How to make real homemade dumplings. Homemade dumplings according to an old grandmother's recipe

There is nothing more traditional than dumplings. It seems that they have been present on our tables for centuries, but this is not at all the case. Dumplings came to Russian cuisine from distant China and for a long time were a regional dish of the Siberian peoples. Only in the middle of the 19th century did they become widespread throughout the country.

In confirmation of the Asian origin of this dish, the peculiarities of its preparation, which consist in rather long and laborious cooking, fast heat treatment and the use of spices, speak. Dishes of early Russian cuisine were not like this.

The very word "dumpling" is borrowed from the Finno-Ugric dictionary and means "bread ear". Agree, the name is speaking, clearly reflects the essence of the product. Having started their journey from China, "bread ears" settled not only on our tables, but were spread all over the world in various variations. In Italy they are called ravioli, in China they are called wonton, the peoples of the Caucasus and Central Asia call them manti, khinkali, chuchvara, choshura, maultaschen are popular in Germany, and Belarusians call them “sorcerers”.

You can list the traditions of making homemade dumplings as much as you like, but it should be noted that, with all your desire, it is difficult to classify them as a dietary cuisine. Depending on the recipe, the calorie content of 100 g of the finished dish is 200-400 kcal, and if it is served abundantly poured with homemade sour cream, then even more.

Pelmeni: step by step recipe with photo

In order for homemade dumplings to turn out really tasty, you need, firstly, a desire, and secondly, a sufficient amount of time to cook them.

Of course, given today's variety of products in supermarkets, you can buy them, but the taste will already be completely different than that of dumplings cooked with soul with your own hands. And so that the modeling process is not boring, you can simply involve the whole family in this business and then the time will pass merrily and unnoticed, and as a result you will get mouth-watering homemade dumplings.

Cooking time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Quantity: 6 servings

Ingredients

• Minced meat (pork and beef): 1 kg
• Mushrooms (chanterelles): 300 g
• Onion: 3 pcs.
• Egg: 2 pcs.
• Wheat flour: 800-900 g
• Salt, ground black pepper: taste

Cooking instructions

Recipe for delicious homemade dumplings

Let's start the "dumpling marathon" with a simple, but no less tasty recipe. After kneading, we place the prepared dough under the film for at least a quarter of an hour so that it stands, reaches and, when boiled, delights you with its tenderness and softness. We advise you to fashion homemade dumplings that are not very large, then they will be more juicy and cook in a matter of minutes.

List of dough ingredients:

• wheat flour - 0.5 kg;
• purified water - 1 tbsp.;
• chicken egg - 1 pc.;
• rock salt - ½ tsp

We make the filling from minced meat of a mixed type, 0.5 kg is enough. A few large onions, spices and garlic to taste. If the minced meat seems too dry to you, you can add a few tablespoons of water to it.

Cooking process:

1. Let's start with kneading the dough. In a convenient clean and dry container, develop the egg, beat them a little with a fork.
2. Add water and salt to the egg, mix thoroughly.
3. Separately, using a fine-mesh sieve, sift the flour. Gradually pour in the egg mixture in small portions.
4. Knead not too tight dough. If necessary, add a little flour.
5. We shift the dumpling dough into a bag and let it brew.
6. Add finely chopped onion, spices and garlic to the minced meat. Mix thoroughly.
7. We tear off a small piece from the finished dough, roll it out on a table sprinkled with flour. Try not to make it too thin, otherwise your dumplings may tear during the cooking process.
8. From the rolled out dough, cut out circles of approximately equal size. It is convenient to do this with a suitable size glass.
9. Place about a teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle. Roll up and pinch the edges.
10. Throw a single portion of dumplings into boiling salted water and cook until they float, then immediately remove them. Serve with homemade sour cream or any suitable sauce.

How to cook dumplings - a classic recipe

There is nothing easier than buying a pack of ready-made dumplings in the nearest store and boiling them when the soul asks, or just too lazy to cook. However, you understand that no one can vouch for the taste and quality of the final result. Whether it's homemade, fragrant dumplings. We want to introduce you to the classic recipe for dumplings, its main features:

1. Doesn't stick to hands or rolling pin.
2. Requires only three main ingredients: flour, water (milk) and salt. Classic proportions: flour - 3 cups, water (milk) - 1 cup, salt - half a teaspoon.
3. The color of the classic dough for Russian dumplings is snow-white.

Cooking features

1. It is necessary to knead the dough so that it subsequently rolls out thinly enough. After all, the less dough, the tastier dumplings.
2. Divide the finished dough into equal parts. For example, for 3, of which we roll thin bundles, cut into portioned pieces of 5 cm in diameter.
3. We roll them out, cut out mugs with a glass (you can use it to create the same portioned pieces, and roll out the scraps again.), Lay the filling and seal the edges. The filling can be used from the previous recipe.

Dumplings in the oven - cooking recipe

From ready-made, but still raw dumplings, you can cook a delicious and nutritious decoration for the festive table. Homemade dumplings under a mushroom coat are baked in the oven, the result will delight you with its taste and aroma

Prepare in advance so that you do not have to run to the store at the most crucial moment:

• 0.8-1 kg of frozen or fresh, only stuck, but not yet boiled, homemade dumplings made according to your favorite recipe;
• 0.5 kg of fresh or frozen champignons;
• 200 ml of heavy cream;
• 100 g of sour cream and mayonnaise;
• 4 garlic cloves;
• 1 onion;
• salt and pepper.

Procedure:

1. Boil dumplings in lightly salted, boiling water, bay leaf will enhance the taste.
2. We prepare the sauce, for this we mix sour cream with mayonnaise and cream, add garlic to them, previously passed through a press.
3. We wash and cut the mushrooms, instead of raw, you can take pickled ones.
4. Peel and chop the onion in half rings.
5. Put dumplings, mushrooms and onions in a clean, suitable volume form, pour sauce on top. To make it easier for yourself to wash dishes later, you can lay out the bottom of the mold with foil.
6. Estimated cooking time is 20-25 minutes.

If desired, dumplings under a mushroom coat can be supplemented with a delicious cheese crust. To do this, 5 minutes before the end of cooking, sprinkle our dish with grated cheese.

Recipe for dumplings in a pan - fried dumplings

If dumplings are too frequent guests on your table, then they can get bored and become boring. But this is not a reason to give up your favorite dish. After all, moving away from culinary clichés and stereotypes, you can fry them in a pan. And it’s not just about warming up what you didn’t have time to eat yesterday, but about an independent and complete recipe.

In order to cook fried homemade dumplings in a fragrant sour cream sauce, prepare:

• 0.8 -1 kg of raw dumplings;
• milk and sour cream in a ratio of 2: 1, that is, for a glass of milk 100 g of sour cream.
• for the sauce you need ½ tbsp. l. flour;
• oil for frying;
• spices.

Procedure:

1. Put dumplings on a greased hot frying pan and fry them. The more oil you add, the more golden they will be.
2. While the dumplings are ready, let's get on with the sauce. To do this, mix sour cream with milk, adding spices and flour to them. Mix by hand or with a whisk until smooth.
3. After the dumplings are fried, pour them with sour cream sauce and simmer under the lid for about a quarter of an hour.
4. Turning off the fire, to increase the aroma of the dish, we fill it with chopped herbs.

How to cook lazy dumplings - a very simple recipe

We have already described the undeniable advantages of everyone's favorite dumplings, but all of them do not cancel the laboriousness of the cooking process. The recipe below, although not completely “lazy”, saves busy hostesses from the long and tedious fashioning of each dumpling. The finished result will please you with its taste and very presentable appearance.

To prepare the joy of any cook - lazy homemade dumplings, prepare:

• 3 art. wheat flour;
• 1 st. water;
• 1 egg;
• ½ tsp rock salt;
• 0.5 kg of minced meat of a mixed type;
• 1 large onion;
• spices;

For sauce:

• 1 large onion;
• 100 g sour cream;
• a little butter;
• vegetable oil for frying;
• herbs, salt and spices.

Procedure:

1. We are preparing a classic dumpling dough, in which, if desired, you can add an egg. To do this, in a separate container, beat the egg with water and salt, add it to the sifted flour. Knead the dough not tight, but not sticky to the hands. If necessary, the amount of flour can be increased (reduced).
2. We wrap the finished dough in polyethylene and let it brew for at least a quarter of an hour, ideally all 40 minutes.
3. We prepare the minced meat, passing the meat through a meat grinder, add finely chopped onion, garlic and spices to it as desired. Knead until smooth.
4. Divide the dough into two approximately equal parts. We roll one of them into a thin layer, the thickness of which should not exceed 1 mm.
5. We spread half of the minced meat on our rolled out dough, evenly distributing it over the surface.
6. Gently holding the edges, roll up a roll of dough covered with meat filling.
7. With a sharp knife blade, we cut our roll into portioned pieces, about 3 cm thick. Put the resulting semi-finished product on a plate or board sprinkled with flour. We do the same with the second half of minced meat and dough.
8. We will cook our lazy dumplings in a pan with a thick bottom. To do this, put it on fire and pour a few tablespoons of vegetable oil.
9. Chop the onion and sauté it in a frying pan in hot oil until translucent.
10. On top of the onion we lay out semi-finished dumplings that look like roses.
11. Mix sour cream with a glass of warm water and add to dumplings. The liquid should cover them by 2/3.
12. Sprinkle spices on top, salt. For each "rose" spread a small piece of butter.
13. The further cooking process will take place under a closed lid over low heat. When there is practically no liquid left, turn off and sprinkle with herbs.

Dumplings in pots

The recipe, which is not particularly difficult, is perfect for surprising and amazing guests and household members to the core.

