The Best of Lithuanian Cooking: The Most Popular Recipes from the Hearty Baltic Cuisine by Milda Brighton

Author:Milda Brighton [Brighton, Milda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2013-12-15T08:00:00+00:00

For gravy:

6 ounces / 200 g fatty country bacon, diced

2 large (1 pound / 450 g) onions, chopped

Oil or lard for frying

Small handful of dried porcini mushrooms, soaked, boiled and chopped (optional)

1 cup / 250 ml sour cream

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Peel the potatoes. Place 1 pound / 450 g of the potatoes into a pot, cover with water, add a pinch of salt and boil until soft (approximately 30 minutes). Drain and mash with a potato ricer or a masher. Set aside to cool.

2. Crush the vitamin C pill on a chopping board with a blade of a chef’s knife and dissolve the powder in a small amount of water. Place the solution in a large mixing bowl. Vitamin C is acidic and will prevent grated potatoes from turning dark. It can be substituted by a dash of vinegar or lemon juice.

3. Grate the remaining raw potatoes with an electric or manual potato grater (the fine, prickly side of the box grater) into the bowl containing the vitamin C. Mix from time to time while grating, so that the potatoes do not turn dark.

4. Place part of the grated potatoes into a cheesecloth and wring well until the potatoes are barely moist. Reserve the potato juice in a separate pot. Repeat with the rest of the grated potatoes.

5. Once all potatoes are wrung, slowly decant the potato juice from the pot. There will be a layer of potato starch settled on the bottom of the pot.

6. Knead the potato starch with the wrung grated potatoes and with the mashed boiled potatoes until well combined. Add 2 teaspoons of salt while kneading. Cover the potato dough with a moist cheesecloth and set aside.

7. For the filling, combine the ground beef, pork, chopped onions, pepper and salt. Mix well.

8. Fill a large 10 quart / 8 litre stockpot with water up to 2/3 of volume. Add 1 tablespoon of salt. Set to high heat and bring to boil.

9. While the water is coming to boil, take a lump (the size of a baseball) of the potato dough and flatten in your hands. Take a small lump (the size of a golf ball) of the prepared meat filling and put on top. Fold the potato dough on top and press the edges to seal the dumpling into a smooth shape of a zeppelin. Make sure it is well sealed; otherwise zeppelins may open up during boiling. Repeat with the remaining dough and meat.

10. Once the water comes to boil, reduce the heat to medium and carefully lower the zeppelins into the boiling water. Assure the pot is not overcrowded, as zeppelins may fall apart.

11. Boil for 15-20 minutes until the meat inside is cooked through. Carefully remove the zeppelins from the pot with a slotted spoon.

12. While the zeppelins are boiling, prepare the gravy. Add the diced bacon and chopped onions into a large frying pan and sauté on medium heat for 5-10 minutes until grease is released from the bacon and onions are translucent and soft.

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