Vareniki or varenyky is a staple dish in Russian and Ukrainian cuisines. They are half-moon shaped dumplings that are boiled in salted water.
Vareniki fillings may vary, but the most common version is the potato version. Depending on the filling, they can be served as a starter or as a dessert. It is customary to accompany varenieki with Russian sour cream called smetana.
What are vareniki?
Vareniki is a popular national dish in Ukraine and Russia. They come in the form of semicircular raviolis, the edges of which are sealed with cold water. These edges can be either smooth or raised.
In Ukraine, they are traditionally eaten with sour cream (in Ukrainian сметана), butter and fried onions. Sometimes, recipes add fried pieces of bacon and pork fat (in Ukrainian: shkvarky).
Traditionally, vareniki are eaten during a daily meal or during certain traditional celebrations, such as Christmas Eve supper (in Ukrainian: Sviata Vecheriai).
Legends and popular culture around vareniki
Vareniki are very popular in Ukraine and are at the center of the Ukrainian culinary tradition. This is why an annual festival is held in their honor every year in the Ukrainian ski resort of Bukovel in the Carpathians.
In addition, the vareniki go beyond the national Ukrainian dish. Indeed, in the past, they played a symbolic and ritual role. By analogy, the Ukrainian sages equated varenyky to a young moon because of their semicircular shape.
Dumplings were then used as part of pagan and sacrificial rituals. According to some beliefs, vareniki brought abundance and brought about fruitful harvests. For this reason, Ukrainian peasants brought homemade vareniki to the fields.
What is the difference between pelmeni, pierogi, pyrohy and vareniki?
Pelmeni are dumplings filled with meat, usually pork or fish. It is a traditional dish from the Urals. The meat that is used for the filling is simply spiced with salt, pepper and garlic. Pelmeni are filled with raw meat. They are usually served with a spoonful of sour cream and a little dill, or in a light broth.
The terms vareniki and pierogi both mean the same thing. This is a vegetarian version of the pelmeni. While vareniki is the most commonly used term in Russia, pierogi is the word used in Poland and Slovakia. Stuffed dumplings are indeed common throughout Central and Eastern Europe, and in particular most of the former eastern bloc states.
Finally, the terms varenyky and pyrohy are used to designate the same dish in certain regions of contemporary Ukraine or bordering western Ukraine (in Ruthenia of the Carpathians and in Galicia).
What fillings are used?
The traditional vareniki recipe uses potato as a filling. However, in Ukraine, they can be prepared with several kinds of fillings. The most common savory fillings include potato, cottage or farm cheese (tvarog), sauerkraut, plum (and other fruits), potato and cheese, cabbage, boiled beans, peas, meat, fish and buckwheat.
Vareniki can also be served as a dessert. In this case, the fillings are fruit or soft cheese. They can be stuffed with sour cherries, blueberries, sweet cottage cheese, blueberries or even red berries (strawberries or raspberries). Some vareniki recipes mention the presence of apples or plums. For added flavor, smetana (sour cream) can be added to the dough to make it lighter.
Tips
The preparation of vareniki requires a little time and a few tricks:
The vareniki dough should not be too thick. Indeed, if the dough is not sufficiently rolled thinly, the vareniki will be pasty. The dough can be passed through a pasta roller to have an even thinner roll.
To cut out the circles of dough, a wine glass can be ued. However, when preparing a lot of vareniki at once, a dumpling or pelmeni machine can be used to cut the dough. This makes the process practical and efficient.
Do not put too much mashed potatoes in the center of the vareniki. It will be difficult to close the vareniki and they may open during cooking. It is better to put less than too much.
Like gnocchi, vareniki are ready when they rise to the surface. It is then necessary to collect them delicately with a skimmer.
Vareniki
Ingredients
For the dough
- 2 cups flour , sifted
- 2 eggs , lightly beaten
- ½ cup milk (at 97 F / 36°C)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the filling
- 1 lb potatoes
- 2 onions , diced
- ½ cup milk (boiling)
- 4 tablespoons neutral vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons butter
To serve
- 2 scallions , chopped
- 1 onion , diced
- 2 tablespoons caster sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Salt
- Pepper
Equipment
- Skimmer
- Potato masher
- Cookie cutter (3 inches / 7 cm)
Instructions
Filling
- Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry the onions over medium heat, stirring regularly until they are golden brown, then drain them of their oil and place on plate lined with paper towel.
- Peel and boil the potatoes in a large amount of lightly salted water.
- Drain the potatoes using a large skimmer and keep the boiling water for cooking.
- Place the cooked potatoes in a large bowl and, using a potato masher, mash the potatoes, gradually adding the boiling milk. Add the butter and, optionally, a little boiling water from the potatoes and mix until a slightly firm consistency is obtained.
- Add the fried onions and mix. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
To serve
- In a small skillet, melt the butter.
- Fry the onion over medium heat for 1 minute then add the sugar.
- Cook over low to medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl and set aside in a warm place for serving.
Dough
- Combine sifted flour, salt, eggs, milk and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Knead a homogeneous dough. Cover and let stand 30 minutes, away from heat.