To prepare homemade dumplings baked in a pot with vegetables, you will need:

• 1 kg dumplings prepared according to your favorite recipe;
• 1 medium onion and carrot;
• a few bay leaves;
• 220 g sour cream;
• 5 peas of perk;
• 140 g grated hard cheese;
• salt and herbs to taste.

Procedure:

1. Cook dumplings in boiling water until half cooked. We take them out about 2 minutes after boiling. Let cool slightly.
2. In a separate saucepan, boil 0.7 liters of drinking water, along with bay leaves, salt and spices;
3. Finely chop the onion, saute it in a pan until transparent, then add the carrots grated on a fine grater to it. Simmer for about 5 more minutes.
4. Mixing dumplings with frying, lay them out in pots.
5. Having previously filtered from the greens and bay leaf, fill the pots with the broth that has already boiled.
6. Put sour cream on top of each pot, cover with a lid and put in a cold oven. We set the temperature in it to 180 degrees. Cooking dumplings for about 40 minutes.
7. 5 minutes before the expiration of the specified time, pour dumplings with grated cheese.

If desired, mushrooms can be added to vegetables, and mustard, ketchup or another sauce you like added to sour cream will add extra piquancy.

Dumplings in a slow cooker

If you are the proud owner of a kitchen lifesaver - a multicooker, you can only be happy for you. After all, in it you can cook a lot of delicious and healthy dishes without spending extra time and effort. Homemade dumplings are no exception. In a slow cooker, they are cooked in several modes.

1. "For a couple." About 1.5 liters of water is poured into the multicooker bowl. Raw dumplings in one layer are evenly laid out in a plastic container, pre-lubricated with oil. The timer is set to 30 minutes.
2. "Soup". The multicooker bowl is filled with water, its volume depends on the number of dumplings. We set the mode, wait for the water to boil, salt it and add raw dumplings. Stir, close the lid of the device and wait for the timer signal (usually it sounds in about half an hour). In the process of cooking, so that the dumplings do not stick together, they must be mixed.
3. "Bakery". We set the required mode for 40 minutes, put a piece of butter in the multicooker bowl, when it melts, add frozen dumplings, close the multicooker lid. After a quarter of an hour, the dumplings must be mixed and salted. If desired, then you can add 2 cups of water. If this is not done, then your dumplings will become the owners of a crispy golden crust.

How to cook Siberian dumplings at home?

For a long time, dumplings were only a dish of the regional cuisine of the peoples of Siberia. They were harvested in large quantities, buried in the snow near the house, where they were safely stored for quite a long time. Stuffed minced meat with spices is less attractive to wild animals. One of the features of truly Siberian dumplings is the addition of ingredients such as crushed ice, chopped cabbage or radish to minced meat, in addition to the usual onion.

To prepare real Siberian dumplings at home, you will need:

• 1 kg of flour (about 150 dumplings can be fashioned from this amount);
• 2 chicken eggs;
• 2 cups cold water (from fridge)
• 900 g of minced meat from 2-3 types of meat, ideally - beef, pork and lamb;
• 3 large onions;
• 250 g cabbage;
• spices, salt.

Procedure:

1. Through a sieve, we sift the flour directly onto a clean and dry desktop, forming a slide out of it;
2. In the center of the flour mountain we make a recess, drive the eggs into it.
3. Gradually, from the edge to the middle, we begin to knead the dough, gradually adding water to it. To simplify this process, the dough can be kneaded in parts. The finished dough is not tight, elastic, without cracks and folds. Let it brew for about half an hour.
4. 1-2 times we pass the meat through a meat grinder. The goal is to make it as small as possible. Together with meat, we pass cabbage through a meat grinder. It will help to give minced meat juiciness.
5. Add finely chopped onion, spices to minced meat. Mix thoroughly.
6. We roll out the dough with a thin layer, cut out round blanks with a cup. Place a teaspoon of ground beef in the center of each. We seal the edges, trying to keep the minced meat lying freely, otherwise the juice that stands out will simply tear the dumplings apart during the cooking process.

Chicken dumplings - a tender and tasty recipe

Classic dumplings are made from pork and beef mixed in equal proportions. But other options are also possible. For example, with chicken they turn out soft, tender and tasty, which is especially to the liking of children.

Prepare the dough for homemade dumplings according to your favorite recipe, and for minced meat you will need:

• 2 chicken fillets (about 800 g);
• 1 large onion or 2 smaller ones;
• salt pepper.

Cooking:

1. Pass the peeled onion, along with the fillet cut into portions, through a meat grinder. It is advisable to do this twice with a finer grind. For such an amount of minced meat, 1 tsp will be enough. salt and half as much pepper. Mix thoroughly.
2. Next, roll out the dough, cut out blanks with the help of a glass, in which we spread the minced meat. Boil in salted water or send to wait in the freezer.

Homemade dumplings with beef or veal

Wanting to reduce calories, homemade dumplings can be prepared without pork, replacing it with beef or young veal. After all, there is much less fat in such meat, and the calorie content of the finished dish will be about 250 kcal per 100 g. The recipe below will definitely appeal to all lovers of delicious, fragrant and juicy homemade dumplings.

You will need:

• minced veal - 600 g;
• 1 large onion or 2 smaller ones;
• 2 tbsp boiling water;
• 460 g wheat flour;
• 120 ml of carbonated mineral water;
• 70 ml of non-fat milk;
• 1 chicken egg;
• 1 tsp salt and pepper to taste;
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil

Procedure:

1. Mix the sifted flour with salt.
2. Pour milk with mineral water and a beaten egg into it;
3. Knead the dough, when it is almost ready, add vegetable oil. If as a result the dough turned out to be too tight, add mineral water to it.
4. Let the dumplings brew, for this we place it under a bowl or wrap it in a bag for an hour.
5. Meat, along with onions, scroll through a meat grinder using a fine grate. Add spices, salt and water to it. Knead until smooth.
6. We roll out the finished dough in a thin layer, sculpt dumplings manually or using a special form.

Pork dumplings recipe

Homemade pork dumplings are juicy and fragrant. For juiciness, add a little onion and water to the minced meat. Garlic and spices will give aroma and some piquancy.

Prepare the dough according to any recipe, most importantly, knead it well and let it brew for at least half an hour so that the gluten disperses.

For dumplings you will need:

• pork - 0.5 kg;
• 1 large onion;
• 2-3 garlic cloves;
• 100 ml of cold water;
• salt, pepper, spices.

Procedure:

1. Scroll the pork in a meat grinder along with onions. If you want to get more juicy and fatty dumplings, give preference to the brisket, dumplings from the neck or ham will be less high-calorie.
2. Squeeze the garlic to the minced meat, add salt and spices to taste.
3. Knead thoroughly to make the minced meat more juicy, add cold water to it.
4. Roll out the finished dough into a thin layer, divide it with a glass into circles and make dumplings.

How to cook Chinese dumplings?

In Chinese cuisine, there are several dishes that are associated with homemade dumplings, the closest in taste and appearance are jiao tzu. They do not require specific ingredients, so it will not be difficult at all to please your household with such an unusual and tasty dish.

To prepare Jiao Tzu, you will need:

• 400 g minced pork;
• 100 g of dill and parsley;
• 1 onion larger than average;
• ginger root (about 5 cm)
• 2 tbsp. wheat flour;
• a third of a glass of starch;
• a glass of cold water;
• salt pepper.

Procedure:

1. Mix flour with starch and sift through a fine-mesh sieve.
2. Pour the cold water into the flour. We knead the dough. If necessary, the amount of flour and water can be reduced / increased.
3. We are preparing the stuffing. Grind pork for minced meat. Finely chop the greens and onions, rub the ginger on a fine grater. Salt and pepper minced meat for jiao-tzu.
4. Cut off small pieces from the dough, roll them out with a rolling pin.
5. In the center of each blank we put a spoonful of minced meat.
6. We lift the edges of each cake and pinch. Outwardly, they will resemble small flowers.
7. Lubricate the bottom of the steamer bowl with oil and lay out the finished jiao-tzu.
8. They will be ready in 12-15 minutes.

Soup with dumplings - step by step recipe

Nutritionists are unanimous in their opinion: first courses are an indispensable element of a healthy diet and it is advisable to use them every day. We invite you to break the circle formed over the years of family life, consisting of chicken soup, borscht and cabbage soup and add an original recipe for homemade dumpling soup to it.

A three-liter pot of soup will take:

• 0.5 kg dumplings;
• 4-5 medium potatoes;
• 1 medium onion and carrots;
• salt pepper.

Procedure:

1. Pass the finely chopped onion and grated carrots in a frying pan.
2. Add peeled and finely chopped potatoes to boiling water.
3. When the potatoes are almost ready, add the roast and spices to it.
4. After 15 minutes, throw the dumplings into the boiling soup. When they are ready, turn off the fire.

Bonus - recipe with dumplings "Lazy wife"

And finally, we offer you a delicious and quick recipe for homemade dumplings casserole, perfect for a hearty family dinner.

Prepare the following ingredients:

• 300 g frozen dumplings;
• 2 chicken eggs;
• 1 onion;
• 120 g of hard cheese;
• 3 tbsp mayonnaise;
• salt, spices.

Procedure:

1. Fry finely chopped onion until golden brown.
2. With a whisk or an ordinary fork, beat the egg with salt and spices selected at our own discretion.
3. Add mayonnaise to the egg mass, bring the mixture to homogeneity.
4. We rub the cheese on a grater.
5. We heat the form in a hot oven, after which we grease it with vegetable oil and spread the dumplings in one layer.
6. The second layer is onion frying, after which we fill the dumplings with egg-mayonnaise dressing and sprinkle with grated cheese.
7. Cook the casserole for 35-40 minutes in the oven.

