When Hani Heinik opened her restaurant Hani’s Victory five years ago as an homage to her parent’s famed Victory Restaurant, she put potato-filled vareniki on the menu. It was a smart move; it’s the most popular dish on her menu.
Those vareniki piqued the curiosity of our culinary director Guy Ben Harosh, who set out to make his own version of the dish. After testing several types of vareniki dough and recipes, one caught his attention. “The dough didn’t contain eggs,” he explains. “The cooking water from the potatoes was used instead, its warmth and starch replacing the egg. It felt like the recipe relied on the wisdom of the past: if there are no eggs, cook with what’s available.” Guy also added some of Masik Magal’s sesame oil into the dish.
Both Hani’s Victory and Masik Magal are part of our Flavor Mosaic, a project exploring Israel’s dynamic food culture. And you can find Guy’s vareniki on our menu at Cafe Asif.
Ingredients
For the filling:
10 medium-sized waxy potatoes
1 teaspoon potato flour
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Olive oil, to taste
For the dough:
1½ cups + 1 tablespoon (380 ml) potato cooking water
⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon (75 ml) olive oil
Salt
5½ cups (770 grams) all-purpose flour
To serve:
Sour cream
Black pepper
Fried onion (optional)
Horseradish (optional)
Preparation
- Place the potatoes in a large pot of salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low heat and simmer until the potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes (a fork should easily pierces the flesh of the potatoes). Drain the potatoes, reserving their cooking water.
- Prepare the dough: Following the order listed above, place all the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix to a uniform dough, about 2 minutes. Shape the dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Prepare the filling: Mash the potatoes into a smooth puree, taste and season with salt, pepper and olive oil to your taste. Add 1 teaspoon of potato flour and mix well.
- Assemble the vareniki: Roll the dough until it is very thin, approximately 2-3 mm thick.
- Using a 3-in (7cm) cookie cutter, cut out circles and place a tablespoon of the filling in the center of each circle. Brush the edges with a little water, fold in half to form a crescent and pinch the edges together, making sure there are no air bubbles trapped inside. Press the edges together with a fork and arrange on a floured towel.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add 10 dumplings and cook until they float, about 2-3 minutes. Continue cooking for an additional 2 minutes, then transfer to a plate using a slotted spoon. Repeat with the remaining dumplings, cooking 10 at a time.
- To serve: Season with black pepper and serve alongside sour cream, fried onions, and horseradish.