- Divide the dough into 2 or 3 pieces and roll out each piece of dough to a thickness of ⅛ inch (3 mm).
- Using a cookie cutter, cut circles about 3 inches (7 cm) in diameter.
- Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle of dough, fold them in half to form a semi-circle and pinch the edges with wet hands.
Cooking
- Heat a large amount of boiling salted water in a casserole dish.
- Immerse the vareniki in simmering water and cook them for 3 minutes.
- Drain.
To serve
- Place the boiled vareniki in a bowl or deep dish.
- Sprinkle with fried onions, salt lightly, pepper, and mix gently.
- Finally sprinkle with chopped spring onion.
As the founder of pastry food blog Les Trois Madeleines, Sarah-Eden reinvents glamorous desserts with original pastries. She enjoys discovering new blogs, interacting with food bloggers, and of course, she loves madeleines!
Lu says
VarenYkY or pierogi . Our recepies are close and we have it as Ukrainian and Polish cuisine. NOT russian! They have their Chinese PELMENI, what they call russian cuisine! Don’t blend all together! Ukrainian are close to Pollen and other Slavic people and languages, NOT to russian, who make themselfs us or as they call it in their propaganda “one language one folk”, and that is absolutely NOT TRUTH. They blend all in one with purpose, they’ve stollen our name, our history, our artefacts, our words, our territory. But that does NOT make them us, not slavic. LEARN FIRT, THEN MAKE AN ARTICLE. And don’t get russian propaganda swallow you. Thank You for understanding.
Vitaliya says
Oh my goodness, what’s wrong with you? How can you put all that hate in a comment to a delicious recipe which is either Russian and Ukrainian. With the globalization and the Sovietic history you can call this Russian recipe too. As a mixed russian-Lithuanian-Ukrainian I confirm that the recipe is authentic.
Caputo says
Varenyky was invented in Ukraine by Saul Chernikhivskyi . It’s Ukrainian and has it’s equivalent in Poland with the famous Pierogi.
It may be famous in Russia but it’s not a Russian dish…
Stop stealing our culture!
If we follow this irrational logic then Chicken Butter is both English and Indian lol…
It’s important to respect boundaries
, even in culture.
Oh, I forgot Russians don’t know what boundaries means…
Christie Lyons says
Dear Vitaliya, still feel the same way? I’m writing this in April, 2023, more than a year after Russia started its attempted conquest of Ukraine. Now everyone knows Russia as the monster it really is.
Les Trois Madeleines says
Hello Lu,
Thank you for your honesty. Let me repay you with my own.
While I understand your frustration and your boredom in life, this is not a legitimate reason to leave a comment like this. You should be ashamed to be so intolerant in 2021! We don’t tolerate this kind of behavior at 196 flavors. You are the one who should learn how to behave and talk to people.
I also want to bring to your attention that 196 flavors is a friendly space where experts and people share their passion for cooking and authentic recipes. We don’t do any propaganda or politics because we are just NOT interested in this.
This being said, I wish you can find peace in your life and for everybody’s sake, let people cook and enjoy food in peace.
Best,
Robert Diener says
@Lu
You need to take your controlled by hatred self elsewhere. I think you owe everyone an apology here. It would show some decency and respect for LTM This not a forum for your idiotic banter. This is a place where people from all walks of life can share recipes, ideas, customs etc.. to bring joy in others life.
I grew up eating “Verinik” a German twist. It is similar to both the Perogi and the Veriniki. Our dough was cut into squares and the end result was a triangle. My favorite fillings were: cabbage, hamburger meat and mashed potatoes and strawberry. We also fried onions, but we melted down butter and put it over the top. The left over dough was cut into 1/2” x 2” strips, boiled, and powdered sugar and butter was used for this rare treat. I hope this makes sense and someone can enjoy these as much as I have throughout my lifetime.
I Remain,
Robert D.
James Fleming says
I had these growing up with potatoe, sauerkraut and onion. Mom called them 3 cornered pants.
Taras says
“We don’t tolerate this kind of behavior at 196 flavors. You are the one who should learn how to behave and talk to people.”
Can you address Yana’s kind and thoughtful reply?
Audrey says
Amen to that! Great recipe. This is about food, not politics.
Yana says
You are an idiot coming on behalf of my Russian Ukrainian side learn your history. Don’t let the little issues going on get your little brain confuse you, learn how to think for your self. It’s a reason why the russian language was the primary language amongst the whole USSR yes including little Ukraine lol.
James verit says
As it turns out, this comment aged extremely well.
Mac says
Hmmm. Looks like the government trolls of Russia have come to scour the internet and attack anything that has the word Ukraine in it. To the owner of this sit, it’s best to just delete these messages. Especially on such a wonderful and informative article. Yes my grandmother was Russian and lived in the Ukraine. Here, we are trying to reconstruct the best parts of the past, not dredge up the hate.