1. Do not be lazy to sift the flour, thereby saturating it with oxygen, speeding up the fermentation process and ensuring the best result. This should be done after weighing, immediately before kneading the dough.
2. Flour is used exclusively of the highest grade.
3. Pelmeni dough must be given time to infuse.
4. Minced meat does not have to be passed through a meat grinder, if desired, it can be finely chopped with a hatchet.
5. Prolonged kneading and beating the minced meat on the board makes it softer and more tender.
6. Adding ingredients such as coriander, green onions, garlic, hot peppers to minced meat will add piquancy to the finished dish.

When I was a child, I remember how the whole family gathered at the table to make dumplings. They were made a lot, laid out on boards, sprinkled with flour, slightly dried and put in the freezer, for future use, to get it when you want and cook real Siberian dumplings. My mother is Siberian, and dumplings always turned out excellent. No matter how many different types I later tried, homemade dumplings cannot be compared with anything. I will tell you how they are made, and you will understand why any store varieties "did not lie next to each other."

How to make dough for dumplings

The dumpling dough recipe is simple, but making it is not as easy as it seems. Take 1 glass of water, 1 egg or protein without yolk, a tablespoon of vegetable oil, flour - as much as you need (usually about 3 glasses of flour are used for a glass of water).

You need to take ordinary wheat flour, NOT pancake flour, without any additives. Sifting is a must! This is not from lumps and not from bugs - the sifted flour gives the dough exactly the consistency that is needed for dumplings.

Pour the flour (2 cups) onto the table in a slide, make a recess in it, pour in a little water and begin to knead. We add water little by little, as it absorbs the flour. When the dough is still liquid, gradually add vegetable oil. Then add the egg and continue to knead. Knead the dough until the water has taken all the flour. Then sprinkle the table with flour and continue to knead the dumpling dough until it stops sticking to your hands.

But do not rejoice ahead of time, that's not all. Knead the dough until, adding flour, until it absorbs the third glass of flour. To do this, we crush him with all our might and beat him “with all our dope”, some exhausted housewives beat a lump of dough on the table. The dough for dumplings is considered ready when, if you pinch the lump with your fingers (as if trying to pinch off a piece) and release, the elongated piece will be pulled back. This means that the dough turned out to be quite elastic.

Sprinkle the lump of dough lightly with flour, cover with a clean towel and set aside for at least half an hour. And while we're on the stuffing.

How to make stuffing for dumplings

Minced dumplings are much easier to make than dough. Meat, onion, salt, spices, liquid. We take two-component meat for dumplings. It can be beef plus pork, or veal plus chicken. Minced meat can be taken ready-made in order to mix them later, but if you doubt that the minced meat is 100% natural, scroll through the raw meat in a meat grinder.

For 1 kg of minced meat, you need to take at least two heads of onions, and even better, three. The fact is that soaked bread is added to minced meat for juiciness, but dumplings will be boiled in water, and bread is not added to minced dumplings. Therefore, in order for the meat in dumplings to be juicy, we put more onions in it. Onions can be finely chopped first, and then minced with minced meat through a meat grinder so that there are no large pieces of onion in the minced meat.

Thoroughly knead the minced meat for dumplings, salting it. Add your favorite spices. It can be just black pepper, or a mixture of peppers, or coriander, or any other spice mixture that you like to add to meat dishes.

The final touch to minced meat is the addition of liquid. It is best to add milk or broth to the dumplings, about a third or half a glass. But here it is necessary to look depending on how dense the minced meat initially turned out. When adding liquid, make sure that the stuffing is soft, but not liquid.

So, the dough is infused, the minced meat is ready, you can start making dumplings.

There are two different ways here.

1. Pour a little flour on the table in front of us, put a bowl of water not far away. Cut off a small piece from the dough, roll it with the palm of your hand into a sausage. We cut off a small piece of dough from the sausage, roll it thinly into a circle with a diameter of about 4-5 cm, put minced meat with a teaspoon in the center of the circle, wet our fingers in a bowl of water, draw along the edge of the dough, fold it in half, pinch. You can also connect the ends of the dumplings to make them round.

2. Divide the entire lump of dough in half and roll out a thin layer. The thinner the dough is rolled out, the tastier the dumplings will turn out. Having rolled out the first pancake, sprinkle it with flour and cut out mugs from the dough with an inverted glass. Next, we make dumplings, as indicated above. Having stuck dumplings from the first part of the dough, we repeat the whole process with the second part.

If you get extra dough, you can cut it out of it.

It remains to cook dumplings

Put dumplings on a wooden board sprinkled with flour. Boil water, add salt, throw dumplings into boiling water. After they pop up, cook for a few more minutes. Depending on how thinly the dough is rolled out, the cooking time ranges from 2 to 5 minutes.

Homemade dumplings should be served hot with sour cream or butter, or horseradish. The yummy is indescribable!

Sprinkle the remaining dumplings with flour so that they do not stick together, and put in the freezer.

Everything is possible: how an IT recruiter, disillusioned with life in the capital, launched a dumpling production in Bryansk

The biography of Ella Vetlugina is rich in sharp turns. Here she is making progress at school - olympiads, music, gymnastics - and suddenly she puts off her studies at the university and goes to work as a laboratory assistant at the Department of Social Physiology of ChelGU. So she enters the faculty of journalism - and a year later she is transferred to "anti-crisis management". Quits journalism and becomes a recruiter in the IT field. He gets the post of director of HR in an international company - and goes nowhere after three months, because he's bored. Finally, after the capital, offices, IT and HR - unexpectedly Bryansk, a dumpling shop, its own business. What will happen next?

30 years old, company owner. Born in Chelyabinsk, studied at SUSU (journalism, anti-crisis management). After moving to Moscow, she worked in IT recruiting. In 2015, she moved to Bryansk, where in September she opened the production of handmade dumplings. Since September 2016 lives in St. Petersburg. Raising a daughter.

Here, a new twist

“As a child, I didn’t want to do business,” says Ella, “although my dad was a classic entrepreneur of the 90s, a strong “buy and sell”. Alas, that experience does not work well in the current realities - recently my father closed his butcher shop in Chelyabinsk, unable to withstand competition with networks. In high school, I also resold some cosmetics, lingerie, but it was difficult to call it a business, I just earned pocket money. I also washed cars.

Ella was going to be a journalist. From the 11th grade, she trained in the Chelyabinsk press. By the second year of journalism, she realized that she was not taught anything new at the faculty, and, continuing to work in the media, she transferred to “crisis management”. Education here was conducted in absentia, so the young student got into the company of age-related, as it seemed to her then, classmates - mostly entrepreneurs and top managers. In a strange and alien environment, Ella was lost. The first foray into the entrepreneurial path ended in blues.

“I wanted to study management, and we were being taught basic economics,” Ella explains. - I wanted to write investigations, but I was offered PR. When they didn’t take a text from me about the circulation of weapons in the Chelyabinsk region, I just got on a train and left for Moscow. I had a laptop, a cat, an air rifle given to me by my dad, and 1,500 rubles. Over time, this set has changed - now I still have a daughter and a car, and the rifle was stolen.

In the capital, Ella had no luck with journalism - the vacancies came across one sadder than the other, everything ended with a proposal to write horoscopes

“I then arranged a ritual farewell to journalism,” our heroine recalls, “I asked to delete all my texts on the network, burned newspapers with publications. Now, as a specialist in HR, I understand that I went in the wrong place, but there was no one to prompt me.

From journalists, Ella went to secretaries, from there to legal assistants. Most of her friends worked in the IT field, as it happened from Chelyabinsk. She even got a few jobs for a large company that was looking for programmers. “At some point, the company called, invited to take the money. I don't understand what money? They say you get a recruiting commission. I was then given an amount in the amount of four salaries of the secretary. I thought - and switched to the search for employees for IT companies.

In a few years, Ella has gone from a freelance recruiter to an HR director in an international company. Despite the fact that the sphere seemed interesting to the girl, from time to time she wanted to do something of her own, different, useful. So, while working in a system integrator, Ella suggested that the management open a corporate university - to earn money by training narrow IT specialists not only for her company, but also for the external market. The management “blurred” the idea, then the 26-year-old Ella in her hearts went to HR directors. And three months later she gave up everything and left for Bryansk.

From Moscow - to Bryansk

Ella was brought to Bryansk for personal reasons, she did not know anything specific about the city or the region. But even at the entrance I decided that I would open my own business here.

“I wanted to do something absolutely useful. Not a recruitment agency, not a website, not trainings. And something that a person really needs - I thought about sewing, and about furniture. It turned out that the Bryansk region has good ecology, tasty products, and, moreover, cheap labor. The city is not that poor, but there is simply little money in it, and prices and wages are low.

I've been thinking about growing mushrooms. Firstly, it's simple - and I did not understand anything in agronomy. Secondly, they are in very high demand. But champignons are ammonia, work in gas masks. Production will have to be moved out of the city, which means going out of town, driving people there. It's long and expensive."

“And so I was sitting, as usual, sculpting myself dumplings from delicious Bryansk meat, and suddenly I began to calculate the cost of minced meat and dough. Here, I think, is what you need!

According to the entrepreneur, the market for hand-made dumplings in the capital cities is completely empty. Such products can only be found in markets and restaurants. Grocery chains sell machine-made semi-finished products, and this is a radically different product.

Lyrical digression No. 1:
the difference between store-bought and handmade dumplings

“The difference between hand-made and automatic dumplings is very big. This does not mean that all dumplings in the store are made from poor raw materials. There are good brands in which there is really real meat, there are no tendons and cartilage - as far as it is generally possible with mass production. Real eggs are put into the dough, and even gray flour does not flash here and there. But with all this, the modeling remains automatic.

