Dumpling dough tears and goes soggy: the flour is not to blame, and neither are your hands

Potato and cheese dumplings are made differently in every family. The dough is usually what fails: it tears while shaping or goes soggy in the water.

The recipe for potato and cheese dumplings was shared by the cookery site mojegotowanie.pl.

The fix is the scalded method — the flour is mixed not with cold water but with boiling water.

What you need

• 500 g wheat flour
• 250 ml water
• 65 ml oil
• 500 g potatoes
• 300 g curd cheese
• 1 onion
• 6 g salt
• 3 g ground black pepper

How to cook

1. Boil the potatoes. Peel, quarter, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Cook for about 25 minutes until soft.

2. Scald the dough. Sift the flour with a pinch of salt into a large bowl. Pour in 50 ml of oil and a full glass of hot water.

Stir with a wooden spoon. Once it cools enough not to burn your hands, turn it onto the worktop and knead into a smooth elastic dough. Shape into a ball and cover with film.

3. Fry the onion. Cut one large onion into thin slivers, then into small dice. Fry in a spoonful of hot oil until soft and golden, then remove at once so it does not brown too far.

4. Make the filling. Drain the potatoes and let the steam escape. Mash them or press them through a ricer.

Break up the curd cheese with a fork — or pass it through a mincer for a completely smooth filling. Combine potatoes with cheese, add the fried onion, season with salt and pepper.

5. Shape them. Divide the dough into four, keeping the rest under a towel. Roll thinly and cut out circles 7–8 cm across.

Put a teaspoon of filling on each, fold in half and seal the edges.

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6. Boil in batches. Salt the water and bring to the boil. Once the dumplings float, count three minutes and lift them out with a slotted spoon.

If you made more than you will eat, freeze them at this stage — brush with oil so they do not stick together.

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7. Serve hot. Before serving you can fry them in clarified butter for a crisp golden crust, and top with golden fried onion.

With the boiling, the dish takes about an hour.

As a reminder, potato pancakes are held together by the potato's own starch.

Nota bene

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