon or butter as shown above. I am so excited to share this childhood tradition with my kids now! Great tutorial for those who have never made them before!

    • Reply
  • Nice photos and recipe, but ahem, if they’re traditional, they’re called varenyky or pyrohy. In Polish, they are called “pierogi”, rather than “pierogies”. (Pierogi-plural, pieróg-singular).

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    My family loves pierogies.. and I must admit.. I only have bought the frozen kind before. These look great. I have been meaning to make a pierogie knock off with some flavors I tried at costco.. Now I want your fresh ones. 🙂

    • Reply
    • i have tried a few frozen kinds, yeah they’re ok, but home made is best

      didnt’ know they had them at costco though, i’m not a member

      susan

      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    I ate these in Lviv in Ukraine but my friend called them varenyky. I loved them and could have eaten the whole pot but there was so much other stuff to eat. Yours are perfect!!

    • Reply
    • I have never called the verenky, i dont’ think that we’re from that part of the country.

      nor have my mother or baba ever used a food procecor

      they would do it the old fashioned way, on a board, and then make a well out of the flour and mix the dough that way.

      susan

      • Reply
      • 4 stars
        Yes, this is how I learned to make them. Going to try with food processor for a bit more ease… 🙂

        • Reply
        • Of you are going to freeze I am assuming put on cookie sheet and freeze then bag and put back in freezer

          • Reply
      • 5 stars
        My mom would take all say to make them. A true labor of love. She made the best pierogies everr. I have yet to eat pierogies that barely compare to hers. Her stuffed cabbage and red beet borscht were to die for. I miss her and her cooking so much?

        • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Those look delicious Steve. Great job with the step by step instructions and pictures.

    • Reply
  • This looks wonderful! I always wanted to know how to do this. Thanks!

    • Reply

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