And in order for the dumpling to come out as a dumpling, and not as a cutlet in the dough, the minced meat must be liquid - then there will be broth inside. With machine modeling, this will not work, dumplings with liquid minced meat simply do not stick together - 90% of marriage will come out. There is no such machine that would replace hands.

Yes, the thickness of the dough on the typewriter can be set to any, but it will not be the same as rolled by hand - homogeneous, without lumps, holes. We tested the dough sheeter for several days - and abandoned it. Suitable for a mass product, not for a premium product.

50% of the quality characteristics of dumplings depend on the dough. People usually ask: what kind of meat is there? And at least one would think: what kind of dough is there? Because if the dough is gray, then the flour is rotten, sour. The dough should be slightly yellowish, this indicates the presence of an egg in it.

But especially the reputation of dumplings is spoiled by the cheap segment of store products. There - "horns and hooves": offal, veins, soy protein, egg powder, melange, the year before last flour, preservatives. These dumplings can be stored for years. But they do have a hefty cost.

If classic dumplings cost less than 300 rubles per kilogram, I have doubts about their naturalness. This is the minimum cost that related industries can afford in their stores. As a rule, butcher shops have tolerable dumplings at a fairly low price. This is a small-town production: so that the meat does not disappear, they grind it, stick dumplings - and freeze it. And in chain stores, I have never seen hand-sculpting at all. ”

Through Bryansk - to Moscow

The pure raw material cost, according to initial calculations, was about 110 rubles per kilo of classic dumplings, the real one was one and a half times more. “And so I sculpt and think: if this product is thrown onto the Moscow market, it will surely be in demand among wealthy residents of the capital. Despite the fact that the price will be quite human.”

Ella did not think about any home delivery at that time. She was going to sell dumplings in bulk - to shops, preferably large ones. It was planned to stand out in the market precisely due to hand molding. The main message: we make a high quality product.

“I turned to my business friends who were close to grocery chains and asked them to put me in touch with stores that were ready to buy such goods,” says Ella. - In one network agreed to try. I quickly opened an LLC, and while we were waiting for a contract, I launched production. The strategy was as follows: we go to the Bryansk stores of this chain, increase turnover, make capital and go to Kaluga, then follow the same pattern. But the network started having problems, the contract was first postponed, and then they forgot about it.

“If I started all over again, I would still start this story. The question is what I was up to is not at all what happened. ”

Home delivery appeared in the range of services out of desperation. Ella has already rented a workshop, bought freezers, stainless steel tables, knives, rolling pins, and an electric meat grinder. Bryansk prices for labor, raw materials and rent made it possible to start at 100 thousand rubles. On average, renting a workshop costs an entrepreneur about 10 times cheaper than in the Moscow region.

Ella was waiting for a contract from the store - and did not look for other buyers, focusing on production. The owner of the business made the first 70 kg of dumplings with her own hands, testing the raw materials and testing the technology.

“I looked at what kind of flour, what kind of meat is better. I calculated how much raw material is needed per kilogram, how much can be stuck on in an hour, etc. I mixed a bunch of dough, tried different eggs, different ratios. It just seems - sculpt and sculpt. But if you are making a premium product, get ready to take into account a lot of nuances.

For example, I tried for a long time to make the dough stronger - then we could make it thinner. Thick dough in store dumplings is made not because they spare meat, but so that the dumpling does not fall apart during cooking. We eventually figured out how to make a tight dough, and in our dumplings it is thin. True, due to this, the time for rolling out has doubled, and this is money. ”

The second person in the team was an administrator with a wide range of responsibilities - from organizing the supply of flour and meat to recruiting employees. Next, Ella took on board two sculptors. At the peak of the season - in the winter of 2015-2016, there were six of them, and the total number of employees in the company was nine.

Over the years, the state has repeatedly narrowed and expanded. Today, the company employs two sculptors, one of which is a chef. The post of administrator has been abolished. Drivers-couriers, an accountant, website technical support are outsourced. Ella herself manages production remotely - in September she moved to St. Petersburg to establish sales here.

However, we are somewhat ahead of the curve.

Home delivery

“We were sitting, waiting for the contract. I had some business in Moscow, and I wrote on Facebook that I launched a startup, I make dumplings, I can bring it. The people responded - as a result, I brought a whole car of goods to Moscow. Word of mouth began to work, orders went from friends of friends. I thought: while we are waiting for wholesale, we can earn money on this. Made an order form on Google, Facebook group", - the entrepreneur recalls.

The company's website appeared only in November 2016. Before that, the form was enough, but online payments could not be attached to it, and the assortment had grown so much that it needed to be shown in all its glory.

“Online payment is our insurance. Before it was not yet, customers paid for small orders in cash to the courier. Each time it was a risk - if the buyer refuses, dumplings can be thrown away - the freezer bag has a certain operating time. This, by the way, happened - and it's good that the next client simply took more. Right now we are working on a pre-paid basis only.

When it became clear that there would be no promised contract with the store, Ella tried to break into other networks. Economy format stores disappeared immediately. But even those that position themselves as premium asked for an astronomical discount: “I already offered them a product with almost no profit, just to get on the counter. But it didn't work out. In the end, I decided not to waste time shopping anymore. Since then, home delivery has become the main principle of distribution.”

Delivery time to Moscow is from three to eight days, a car goes to St. Petersburg once a month.

Assortment as a marketing tool

Initially, the company relied on only "classic" dumplings with minced pork and beef. But when it became clear that there would be no stores, and that we would have to work directly with the end consumer, it seemed logical to give him a choice. The second in the assortment were dumplings "Men's".

“My man offered to sculpt them,” recalls Ella, “he said:“ Make big dumplings so that the man eats - and he was good. This is the same classic, only three times larger. And then the buyers turned on, began to offer: I want it with cottage cheese, I want it with fish. I introduced Dagestan kurze, a rare product for our regions. There is another molding, pure lamb, whey, its own complex of spices. The calculation was also that Muslims would respond to the kurze. Well, let's go. Dumplings, manti, cutlets, rolls, kupaty, dolma, stuffed vegetables, fish dumplings, berry dumplings, with squid, cuttlefish ink, etc.”

“Specially for fasting people, we came up with vegetable dumplings. Unfortunately, they boiled soft - after all, the dough there without an egg. The problem was solved thanks to a vegan client who was experienced in these matters and gave us the secret ingredient.”

Today, the assortment of "Pelmeshki" includes 94 products, of which 56 types are actually dumplings. All products are made in the same workshop by the same craftswomen.

During the year, only one item was withdrawn from sale - dumplings with cheese and olives. Nobody ordered them. For other exotic species, there is a buyer from time to time. The next contenders for departure are pink dumplings for children: a decoction of beets, which is added to the dough, is boiled down.

“I don’t focus on my taste at all. I love dumplings with meat, and I don't understand dumplings with sorrel. But people order, it’s delicious for them, so we’ll do it”

Each new product is a marketing ploy, an occasion to talk about a new product, to remind about yourself in social networks, to interest a potential buyer. The company does not bear any costs and risks, since it does not hold a commodity stock. Raw materials are bought on order - they paid so much, they mold so much. Made, frozen, sent for delivery.

“Of course, this is not the way to work with wholesalers,” Ella agrees. “But our business is rapidly scaling. If necessary, we will make half a ton of dumplings in 10 days: three days to gather sculptors and buy additional freezers, and a week to produce.”

Between Miratorg and farmers

The volume for a business like Pelmeshka is a lifeline, it allows you to significantly reduce the share of non-product costs, which is slightly less than half of the total cost. We are talking about salaries, logistics, communications, renting a workshop, etc.

More than half of the costs are accounted for by the cost of raw materials: meat, flour, eggs, cheese, cottage cheese, seasonings and other ingredients. Modest turnover does not allow the company to take raw materials at wholesale prices, which greatly affects the cost.

“In the premium segment, product quality is the number one factor. We cannot afford gray flour, the dough from which will crack. We can't use egg powder - only selected eggs"

The company buys pork and beef from Miratorg - the main facilities of the agro-industrial holding are based in the Bryansk region. Flour - Chelyabinsk manufacturer "Makfa" (the grandfather of Ella Vetlugina worked at this plant). The rest of the products - lamb, chicken, turkey, eggs - are supplied by local farms.

“At first I thought that we would cooperate exclusively with farmers, but not all farmers turned out to have proven meat. Therefore, I take pork and beef from Miratorg - their meat is both tasty and proven. But, alas, they don’t deal with lamb,” says the hostess of Pelmeshka.

Seasonal goods - vegetables, mushrooms (for example, chanterelles) and berries - the company buys at farmers' markets as needed. But truffles - from partners, the Moscow store "Mushroom Place". “We basically don’t freeze anything, only fresh ingredients.”

Cheese in Bryansk dumplings is produced by the cheese factory of Oleg Sirota, a well-known apologist for import substitution. Ella was visiting him and brought back 100 kg of Imeretian cheese. Following this, several new types of dumplings appeared in the assortment at once - with cheese and potatoes, with cheese and cottage cheese.

Ella selects suppliers herself. During the first year of Pelmeshka, she changed suppliers of turkey, chicken and cottage cheese: “We have a rule: two complaints from a client - and we stop working with the supplier. It's tough, but otherwise we won't be able to maintain our reputation. Two clients complained of heartburn - and we went to work with another poultry farmer. We initially took cottage cheese from a factory, produced by a local enterprise, but switched to a farmer's one. And the price went up immediately."

Delivery - outsourced

The advantages of Bryansk are not limited to delicious meat and cheap labor, it is also close to Moscow. The distance of 350 km makes it possible to transport goods to the home of capital buyers.

