Cabbage and Onion Piroshki

Soft buns filled with cabbage, onion and dill

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City/Region: Russia

Time Period: 16th Century

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In Russian, Ivan the Terrible is Ivan Grozny, and the translation of “terrible” was meant more in the way of “fearsome” or “formidable” rather than “cruel” or “awful”, though Ivan ended up being all of those. What started off as a good reign with military victories, building Saint Basil’s Cathedral, and restricting the boyars’ (aristocracy) power over the people descended into a reign of terror with a secret police, the massacre of a city, and even killing his eldest son in a fit of rage.

While Ivan truly was terrible, these piroshki are not. They are absolutely delicious. The bread is soft, and the filling is savory and slightly sweet with the dill really coming through. These were made with all different kinds of fillings, so feel free to try out other ingredients, like meat, fish, fruit, or other vegetables, or put in a hard boiled egg for a modern touch.

“Small pies filled with mushrooms, poppy seeds, kasha, turnips, cabbage, or whatever else God sends.”

“When the servants bake bread, order them to set some of the dough aside, to be stuffed for piroshki.”

— The Domostroi, 16th Century

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Ingredients:

Filling

• 1/4 cup (60 ml) oil, poppyseed oil was popular at the time, but olive oil works
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 medium head of cabbage, about 2 lbs (scant 1 kg), outer leaves and stalk removed and chopped into small pieces
• 2 tablespoons (30 g) butter
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped fine

Dough

• 1 packet (7 g) dry active yeast
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) whole milk
• 1/3 cup (65 g) sugar
• 4 cups (500 g) flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten, divided
• 4 tablespoons (55 g) melted unsalted butter

Instructions:

1. For the filling: Heat the oil in a large pot over medium high heat. When it shimmers, add in the onions and stir to coat them in oil. Stir in the salt and let the onion cook in an even layer for 5 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, then reduce the heat to medium low. Make sure the onions and garlic are in an even layer, then add the cabbage over it, cover the pot with a lid, and let it cook for 30 minutes. Once in a while, lift the lid of the pot, and if you can’t hear any sizzling or bubbling, add either a little more oil or water.
3. After 30 minutes, the cabbage should be cooked. Stir in the butter and pepper, then cover and let it cook for another 15 minutes.
4. Stir in the dill. At this point, you can either take it off the heat and let it cool, or you can let it cook a little while longer until the cabbage caramelizes a bit. I prefer it this way as it adds a little extra sweetness and depth. Either way, when it’s done to your liking, put it in a bowl to cool a bit before putting it in the fridge to chill. The fridge isn’t necessary, but the piroshki will be easier to form if the filling is cold.
5. For the dough: In a small bowl, mix together about half of the milk, the yeast, and a pinch of the sugar. Set this aside for about 5 to 10 minutes to activate.
6. While the yeast works, in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and remaining sugar. When the yeast mixture is nice and bubbly, add it to the flour along with the rest of the milk, the heavy cream, and 2 of the eggs (the third egg will be used as an egg wash in 10). Mix this all together until it forms a dough, then turn it out onto a work surface and knead it until it’s nice and smooth, about 10 minutes. The dough will be a bit sticky at first, but should come together quickly.
7. Now you'll work the butter in a little at a time. Dip your fingers into the melted butter and spread it over the dough, then knead it in. It should work in after just a few kneads, then continue to repeat the process to work the butter into the dough. As you work in more butter, it’ll take longer for it to incorporate. You may not need all of the butter, and you’ll know when to stop when it takes more than 30 seconds to knead the butter into the dough.
8. If you have leftover butter, use it to grease the inside of a bowl, then set the dough in it and cover. Let it rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until it has doubled in size.
9. To form and bake: Preheat the oven to 400°F (205°C).
10. After the dough has risen, gently deflate it, then divide it into 20 pieces, about 45 grams each. Bring the outsides of each piece into the center and pinch them together, then place the dough pinched side down and form a cage around it with your hand. Move your hand in a circular motion to help the dough form into a ball. Repeat with all of the dough pieces.
11. Take a dough ball and roll it out into a circle about 4 to 4 1/2 inches (10 to 11 1/2 cm) wide. It should be nice and thin. Place about a heaping tablespoon or 45 grams of the filling to the rolled out dough in a kind of oblong shape along the center. Fold the dough up around the filling and pinch to seal the edges of the dough together. To make sure it’s sealed, take the dough between the index fingers and thumbs of both hands right next to each other along the seam. Fold the dough so the two parts between your fingers overlap a little, making a pleat. Do this along the entire edge of the seam. If you’re having trouble with this, check out the video where you can see what I did. Place the shaped and filled dough seam side down on a lined baking sheet and shape the rest of the piroshki. When they’re all done, lightly brush the remaining beaten egg over the piroshki. You can use just egg, or mix in a splash of cream if you have some leftover.
12. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until they’re well browned. Take them out of the oven and let them cool a bit, but serve them forth warm.

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