Pirozhki, the must-have of every Russian table

Pies or pirozhki are often made for a big feast. They are tasty fare, and baked to order. They could even be described as a kind of Russian tapas.

milk - 300 ml

flour - 500 g

cabbage - 1/2

margarine

yeast

eggs - 12 pcs

green onion

salt, sugar

The word “pie” in Russian (pirog) is etymologically related to the word for “feast” (pir). Pies were a permanent fixture of any festive table, be it be a wedding, New Year, birthday, etc. There are myriads of fillings, from sweet to savory. The most common in the latter category are meat, potatoes with mushrooms, cabbage, and onion with egg.

The cooking of pies usually involves the family babushka. Grandma’s pie recipes are a trade secret. Only when her grand-daughter comes of age (or on some other significant occasion) does she reveal the secret ingredient that turns an ordinary lump of pastry into something magical and ethereal, a journey back to childhood. Grandma’s pies have become a meme in Russian life. But even if you’re no one's babushka, you can still make good pies, and today we’ll show you how.

Today we’ll cook pies from yeast-leavened dough with fillings made of egg, onion, and cabbage.

1) Let’s start by dissolving the yeast in a small amount of milk. Break two eggs and mix with sugar (4 teaspoons) and salt (1.5 tablespoons). We add the yeast milk mixture and gradually start adding flour. Next melt half a packet of margarine over low heat. Add the melted margarine. Keep stirring as you add more flour, a total of 4-5 cups and 2 cups of milk. Put the dough in a bowl and leave for 1.5-2 hours under a cotton towel.

2) In the meantime, while the dough is rising, we’ll prepare the two fillings: stewed cabbage with egg, and green onion with egg. We boil the eggs and stew the cabbage.

3) After an hour, knead the dough again, sprinkle with flour, and leave for another 30 minutes.

4) Let’s return to the filling. First we slice the eggs. 5 eggs for half a head of cabbage.

5) Let’s take another look at the dough; you can see it's risen even more. Roll into a sausage shape like so, and cut into equal parts. Now roll into ovals with a rolling pin. Spread the filling on thick.

6) Next we oil the pan and put the pies in, smearing egg on top. Into the oven they go for 30 minutes at 200 degrees.

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