“We tried to carry it ourselves,” says the entrepreneur, “we worked with a partner, but it turned out to be the most convenient way to use the YouDo service – there is always someone who will do the task quickly and well. And if he doesn’t, it will affect his rating.

Now we use the services of private drivers, dumplings are delivered in freezer bags. In the summer, it happened that dumplings arrived a little melted, but this is not critical. We put additional batteries on St. Petersburg flights. For now, we have enough cars, but if we need to deliver half a ton, we will hire a refrigerator.”

At first, delivery extended to orders from 2 kg, but given that the client always pays for it (it costs 350 rubles), this restriction was canceled. You can order as much as you like.

The sundress works best

So far, April 2016 has become the best sales month for Pelmeshka, it brought 15% of annual revenue (turnover - 1.3 million rubles), about 400 kg of dumplings went to customers in a month. This was partly due to the rapid recruitment of a loyal audience - at that time there was active growth, and partly due to seasonality.

In the summer, dumplings are rarely ordered - since May, diets, summer cottages, vacations begin. Demand rises as customers return to their apartments. High season - autumn-winter. November 2016 was great. Although December and January are worse than last year, perhaps because prices have risen.

Starting investments in the business were recaptured after two months of operation of the workshop, the company ended the year in a small, but - plus

“I noticed that of all the promotion channels - and we tried different ads - only personal recommendations work. The neighbor praised - the neighbor bought. A well-known blogger wrote that he liked it - and customers ran to us. This phenomenon affects demand more than seasonality,” the entrepreneur assures.

The lion's share of Pelmeshki products is supplied to Moscow, about 10% - to St. Petersburg. Bryansk as a market turned out to be unpromising. “We tried to deliver our dumplings to local stores, the directors just took them home,” Ella recalls. - It is too expensive product for the local market. Yes, there are rich people here, but in order to reach them, you need to invest heavily in advertising - these costs are inappropriate.

Prices: not available below

“When I calculated the price, I started from the cost price and a small profit. In fact, most of our customers don't even look at the price, unlike wholesalers. Any wholesaler wants a price 100% less, but then I will work in the red. Wholesalers are guided by the discount price of automatic dumplings - about 205 rubles per kilo. We must put raw materials, work, delivery, profit into them. It's unrealistic. In addition, over the year, meat has risen in price by 25%, flour has slightly increased in price. Transportation costs have risen. And we raised our prices."

Today, in retail sales, hand-made Bryansk dumplings cost from 649 rubles per kilo of "Tender" (with chicken) to 1,500 per kilo of "Truffle". Classic dumplings are sold at 799 rubles per kg, "Siberian" - at 999 rubles. Manti - from 899 rubles per kg, pasties and kupaty - from 699 rubles, dumplings - from 499 rubles.

At the current turnover, the enterprise has nothing to save on, except that ordinary freezers are used, and not for emergency freezing.

“We tried to cut costs, tried other flour, local producers - nothing worked. The sculptors asked to return the Chelyabinsk one, - says Ella, - They tried to beat the onion with a blender to speed up the process. As a result, about 40 kg of dumplings were spoiled. When you beat the onion in a blender or food processor, it gives juice, greatly softens the minced meat. To be tasty, the onion has to be cut by hand - we still do that."

Lyrical digression No. 2: about the reputation of dumplings

“As far as I understand, the market for hand-made dumplings turned out to be empty, because it is hard to make money on it. Manufacturers eventually turn a blind eye to quality, and begin to cut costs by cutting costs. It is easier for cheese makers, they have more investments, more advertising, they, surprisingly, have a clearer product.

The urban audience is ready to try our product with great difficulty, because over the past ten years people have become accustomed to the fact that dumplings are such unhealthy food that is in the refrigerator just in case. Food that should not be fed to children. And we retrain the buyer, change his attitude to dumplings. There are people in the capitals who have never eaten homemade dumplings at all, this is a surprise for them.

It turns out that in order to disperse demand, you need to change your attitude towards the product. This, I repeat, is expensive - advertising works very poorly here. But for those who have already tried it, this is quite a festive product - we order dumplings for events, for birthdays.”

Markets

The first stores that undertook to sell hand-made Bryansk dumplings were the Molochny Dvor chain - a significant event happened in July 2016. But after Ella raised the price following the meat producers, the retailers stopped cooperation.

“According to the plan, another person was supposed to handle sales in the company, but it turned out that this is also my function. All contacts with restaurants, markets, shops go through me,” says the entrepreneur.

When it became clear that it would not be easy to enter the shops, Ella tried to take the Moscow markets by storm. Since June 2016, Pelmeshki products have been sold at the Petrovsky Bazaar. But it was not possible to enter the Danilovsky market - they make their own dumplings there.

The business centers did not live up to the entrepreneur's expectations: for top managers, the chefs make dumplings themselves, and the lower rank catering is not at all interested in such a product.

Cooperation with a Moscow restaurant that offered Bryansk dumplings on its menu could be called successful, but the restaurant closed. However, this experience has shown that restaurants are a potentially attractive category of partners, since they understand the cost of handmade products. That is why, having moved to St. Petersburg, Ella first of all set her sights on getting acquainted with the sphere of premium catering.

In addition, Ella likes the appetites of St. Petersburg - on average, residents of the northern capital order more per person than Muscovites. For example, the last shipment weighing about 70 kg was destined for nine customers. But the biggest purchase - 21 kg of dumplings and semi-finished products - was made by a Muscovite.

Demand: from bachelors to slimmers

The audience of "Dumplings" is divided into several categories, which are united only by wealth - not below average. The first category is married people over 30 who have many children. The second is bachelors. The third is businessmen who, in principle, love "everything good." The fourth big category is girls who are concerned about healthy eating. For them, "Dietary" (beef, chicken), "Fitness" (turkey) and berry dumplings without sugar are specially introduced. By the way, the first two types are often taken by diabetics.

The most popular products in the Pelmeshki assortment are classic dumplings (pork and beef), Siberian dumplings (beef), dumplings with potatoes and mushrooms, Dagestan kurze (mutton), dumplings from three types of meat, with red fish

“Everything else is for assortment. Usually a person takes 5 kg of "classics", and one kilogram of some unusual ones - to try. For example, dumplings with squid. Or with cuttlefish ink – they have only been ordered twice so far.”

Expanding the assortment towards semi-finished products was the idea of ​​customers - some asked for manti, others for kupaty, and still others for chebureks. All these products could have been on sale before, but Ella waited until autumn to show the entire range on the new website with “fastened” online payment.

Marketing comes with experience

“If I started a business now, I would not count on wholesale, I would not waste time on it. I would not delay with the site and take marketing much more seriously - from labels to social networks. And, perhaps, I would have found a partner who would be engaged in sales. Because there was a moment of take-off of the business, which we did not work out in full force - it was necessary to unwind this moment, and then it would “come by ferry,” Ella is sure.

The Pelmeshka packaging has changed several times over the past year. Initially, with an eye on stores, it was a plastic box with a sticker. However, it turned out that it cracks in the freezer. The box was replaced with strong freezer bags with a branded sticker. It turned out that the stickers in the freezer are peeling off. Then the stickers were replaced with a cardboard label with a hole, and they began to tie them with a linen rope to the bag.

“Despite the fact that this is a premium product, it turned out to be unprofitable for us to make the packaging more expensive. This would make sense for delivery to stores. But any box with a window will add 30 rubles to the cost. A private buyer will overpay them, but why? And the wholesaler will hang himself for them - in the wholesale people are bargaining for kopecks!

Pelmeshka lured new customers with partner discounts (for example, buyers of a fish store receive a discount from Ella, and vice versa), and promotions (mushroom, berry dumplings as a gift). Everyone who brings a new client receives a kilogram of any dumplings as a gift for the next order. According to the entrepreneur, these events do not bring any visible result - it does not matter to the audience. But the base of reviews is accumulating.

During the summer, Ella tried to sell "dumpling subscriptions" for a period of three months to a year. The longer the term, the higher the discount: 3 months - 5%, 6 months - 10%, 12 months - 15%. The price includes delivery once a month.

So, the set "On a diet" (3 kg per month) included three types of dumplings - "Diet", "Fito" and "Summer". A three-month supply (9 kg) cost 5040 rubles, and an annual supply (36 kg) - 18480. There were also sets "Bachelor" (four types, 4 kg per month) and "Family" (four types, 5 kg per month). In absolute terms, the most expensive set was the family set - 60 kg per year for 34,800 rubles. It was an experiment - the offer was valid for several weeks. Two subscriptions for 6 and 12 months were sold. Most likely, the experiment will continue in 2017 - there are no subscriptions on the site yet.

Foggy future

“Frankly, it’s not all that rosy,” Ella admits. - If our client base does not grow organically or there is no investment to increase it, then it will be difficult. We are at the stage when we need to reach a new level, but there are no resources for this.”

To launch a large-scale advertising campaign, the company needs investments. For Ella, this is a sore point: “I don’t really want to let investors into the business. Because after some time, the investor will say that you need to switch to automatic modeling and go online. This is a different idea, a different business. In this sense, I would prefer to take a loan - it will be my responsibility and I will not have to report to anyone.

“Later, when Pelmeshka becomes a big enterprise, we may have both an automatic machine and a budget line of dumplings, but not in the near future.”

A year ago, Ella tried to get a regional loan to open a business under a government program at 7% per annum. With this money, she was going to make the first batch for stores.

“I was told that if I want to take a loan of 1.5 million rubles, I must own two apartments: if I don’t pay, one will be taken away, but I won’t be left homeless. Then I went to commercial banks, but the vast majority of them lend to an already operating business - from a year or more. So this year I will go to the banks again - maybe something will work out. By this time, it is necessary to understand the advertising strategy in order not to waste money.

