Cepelinai

Method

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1. Cut the 400 g of potatoes into chunks and boil for 20 minutes, until soft. Drain and mash until completely smooth. Leave to cool while you prepare the rest.

   Mark done Start 20 min timer

2. Grate the 1 kg of raw potatoes finely. Tip them into a clean tea towel and squeeze hard over a bowl to remove as much liquid as you can. Let the liquid stand for 5 minutes, then pour off the water and keep the white starch at the bottom.

   Mark done Start 5 min timer

3. Mix the squeezed potato, mashed potato, starch and salt into a firm, slightly sticky dough.

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4. Mix the pork, onion, garlic, marjoram, salt and pepper for the filling and shape into 12 oval pieces.

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5. With wet hands, take about 100 g of dough and flatten it into a disc in your palm. Put a portion of filling in the centre and wrap the dough around it, sealing completely and shaping it into a smooth oval about 10 cm long. Repeat with the rest.

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6. Bring a large, wide pot of salted water to a gentle simmer. Lower in 4 to 6 dumplings at a time and simmer gently for 25 minutes, until they float and feel firm. Lift out with a slotted spoon.

   Mark done Start 25 min timer

7. Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat for 6 minutes, until crisp. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until soft. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the sour cream and warm through over low heat for 2 minutes without boiling.

   Mark done Start 6 min timer

8. Serve the dumplings with the sauce spooned over and the dill sprinkled on top.

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Chef’s Tips

• Squeeze the grated potato as dry as you can. Wet dough makes dumplings that break up in the water.
• Keep the cooking water at a gentle simmer. A hard boil tears the dumplings apart.
• Cook one dumpling as a test. If it falls apart, mix a spoonful of potato starch into the dough.

Common Substitutions & Variations

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the usual stand-in when you are out of fresh garlic — it will not caramelise the same way, but it carries the flavour.

Pairing Suggestions

• Pickled cucumbers
• A green salad
• Cold kefir

Storage & Reheating

Keep in the fridge up to 3 days and reheat in a frying pan with a little oil until crisp at the edges.

Common questions

Nutritional Highlights

Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list. Treat these as an estimate — brands and cuts vary.