Olga Olegivna Zabolotna says
Uranian people are close with Kozaks nation not even slavics
Ukimom says
The world knows Russia for what ‘IT’ is. I agree a cooking blog is not a place for politics. But varenyky are Ukrainian. Always was, is and will be. Please try and keep that part straight. Don’t invent and confuse these folks with Ruski fallacies. In addition, Russians are not even Slavs: the Russian language is a mixture of Finno-Ugric and Tatar languages “in which the Slavic mixture is extremely insignificant.” Plus, Olga, you clearly do not know how to spell. You need to get ‘spell check’ or use your Ruski translator.
Samer Tallauze says
Delicious. My favourite with onions and mashed potatoes
DALE BERENSON says
I am 80 years of age and Jewish. I remember my cousins and I sitting in our Grandmother’s kitchen as she cooked vareniki filled with potatoes, onions, cherries, blueberries, cheese, etc. and as she was frying them, we would fork hem straight out of the pan and eat them up topped with sour cream. How delicious and what a wonderful memory! We believe she was Russian or Ukranian. Food makes wonderful remembramnces.
Liz says
@Lu, it is my hope that you are safe in light of the current events in Ukraine. I can understand the detest you hold against a government and the ideological differences you have between the two countries. However, it is unfortunate to see such anger and criticism on a blog about food.
My Paternal Grandmother was Ruthanian, my uncle, her second son, married a lovely Ukrainian woman. My maternal grandmother was Icelandic -both grandfathers were British but of different parts in Great Britain. As you can imagine, the cultural food at Christmas time was special – it seemed as if Christmas revolved around eating, and I know we looked forward to some more traditional foods, Vinarterta and pönnukökur but other dishes that we looked forward too were ones we had much more regularly, such as Holubsti(Golubsti), and Perogies(pyrohy), in our Canadian homes. I don’t ever recall my family on one side or the other getting upset because of the history of the food or the name of it, albeit there is some definite historical disagreement that seems to remain. The truth is, you say it one way, I may say it another but we both enjoy it just as much. In my family we were always more concerned if we made enough and that we made it so that everyone liked it, even if it meant making a special batch for the picky eater in the house(me).
It’s my hope that this is a reminder that we are all human and we don’t know everything but what I do know is that this blog about food is a wonderful way to try other cultural foods out and learn about making all these beautiful dishes. In time we learn more about the culture and I am sure if there was something off about the information, there is a much more pleasant and mature way to share the information and the history behind it. Thank you for sharing the history and thank you for understanding this and the response of others as well.
I pray for your safety during this time of devastating conflict.
Stasia says
Ok. I hope you all come back to this now that Russians are literally committing genocide in Ukraine and see that perhaps you were all a little uninformed about the reality there. The OP seemed to have a language barrier and came off as harsh but this dish really isn’t Russian and as you should see by now Russian appropriation of Ukraine is a problem. Pelmeni is Russian, vereniki/pirohy is not and it’s offensive to claim that it is. That said, all dumplings are likely influenced by Chinese cooking. Pelmeni was likely strongly influenced by siberians and taken back to ethnic Russians. Can we maybe try and understand Ukrainians have been suffering this under Russia for many years with no support until very recently. Also, the people saying “what does it matter? It’s a blog about food?” It matters a lot to a group of people being erased from history.
James Verit says
Amen. The original comment, in 2020, was still reasonable and not “hate.” What’s hateful is all the fake outrage and hypocrisy of people whining about that comment being on a recipe blog when in fact the article they’re commenting on talks plenty about the ETHNIC and geographical origins of the food. Doing so makes a challenge to those claims 100% relevant and appropriate for this site.
The real haters look like fools now. i wonder if they’ve learned anything.
Tim says
good for you
Christie Lyons says
Well said, Stasia!
Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma says
I am going to make this tonight to honor and in solidarity with the people of Ukraine who are suffering an unjust unprovoked war.
Stasia says
Please be mindful about attributing vereniki to Russian cuisine. Until the kremlin crackdown even most Russians understood it to have Ukrainian origin regardless of what they thought of Ukrainians. It may seem like nothing to any of you but as they are literally suffering genocide by Russian forces as well as looting of cultural artefacts and the culture itself it is important to not contribute to that. Im sure when this was written most of you knew nothing about it, though frankly you should have. Russian imperialism is real, it is not anti Russian sentiment. It is a colonizer that is doing what colonizers do to the people they colonize. That is not an insult, it is a fact that Russia is colonizing just as nations in the west did many years ago and in the west being conscious of this appropriation has become an important part of the dialogue. Please do not aid in modern colonization attempts by taking away Ukrainian agency and giving it to Russia. To say something isn’t Russian is not anti Russian. It is a plain fact that although Russians may enjoy Ukrainian food it is still Ukrainian, not Russian.
Eugenie says
It is important to respect ethnic origin of a dish to preserve the knowledge and avoid any confusion and cultural appropriation. Varenyky is Ukrainian as much as Bortch.
Why would you disrespect a country and encourage it’s cancellation by ignoring it?
It’s like if Britain claimed Curry to be English just because they appreciate it the most.
It’s a food blog and yet, history is important!
To prove it, today food is even inscribed as part of the UNESCO.
Lately, Bortch had been inscribed as Ukrainian dish as being part of the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguardingandpart of the UNESCO.
Food is cultural, it can be shared but not stolen!
Respect our tradition and culture, thank you.