In mid-2016, Ella made the decision to cut her advertising budgets, focusing on free promotion on social networks - Facebook and LinkedIn. Activity in Vkontakte, according to her, did not bring customers, as well as paid advertising in groups. “Only recommendations worked,” the entrepreneur repeats.

To promote Instagram and Vkontakte is the task of this year. The company does not plan to expand its range in the near future. For complete happiness, it remains only to introduce khinkali: "But you need to learn how to make them flawlessly."

Delicious homemade dumplings will never compare to those sold in stores. Simple at home, but at the same time, such appetizing and tasty dumplings are a real culinary hit. Making dumplings can become an exciting family tradition spanning generations, but the benefits of making dumplings at home don't end there. The following points can also be attributed to the advantages of self-preparation of dumplings - they will undoubtedly taste better than all purchased dumplings; you will have a full freezer of dumplings and the ability to repeatedly prepare a hearty dish in a matter of minutes; and finally, you will feel like a real culinary hero looking at the abundance of adorable dumplings that you have prepared with your own hands. And, of course, the gratitude of your loved ones and endless compliments will know no bounds. Well, have we convinced you? Then go to the kitchen!

It should immediately be noted that making dumplings is not for the lazy. It will take time, patience and perseverance. But it's worth it. Dumplings can be formed by hand, making traditional "ears" - which, by the way, are considered real dumplings - or you can use for this a device familiar to many from Soviet times called a dumpling, which was also used by our mothers and grandmothers. The classic dumpling dough consists of flour, water and salt. However, there are many other options for dumplings dough - egg dough, choux pastry, milk dough, sour cream dough and kefir dough. To prepare the dough according to the classic recipe, you need to pour salt and pour water into a hill of sifted flour, then knead an elastic dough that will not stick to your hands. Do not make the dough too steep and tight - it should be soft and easy to roll out. As for the exact ratio of flour and water, here you need to rely on intuition and your experience, since the final result depends on the quality of the flour and the gluten content in it. It is best to use premium flour with a high content of gluten - it will give the dumplings a snow-white color and prevent the dough from overcooking. If you are using eggs, make sure they are fresh. After kneading, the dough should be covered with plastic wrap or placed in a bag and left for 30-40 minutes at room temperature - thanks to this, the dough will become more pliable and tender. The finished dough must be rolled out as thinly as possible.

As for the filling, it can consist not only of pork, beef or lamb mince, as many mistakenly believe. The options here are endless - dumplings can be stuffed with minced turkey meat, minced chicken, mushrooms, fish, ham, shrimp, beans, cheese and herbs, boiled eggs and seaweed, lentils, rice and even kimchi. Regardless of the topping you choose, use about 1 tablespoon of topping per dumpling. If you settled on minced meat filling, be sure to add a few tablespoons of water and onions for juiciness to it - about 2 large onions per 1 kilogram of minced meat. Ready stuffing should not stick to your hands and break into pieces if you form a lump out of it. Spices and herbs are a great way to diversify the filling. In addition to standard black pepper, you can use red pepper, ready-made mixtures for minced meat and adjika, suneli hops, as well as cilantro, basil, parsley and dill.

After cooking, dumplings must be frozen. Do this on a large tray or baking sheet, making sure none of the dumplings are touching or they will stick together. Once dumplings have hardened, store them in the freezer for up to three months. Dumplings should be boiled in a large amount of salted water, adding a few bay leaves for flavor. When dumplings float to the surface, they need to be boiled for 7 to 15 minutes, depending on the size. Alternatively, dumplings can be fried. This method is good if you want to diversify your usual diet. To do this, heat the oil in a frying pan, add dumplings and fry until golden brown on both sides under the lid. After that, pour in a few tablespoons of water and simmer the dumplings until all the water has evaporated.

If you are making your first batch of dumplings, try some of our suggested recipes. Once you find a recipe that you like and meet your expectations, you can experiment with the ingredients and add your favorite spices.

Ingredients:
For test:
3 cups flour
1 glass of water
1 teaspoon of salt.
For filling:
500 g pork
500 g beef,
2 bulbs
salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking:
Sift flour on a table and make a well in it. Add salt, pour in water and knead the dough for 10 minutes. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and leave for half an hour. In the meantime, work on the filling. Make minced meat and onions, put in a bowl, salt, pepper and add a few tablespoons of water for elasticity.
Cut off part of the dough (about a quarter) and roll it into a circle about 2 mm thick. Using a stack or a small glass, cut out circles - the basis of future dumplings. Put the minced meat in the middle of each circle, tightly fasten the edges of the dough with your fingers and connect the two ends to make an “eye”. Put the finished dumplings on a tray sprinkled with flour and send to freeze in the refrigerator. When the dumplings are frozen, transfer them to a bag and tie tightly.

Ural dumplings are not only a popular TV show, but also a very tasty dish. A distinctive feature of such dumplings is the filling made from three types of meat. For the preparation of such dumplings, it is imperative to use beef and pork, and the third meat component can be chosen at your discretion - it can be, for example, lamb, chicken or turkey.

Ural dumplings

Ingredients:
For filling:
300 g beef,
300 g pork
300 g lamb,
2 bulbs
1/2 cup milk
salt and spices to taste.
For test:
3 cups flour
150 ml of water
2 eggs,
salt to taste.

Cooking:
Sift the flour on the table with a slide. Make a well and add water, eggs and salt to it. Knead the dough and leave under cling film for 40 minutes. For the filling, roll three types of meat into minced meat along with onions, then stir with milk, salt and season to taste. Ural dumplings are always molded by hand in the form of "ears" without the use of a dumpling.

Dumplings with fish stuffing are just as popular a dish in Kamchatka (where they originated) as traditional dumplings with minced meat. To prepare such dumplings, it is best to take several types of fish fillets.

Dumplings with fish filling

Ingredients:
For test:
3 cups flour
1 glass of water
1 egg

1/2 teaspoon salt.

For filling:
1 kg fish fillet,
2 bulbs
salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking:
In the recess in the flour, poured into a slide on the table, add the egg, oil and salt mixed with water. Knead a soft elastic dough, which must be left for 30-40 minutes in a plastic bag. Grind the fish fillet along with the onion in a meat grinder or food processor. Add salt and pepper to taste. Divide the dough into several parts. Roll out each dough in turn into a thin layer and cut out circles. Fill the mugs with fish stuffing and form "ears". Prepare dumplings immediately or freeze.

Delicious homemade dumplings have not left anyone indifferent yet, and if you want to really surprise your family and guests, try sticking dumplings with very unusual fillings using cottage cheese, cheese, mushrooms and potatoes. You can be sure that both adults and children will appreciate such dumplings.

Pelmeni with cheese and curd filling

Ingredients:
For test:
3 cups flour
4 tablespoons of vegetable oil,
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon of salt.
For filling:
700 g cottage cheese,
300 g soft cheese, such as Feta or Brynza,
greens (dill or parsley),
salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking:
Grind cottage cheese and cheese with a meat grinder or food processor. Mix with chopped herbs and add salt and pepper to taste.
To prepare the custard dough, it is necessary to pour boiling water and vegetable oil into a large bowl, then add flour and knead the dough. It is important to act very quickly, as lumps may form in the dough if it is kneaded slowly. Immediately roll out the dough and form dumplings - either make "ears" or use a dumpling.

Pelmeni with cheese and mushroom filling

Ingredients:
For test:
350 g flour
200 ml of kefir,
1/2 teaspoon salt.
For filling:
500 g mushrooms
1 onion
150 g hard cheese,
butter,
salt and spices to taste.

Cooking:
Pour kefir into a bowl, add flour and knead the dough first with a fork and then with your hands. Let the covered dough stand for half an hour. Meanwhile, fry the finely chopped mushrooms and onions in butter. Allow to cool, mix with grated cheese, salt and add spices to taste. From the prepared dough and filling, form dumplings in any of the ways.

Dumplings with potatoes and mushrooms

Ingredients:
For test:
2 cups of flour,
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons of water
salt to taste.
For filling:
300 g potatoes
200 g mushrooms
1 large onion
100 g butter,
dill,
salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking:
Mix flour and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, oil and water. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour the egg mixture into it. Mix all the ingredients together with your fingers. Alternatively, you can initially use a mixing fork. The finished dough should be smooth and uniform. Add extra flour if needed to keep the dough from being overly sticky. Wrap the dough in cling film and set aside for half an hour.
Boil potatoes, onions and mushrooms fry. Pass all the ingredients through a meat grinder or chop in a food processor. Mix with melted butter, chopped dill, salt and pepper. Roll out the dough, cut out circles from it, fill them with stuffing and form “ears”.

Preparing dumplings definitely takes some time - we advise you to take an average of 2-3 hours for this business. At the same time, you can be sure that your determination and hard work will be rewarded, and delicious homemade dumplings will delight your household and guests.

I'm ready to fall on my knees Before the one who invented dumplings. (I couldn't find the author, no matter how I googled it.)

Who, what, where, why, when - I propose to leave questions about the "nationality" of dumplings, their origin and other controversial topics for later. If we now delve into the wilds of history, finding out in which country they first came up with the idea of ​​​​boiling minced meat wrapped in pieces of dough, the conversation will turn into long, many hours of debate, as a result of which no one will change their mind anyway, remaining confident in their rightness.

Therefore, first we will cook homemade dumplings, set the table, and only then we will talk about the controversial one. About fillings and modeling methods, size and dough for dumplings. And about who, where, how and with what serves. And even a little about the origin of dumplings.

WHAT IS THE ARTICLE ABOUT?

