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Homemade dinner
Homemade dumplings with chicken

Homemade Chicken Pelmeni (Dumplings)

Light, appetizing, made from simple ingredients, for the whole family! These homemade chicken pelmeni turn out tender and lean, since they're made with white meat that has almost no fat. They're great for kids and for anyone watching their calories.

wella

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Chicken fillet

250

Onion

Garlic

Ground black pepper

Salt

Flour

250

Eggs

Water

100

Vegetable oil

Salt

0.5

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 32 % 12 g

Fats 11 % 4 g

Carbohydrates 58 % 22 g

170 kcal

GI: 9 / 0 / 91

Cooking method

Cooking time: 50 min

Step 1:

How do you make homemade chicken pelmeni? Start with the dough. Gather your ingredients. Sift the flour into a large bowl, add the salt, and stir. Make a well in the center, crack in the egg, and pour in the vegetable oil. Mix. Gradually add the water, kneading as you go. Knead a smooth, elastic dough and roll it into a ball. Let the dough rest under a towel for about 30 minutes — it'll handle better.
Step 2:

Now make the filling. Take the chicken fillet, rinse it, pat it dry, and cut it into cubes. You can use any part of the chicken, but the fillet makes the leanest pelmeni. You could also use store-bought ground chicken — but only if you trust the brand, since it often contains bits of bone and skin.
Step 3:

Chop the peeled, rinsed onion. Use a little more or less, as you prefer.
Step 4:

Same goes for the garlic — use more, less, or none at all. I love garlic in pelmeni, so I peeled and finely chopped the cloves.
Step 5:

Grind the meat however you like — meat grinder, blender, or food processor — or just chop it finely with a knife. I used a food chopper. Grind the onion and garlic together with the meat.
Step 6:

Add salt and pepper and mix the filling well. The filling is ready!
Step 7:

Divide the rested dough into ropes, then into small pieces. Roll each piece into a round on a floured surface.
Step 8:

Or roll all the dough out into one thin sheet and cut out neat rounds with a glass.
Step 9:

Shape the pelmeni the traditional way, placing a teaspoon of filling in each round. First fold the round in half and pinch the edges shut, then bring the two corners together and pinch them.
Step 10:

Bring a pot of water to a boil and salt it; you can add a few peppercorns and a bay leaf to taste. Drop in a batch of pelmeni and stir so they don't stick to the bottom. Cook over low heat for about 7 minutes after the water returns to a boil — they're done when they float to the surface. Don't crowd the pot, or they'll stick together and look messy; it's better to cook them in small batches.
Step 11:

As soon as the pelmeni float up, lift them out (with a colander, slotted spoon, etc.) and put them in a bowl. This time I tossed them with softened butter. You can also serve them with sour cream or any sauce you like.

A few more tips on the filling: you can mix in all sorts of things, from mushrooms to vegetables to bacon. Either grind them with the meat or chop them very finely and stir them in. Beyond the basics (salt, ground pepper), feel free to add spices and herbs. Should you add an egg? You can, but in my experience it's better not to — the filling stays juicier and more tender without it. Add a splash of water if the mixture is too stiff, but never milk! On the dough: watch the consistency as you mix, and don't add all the flour at once — it's better to work it in gradually to get a firm, tight ball. On cooking: drop the pelmeni only into boiling water, and in batches, not all at once. Stir the salted boiling water often so they don't stick to the bottom or to each other. When they're done, gently drain them in a colander and serve right away. They cook in just a few minutes; you can add a bay leaf or other spices to the water. They're done when they float to the top. Dress them however you like — softened or melted butter, a sauce of your choosing (say, finely chopped herbs mashed with garlic and salt), sour cream, ketchup, and so on.
Always wash eggs before using them — even a shell that looks clean can carry harmful bacteria. A food-safe wash and a brush work best.
For the best flavor, use filtered or bottled water with a neutral taste. If you use tap water, keep in mind it can give the dish an off, characteristic aftertaste.
Be ready to need a little more or less flour than the recipe calls for. Go by the dough's consistency, not the exact amount of flour.