Late Hungarian plums are still sold at the markets, and they make knedle — potato dumplings with a plum inside, served with toasted breadcrumbs or sour cream.
The recipe was shared by food writer Iryna Chornii on her blog European Cuisine with Iryna Chornii.
Knedle (knydli in the recipe) are made in Czechia, Poland and across Europe, and in Ukraine they are common in Zakarpattia and Pokuttia.
What you need
- potatoes — 500 g;
- egg — 1;
- plain wheat flour — 125 g;
- starch — 50 g;
- salt — a pinch.
For the filling and serving:
- Hungarian plums — 300 g;
- sugar cubes or granulated sugar — for the filling;
- breadcrumbs, ideally from white bread — 50 g;
- butter — 100 g;
- sugar — to taste.
How to make it
1. Cook the potatoes. Peel the potatoes, cut them into pieces and boil until tender. Drain and put the pot back on the heat for 1–2 minutes to let the moisture evaporate.
2. Mash them hot. Press the potatoes through a ricer or a sieve while still hot — that way the dough will have no lumps. Leave to cool completely.
3. Make the dough. Add the sifted flour and starch, the egg and salt to the cold potatoes and knead a silky dough that does not stick to your hands. Turn it out onto the work surface, dust with starch and knead again.
4. Prepare the plums. Wash and dry the plums, halve them lengthwise and remove the stones. Put half a sugar cube or half a teaspoon of sugar in place of the stone. Do not leave the plums with sugar for long, or they will release juice.
5. Shape the dumplings. Divide the dough into two or three parts, roll them into ropes 3–4 cm thick and cut into pieces of about 1 cm — enough to wrap a plum without the dough being thick. Press each piece with a hand dipped in starch, put a plum on it, seal and shape a ball. Roll the dumplings in starch.
6. Boil. Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil. Cook the dumplings in batches, a few at a time, for 2–3 minutes after they float up.
Photo: Aw58 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.07. Serve. While the dumplings cook, melt the butter in a frying pan and toast the breadcrumbs in it, stirring all the time. Lift out the dumplings, let the water drain, put them on a plate and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and sugar to taste. Plum knedle are also good with sour cream.
The key is not to rush the dough: knead it only when the potatoes have cooled completely. Warm potatoes make the dough too sticky, you have to add more flour, and the dumplings turn tough. Starch on the surface keeps them from cracking, and there is no need to cook them long: overcooked knedle get too soft and fall apart.
As a reminder, last time in Tasty Bucha we baked chicken legs that keep you away from the stove.
Nota bene
Bucha FM is an independent news site and station for the Bucha district. We cover what matters to the community, and we work for you — and because of you. Joining the people who make this possible is simple: support us with any amount.
Comments
No comments yet — be the first.