Filling for dumplings

Dumplings start with minced meat. It is on him that 80% of success depends - if the products are of poor quality, and the work is sloppy, the taste of dumplings will not only worsen, but become terrible. The filling is the heart of the dumpling, so let's cook it with soul, put a lot of good thoughts into it and many, many wishes of happiness and health to everyone who sits at your table this evening.

The classics of the genre are homemade dumplings with minced meat, however, the classics, although invariably good, often become boring and boring. Let's remember what else can be hidden in dumplings.

Classic minced meat

• 0.5 kg pork tenderloin;
• 0.5 kg of beef fillet;
• 2 large onions;
• salt, pepper to taste.

Wash the meat, clean it from the films, twist it into minced meat together with the onion. Mix well, salt and pepper and leave for half an hour. After this time, add half a glass of water, mix the minced meat and proceed to sculpt dumplings.

minced fish

• 1 kg of fish fillet;
• 2 onions;

Peel the onion, cut into small cubes and fry in vegetable oil until golden brown.
Twist the boned fish in a meat grinder and mix with onions. Salt, pepper and start making dumplings.

minced chicken

• 1 kg chicken fillet;
• 3 art. l. sour cream;
• half a glass of milk;
• salt pepper.

My meat and twist in a meat grinder. Add salt, pepper, sour cream, milk and mix well. Minced meat is ready, you can start sculpting dumplings.

Mushroom mince

• 1 kg of forest mushrooms;
• 3-4 bulbs;
• vegetable oil, salt, pepper.

We clean the mushrooms, boil until tender. Cut into random pieces and fry well in vegetable oil. We twist in a meat grinder.
Cut the onion into cubes and fry in vegetable oil until golden brown. Mix with twisted mushrooms, add salt and pepper. Done, you can start sculpting dumplings.

Cheese mince

• 0.8 kg of cottage cheese;
• 0.2 kg of soft cheese (feta, cheese);
• 2 large bunches of herbs (dill, parsley, cilantro);
• salt, pepper to taste.

Twist cottage cheese and cheese in a meat grinder, mix with finely chopped herbs and salt. You can add pepper if you like. Everything, forward, to the machine, we begin to sculpt dumplings.

In addition to the options listed, you can use any other stuffing. I ate homemade dumplings with tomatoes and cheese, seaweed and boiled eggs, potatoes and mushrooms, elk and horse meat, vegetarian dumplings with carrots, cabbage and celery, pumpkin and onions. I ate, but I can’t say that at least one of them responded in my soul with gentle awe and delight: nevertheless, only a bowl with the same dumplings can be better than a plate of ordinary dumplings with minced meat!

Dough for dumplings

The remaining 20% ​​of the success of the cooked dumplings will be given to the test. No, of course, a hundred other factors are important (the hands of the hostess, mood, water, serving, table, company ....), but, speaking, discarding emotions, the remaining 20% ​​is still taken by flour and water - the basic components of dumplings test. Plus eggs and butter if you add them.

Mistresses often argue over whose dumpling dough is better. I think this is better than the one that has taken root in your kitchen. To which your family is accustomed, the recipe of which has been worked out to the smallest detail, and therefore we love and are ready to be inherited by our daughter or daughter-in-law, along with Chinese porcelain and great-grandmother's silver earrings.

I'll start, perhaps, with the classic version, with a test on water without eggs. That's what my mother-in-law does. Below is her direct speech. And then I’ll tell you about my mom’s recipe - a recipe for dumplings on eggs.

Dough for dumplings - a recipe on the water

“Flour and water. All. By properly mixing just two ingredients (well, it's true, salt still helps, but it doesn't count), you can get a great, smooth, elastic dough that no one else in the area has equal!

Sharing their secrets of the “correct” test, housewives advise adding a little vegetable oil, eggs, milk to the water - each has its own “zest”, I prefer the minimalist style - it has been tested for decades and more than one generation of eaters in our family. Milk, in my opinion, does not make any taste changes, the egg is an excessive wastefulness, which also leads to coarsening of the dough. I am ready to allow more oil, but at the same time I fully realize that it is also superfluous. That's just superfluous - that's all, believe my experience.

Regular dumpling dough
The classic version is the simplest, most affordable and most commonly used.

Ingredients:

• 1 glass of water;
• 3 cups flour;
• 1 tsp salt.

How to cook dumpling dough

Sift the flour into a bowl, make a well in the top, add the salt and pour out the water.

We knead the dough - as a result of your efforts, you should get a smooth, pleasant ball, which, when cut, does not leave marks on the knife, does not stick to it, and gives a smooth glossy surface on the cut. In addition, the dough should not be blurry, but not too tight.

You may need a little more or a little less flour - a lot depends on its quality and gluten. Focus on your feelings and intuition - no one, not a single recipe will give you the exact ratio of flour and water.

The finished dough must be wrapped in a plastic bag (or closed in another way, see photo) and left at room temperature for 30-40 minutes - this simple manipulation will make it even smoother, more elastic and easier to work with.

What do you object?

It really does make a great dough. Flexible, gentle. The correct ratio of water and flour gives an extraordinary result. However, you need to know my mother. She disagrees:

“The dough in the work is uninteresting, it tastes like rubber. How can you eat it? Unless with the total disappearance of chickens! Or high cholesterol forbids eating eggs? The classic recipe is my recipe, write down:

Dough for dumplings with eggs

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 cup water (moderately warm)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vegetable oil (sometimes)
• ½ tsp salt

Then everything is as usual: I pour out the flour in a slide, make a recess in it in the form of a funnel and add water, oil, break an egg into the funnel. Gradually knead. I add flour until the dough starts to lag behind my hand, but I never make it cool. The ingredients indicate fairly accurate proportions, it is not necessary to have intuition, which is especially important for beginners - where does their intuition come from?

I use vegetable oil if I sculpt “with a margin” and I know that I will freeze a part - with oil, the dough does not dry for a long time and does not crack when frozen.

Vegetarian dumplings dough made from "hard" flour

Which side am I on? I used to be on my mother’s, but since I became a vegetarian, I’ve been cooking like a mother-in-law, that’s just ... I buy French durum wheat flour at Auchan, mix it with premium flour and knead the dough, based on the ratio of 250 g of flour per 100 g of water. That's all: strict science of mathematics and perfect dough - no hint of "kissel", rather "pasta from Italy".

A few more popular dumpling dough recipes

Custard dumpling dough

The dough according to this recipe is easier to work with, it practically does not require additional flour for rolling and cutting circles, however, its taste is far from classic - it seems a little viscous, too tender, more “wet” or even raw. However, it is worth a try - at least in order to understand how it is more convenient and easier for you to work.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of flour;
• 1 cup boiling water;
• 3 art. l. vegetable oil;
• 0.5 tsp salt.

How to cook custard dough for dumplings
Mix salt with flour, sift and pour into a bowl. We make a funnel, pour in oil and boiling water. Knead first with a fork, then with your hands. Knead the dough well on the table - it should not stick to surfaces at all and be very, very pleasant to the hands.

Dough for dumplings on kefir

Another easy recipe. Also two ingredients, but instead of water, kefir. We take 400 g of flour for a glass of kefir and we are not in a hurry. Pour the kefir into a bowl, add half a serving of flour there and gently knead with a spoon. Then gradually pour in the rest and knead the dough with your hands. This dough should also rest in the refrigerator for at least half an hour, and preferably more.

The peculiarity of kefir dumplings is that you don’t roll it out too thin, but it turns out to be very soft.

Modeling dumplings

To stick a mountain of homemade dumplings, you can roll the dough into a thin layer and cut circles out of it with a glass. The rest of the dough is again collected in a lump and kneaded again, then rolled out and again turned into blanks for dumplings. This is certainly the most correct and elegant option, but also time-consuming.

You can go a simpler way - roll the finished dough into a "sausage" of small diameter,

cut it into pieces of relatively the same size,

roll each piece into a small circle, from which to sculpt a dumpling.

First, spread the minced meat with a spoon (the required amount is clearly visible in the picture),

Having folded the cake in half, pinch the edges like a dumpling,

after which the dumpling should show a gymnastic class, once again curled in half, and then a ball with joined edges.

The option, in general, is wonderful - provided that you can cut the same pieces of dough by eye: different-sized dumplings look rather messy.

The third way is to use all kinds of dumplings.

Simple, fast, but the look...

If the illusion of store-bought gray dumplings with an indistinct filling instead of minced meat does not bother you, then pick up useful devices and go!

Size matters

Have you ever heard about the Crimean Karaites? The indigenous inhabitants of the Crimea can also boast of their own prototypes of dumplings - in their cuisine there is a dish called “hamur-dolma” - miniature pieces of dough are served in rich broth, in which tiny portions of minced meat are hidden. So, the Karaites still believe that at least 8 small dumplings should be placed in a standard tablespoon. Eight, can you imagine? This is not a typo or hyperbole - a real Karaite hostess cuts circles from dough ... with her wedding ring.

But I don’t have a clear, consistent opinion about Siberian dumplings. They say that once they were huge, almost the size of a palm. But there is other evidence as well. My family has preserved memories of a great-grandmother who spent a significant part of her childhood in Siberia - from there she brought stories about milk, which grannies sell wrapped in a rag in winter (they pour it into bowls, freeze it, take it out and carry it to the markets already without containers), about breastfeeding children laid down on a down pillow and covered with a down blanket at night, and about homemade dumplings, of course. They say that the size of the finished dumpling should be no more than the phalanx of the little finger. Better yet, less!

Of course, no one expects you to immediately rush to look for suitable decorations to practice making dumplings of the right size. Nevertheless, it’s still not worth sculpting thugs in the size of XXXL, because we are talking about dumplings, not about pasties.

