The aroma of these fresh buns and pirozhki is simply irresistible!
Russia Beyond (Legion Media; Victoria Drey)
Belyashi are rather peculiar buns stuffed with meat. They’re made with either yeast-free or yeast dough with chopped beef or lamb mincemeat, and then adding a lot of onions, salt and pepper. Thanks to the onions, the belyashi don’t turn dry after frying. There are also other tricks; you can add milk, kefir, ice water or plain ice into the filling. Belyashi are deep-fried. Sometimes, a hole is left on top, and sometimes they’re completely closed.
Pirozhki with cabbage, just like pirozhki with potatoes, always make the list of the most popular baked goods sold in food stalls in Russia. Other popular savory fillings include pirozhki with mincemeat; rice and eggs are also popular. Among sweet pirozhki, those with apples are by far in the lead. Fish-filled pirozhki are often made with an opening on top and are called rasstegai.
The traditional kurnik is a large festive pie with meat filling. However, small triangular kurniki the size of pirozhki are a more common sight on sale in stores. Inside, they have a filling made of chicken meat and potatoes with onions.
Sochniki are folded-in-half, small circles of shortcrust crumbly pastry filled with tvorog (cottage cheese). For the cottage cheese filling not to spill out of the sochnik, it’s drained and mixed with flour. Many years ago, they were baked in traditional ovens, but nowadays modern kitchen ovens are used.
The airy dough and a cottage cheese filling with sour notes will mesmerize both kids and adults. This airy pastry goes well both for breakfast and as a snack during the day.
Soft inside and crusty on the outside, dusted with icing sugar – ponchiki are sold in many Russian cities. They can have a hole in the middle or come in the shape of a ball. In St. Petersburg they call them pyshki and sell them at Pyshechnaya (pyshki cafes).
Plushki with poppy seeds.
Legion MediaIn almost every Russian canteen, confectionery shop or stall that sells baked goods you can find buns with raisins, poppy seeds or povidlo (fruit spread). They also always have plushki – heart-shaped buns sprinkled with sugar.
Even mentioning these flat, large, semi-circle pies arouses a voracious appetite. Chebureki are deep-fried, which is why they’re so crunchy and appetizing. During cooking, bubbles develop on their thin crust. Meat and cheese are the two most popular fillings for chebureki.
For many, the taste of puff pastry tongues is the taste of childhood. They’re served with tea and are incredibly simple to make, especially with frozen puff pastry. You need just three ingredients: puff pastry, eggs and sugar to sprinkle on top.
They’re a bit similar to American doughnuts, but a thinner kind of dough is used – choux pastry. Inside, for the filling, is a sweet cottage cheese with cream or buttercream.
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