Traditional pierogi—Polish filled dumplings (and not the frozen kind)—are a labor of love. We can’t usually devote an entire day to making dinner but we crave the pillowy, soft bites, so we’re turning to Antoni Porowski’s recipe for lazy pierogi, from his new cookbook, Antoni: Let’s Do Dinner.
“These tender Polish dumplings are rather like gnocchi,” the Queer Eye star explains. “They’re called leniwe (lazy) because they’re made without a filling. When I was growing up, my parents used to serve me a version of these, sprinkled with breadcrumbs and sugar, to keep me from missing them when they went out on a Saturday night. Dessert for dinner—worked every time! This savory rendition of my childhood favorite pays homage to those memories, blending earthy mushrooms and tender cabbage with the brown sugar notes of chopped prunes.”
They’re ready in about 30 minutes, so you might never go back to the frozen kind.
Excerpted from Antoni: Let’s Do Dinner © 2021 by Antoni Porowski with Mindy Fox. Photography © 2021 by Paul Brissman. Reproduced by permission of Mariner Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
20-Minute Mushroom Stroganoff
Ingredients
Pierogi
12 ounces (1¼ cups) whole milk ricotta or farmer’s cheese, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
Vegetables
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 cups thinly sliced cabbage
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound shiitake or mixed wild mushrooms, stemmed if using shiitakes, mushroom caps halved or quartered if large
¾ cup coarsely chopped pitted prunes
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill, plus more for serving
3 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for serving (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. For the pierogi: Bring a large, wide pot of well-salted water to a boil. In a large bowl, whisk together the cheese, eggs, salt and butter. Add the flour and stir to form a sticky dough.
2. On a floured surface, roll about a quarter of the dough into a 1-inch-thick rope, then cut the rope on a diagonal into 1-inch pieces. Repeat with the remaining dough.
3. Cook the dumplings in 2 batches in the boiling water until they rise to the surface, then cook for 1 minute more. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl.
4. For the vegetables: In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter. Add the cabbage and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is wilted, 5 to 7 minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the prunes and cook for 1 minute more.
6. Add the pierogi, dill, parsley and remaining 1 tablespoon butter and toss to coat the dumplings. Heat to warm through, about 1 minute. Adjust the seasonings to taste.
7. Spoon the pierogi into bowls, top with more dill and parsley, if using, and serve.