Cooking secrets

Remember the bearded joke about the "common" way? If you want to be known as a gourmet, put a bay leaf in the water in which dumplings will be cooked.

So, regardless of where you live and whether you plan to be known as a gourmet, I advise you not to forget about “lavrushka” - it, of course, will not radically change the taste of the finished dish, however, it will add an elusive subtle note to the overall aroma.

In addition to bay leaf, it’s a good idea to add a few peas of allspice to the water for cooking homemade dumplings.

Yes, and most importantly - salt! Do not forget to salt the water for dumplings - if you boil them in fresh water, it will be insipid, mean, sad and dreary.

You need to take a large pot for cooking - gentlemen Pelmeni should feel at ease, nothing should restrict their freedom of movement. In addition, they love when no one invades their intimate area. Hey, calmly, without fanaticism: it’s not worth lowering the boiler into a bathtub filled with water, just a large pot is enough.

We collect water - two-thirds of the volume, salt, add bay leaf and pepper, cover with a lid and wait until the water boils. Only after that we lay the dumplings - no, no, not all in a crowd, you should not pour them into the pan in bulk! Everyone needs attention - so we take each one in our hand and separately throw it into the pan.

We stir occasionally. Do not overdo it! You still won’t succeed with crumbly porridge, it’s enough if the dumplings just don’t stick to the bottom.

Did the dumplings float? Alright, just a minute more and…. did the water boil? We reduce the heat and let the dumplings boil for 5-7 minutes, and then we begin to remove them from the pan. If you cooked frozen dumplings, let them cook for a minute or two more, and then take them out anyway. If you feel very, very insecure, find the largest dumpling in the pan, fish it out, put it on a plate and cut it in half. Is the dough cooked? Is the meat raw? Well, so quickly get the rest of the comrades!

Innings

When taking dumplings out of the water, do not be greedy and put a couple of tablespoons of butter in a bowl - it will significantly enrich the taste and prevent your dinner from sticking into one big “dumpling”.

And then creativity begins. Why don't they eat homemade dumplings! Luxurious mother-of-pearl sour cream - rustic, fatty, tender ... Yellow butter - soft, enveloping, rich ... Unpopular and thoroughly offended by all mayonnaise - spicy, velvety, shiny. Viscous, fragrant mustard - sharp, burning, proud. Bright tomato ketchup - rich, spicy, tender. Vinegar, even flat in taste, but incredibly sour, sharp, prickly vinegar - even he managed to win thousands of supporters in the fight for dumplings accompaniment.

Do not be lazy - if a large family gathers at the table, most likely there will be lovers of yoghurt sauce with garlic, and tomato mixture with herbs, and butter, sour cream, mayonnaise. Carry everything you have! You will not regret.

Dumplings are a rather heavy meal, so some vegetable salad, greens, broth will not hurt on the table. It is clear that it is unlikely that anyone will exchange the main course for lighter options, however, even if you eat at least a little bit of vegetables or drink just a little broth, the stomach will already feel better. In general, your task is to try to make the dumplings "accompaniment" look as appetizing as the signature dish.

Options and variations of dumpling recipes

In addition to the traditional version of boiled dumplings, you can also find a bunch of non-standard ways of preparing this dish. Of course, the phrase “if you are tired of classic dumplings” sounds somewhat ironic and even mocking, but still - if you are tired of ordinary dumplings or if you want to try something new, use one of the above recipes - and you will not regret it!

dumplings in a pot

Do you think dumplings can be made even more luxurious? Quite! Bake them in pots - and you will get a holiday, celebration and delight.

Ingredients for 1 serving: 15-20 ready dumplings, 2-3 tbsp. l. butter, 3-4 tbsp. l. low-fat sour cream, 50 g of hard cheese, a few sprigs of herbs, salt, pepper.

How to cook dumplings in pots. Boil dumplings until cooked, put in a greased pot, add the remaining oil, sprinkle with chopped herbs and pour sour cream. Sprinkle with grated hard cheese, cover with a lid and put in an oven preheated to 200 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Fried dumplings

But here you can’t be cunning anymore: nevertheless, fried dumplings are a dish with Chinese-Asian roots. Delicious and rich - tender juicy minced meat is hidden under a crispy crust of dough. Amazing!

Ingredients for 1 serving: 15-20 dumplings, 1 glass of vegetable oil.

How to cook fried dumplings. Pour the oil into a small bowl or saucepan. Warm up well. Dip dumplings into it and fry until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on disposable paper towels. Serve hot.
Delicious with soy sauce.

lazy dumplings

And what to do if the dumplings are fearful as you want, but time is just running out? Then you need to cook lazy dumplings!

Dough Ingredients: 3 cups flour, 1 cup water, 1 tsp. salt.

Minced meat ingredients: 400 g of meat (pork, beef or a combination), 1 onion, salt, pepper to taste.

Sauce Ingredients: 1.5 cups of low-fat sour cream, 0.5 cups of water, 3 cloves of garlic, salt, dry herbs to taste.

How to cook lazy dumplings
Cooking minced meat - we twist the meat and onions, salt, pepper and knead well.
From these ingredients, we knead a soft, non-sticky dough, leave it to “rest” for half an hour, after which we roll it into a rectangle, the length of which is much greater than its width.
We spread the minced meat on the dough, distribute it evenly over the entire surface, leaving 2 cm from the wide edge. Roll up into a roll. Cut into portions, transfer to a baking dish.
We mix sour cream with water, garlic, salt and herbs, pour lazy dumplings with the resulting sauce. Bake until tender - temperature 180 degrees, time - 30 minutes.
Bon lazy appetite!

Do you know...

How many names do dumplings have?

Indeed, how much? Boraki, poses, dyushbara, podkogylo, jiao-tzu, kundums, sorcerers - all these are dumplings, and everyone has their own "bearded" story. The conversation is insane, the argument is not constructive, and yet I propose to talk at least a little, the topic is very fertile!

Ravioli

Italians, eating pasta richly sprinkled with parmesan, will smile broadly and emotionally cut off: the first was ravioli, and no nails ... dumplings! Then they pour themselves another glass of wine and, smiling again, simply turn the conversation to another topic: why argue, if everything is clear: in the beginning it was C ... ravioli!

Khinkali

Georgians and Azerbaijanis will hospitably invite you to a table bursting with all kinds of food. They will pour thick wine, make a toast - of course, for those wonderful ancestors who came up with an amazingly tasty dish - khinkali. They will pour again - both for themselves and for you, of course, and when you decide to insert a word about no less wonderful ancestors who invented dumplings, they will quickly and very good-naturedly interrupt and again make a toast - even more ornate and confusing. You will get lost in the wilds of verbal intricacies and before you have time to recover, you will almost believe that khinkali were the firstborn.

Wontons

The laconic Chinese will make tea and keep silent, but you will feel with your skin that there is nothing in this world older than wontons. Except China itself.

Gedze

In response, the Japanese will knead the dough on rice flour, stick luxurious gyoza and, taking out a bottle of sake, start a long conversation about the Emperor, talk about the chrysanthemum festival and quote Basa. Not a word will be said about dumplings, not a half a word about dumpling dough, but you will leave the table with a strong feeling that you have been convinced for two hours that all the salt is in the gedza, the rest is dust.

Vareniki

Generous and cheerful Ukrainians will look at you in bewilderment and will not understand at all what kind of dumplings we can talk about, even if the great Gogol once and for all clearly and clearly described how to eat dumplings, with what and when. And dumplings - well, then just homemade dumplings, where do they care about homemade dumplings, to which they even erect monuments in Ukraine!

Manti

Tatars and Mongols, Kazakhs and Turks will chop minced meat from the shoulder, stick manti for the horde and say how they will cut it off: there was nothing until they were there, but when sheep, onions and manti appeared, then, maybe, someone where I accidentally came up with some dumplings.

Etc.

Homemade dumplings as a way to unite the family

Try to buy three or four kilograms of meat (do not waste time, less is not interesting, not that calico), twist it into minced meat. Make dumpling dough. Gather the whole family - aunt, uncle, godmother, godfather, brother, matchmaker. Do not forget about Baba Olya - she, of course, is a hundred years old at lunchtime, but without her the family will not be so bright and cheerful.

And start worship. Let someone roll out the dumpling dough, someone cut out circles, the third one collects the rest of the dough into a lump and knead it again, and the fourth one fills the blanks with minced meat. The fifth can be entrusted with gluing dumplings, and the sixth - laying them out on the board. After 10 minutes, as in the Mad Tea Party, change places, roles, tasks. And again - in a circle: roll, cut, fill, collect, glue ...

Under the molding of homemade dumplings, you definitely need to talk - gossip about Katya, who ignored the family event, because she fell in love with a "real goat" and rode off with him on a date. About Verka, Petka, Svetka. About the prices of dill and the best sauerkraut in the whole village. You can talk about female strength and ancestral knowledge, fortune telling on eggs and ways to remove the evil eye. Discuss the new priest at your local temple and talk about the children who are acting up in church while waiting for the sacrament. Talk about anything - the main thing is that the chatter gives pleasure and brings joy: otherwise the dumplings will not be tasty, it has been checked a million times!

Do not forget to hide a nut, a couple of black peppercorns or a slice of chocolate instead of minced meat in a few dumplings - and for the one who pulls out the “lucky ticket”, be sure to think over a prize or a forfeit. An innocent prank, but it brings the family together so much! Believe me, you will remember for more than one year in a row how grandfather Sergei grimaced after eating a dumpling with carrots, and the young Vitka grunted in disappointment, biting through the “happy dumpling” with dough inside instead of minced meat.

Eh, I've been sitting at the computer for a while. I’m going to cook myself a plate of dumplings - fortunately, there is always a supply of this wonderful invention of mankind in the freezer!