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Cepelinai
Cepelinai: Lithuanian airship-shaped potato dumplings with meat filling
Cepelinai, named after the Zeppelin airships they resemble, are Lithuania's national dish: big oval dumplings of grated raw and boiled potato wrapped around seasoned minced pork, simmered until glossy and served with a sauce of sour cream and fried bacon bits and onion. This dish contains pork. Families in Kaunas and Vilnius make them on weekends and holidays; curd cheese or mushroom fillings are common vegetarian versions. A common mistake is skipping the potato starch; it is what holds the dumplings together. Chef's tip: squeeze the grated potato very dry and stir back the starch that settles from the liquid. Minced pork must reach 71 °C.
- Total time
- 100 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the filling
- 14 oz pork mince
- 1 oniongrated
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp dried marjoram
For the sauce
- 5 ½ oz smoked bacondiced
- 1 onionchopped
- 1 cup sour cream
For cooking
- 16 ¾ cups water
- 1 tbsp salt
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Mix 14 oz pork mince, 1 onion, ¾ tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper and ½ tsp dried marjoram.
Step 2: Squeeze 3 ⅓ lb potatoes very dry in a cloth over a bowl. Let the liquid settle for 10 minutes, pour off the water and keep the starch. Common mistake: discarding the starch; they fall apart.
10 minStep 4: Divide into 12. Flatten each in a wet palm, put a spoon of filling in the middle and shape into a sealed oval.
Step 5: Bring 16 ¾ cups water and 1 tbsp salt to a simmer and cook the cepelinai for 25–30 minutes, stirring gently, until they float and the filling reaches 160°F.
30 minStep 6: Fry 5 ½ oz smoked bacon for 8 minutes, add 1 onion and fry until golden. Stir in 1 cup sour cream and warm through. Serve over the dumplings.
12 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 620 kcal
- Protein
- 22 g
- Carbs
- 70 g
- Fat
- 28 g
- Fibre
- 6 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does cepelinai take?
- About 100 minutes in total: 60 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
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