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Starting Monday off right with Homemade Cheddar Pierogies.
This is one of those recipes that I probably should have shared with you guys years ago, but just never got around to it. Well, the time has finally come to talk about Pierogies here on HBH, and I’m pretty happy about it.
When I was growing up, my mom used to feed my brothers and I Mrs. T’s Pierogies topped with generous amounts of extra cheddar cheese. I loved them so much. When I started cooking for my family I got into the habit of making homemade Pierogies ever few months and keeping them in the freezer for easy meals. My brother Kai loved them the most and always said the homemade Pierogies were far superior to the frozen ones from the store.
To be honest, it’s been ages since I’ve made homemade Pierogies, but when my cousin Maggie mentioned that they might be a fun recipe for December, I was sold the second I saw her text come across my phone screen. Pierogies just sounded so comforting and delicious. Plus, I loved her idea of making them for a holiday girl’s night in of cooking, Pierogi eating, and Christmas movie watching.
It sounded perfect, so I went for it, and you guys, I am not regretting it one bit.
If for some reason you’ve never had Pierogies, let me tell you about them. Pierogies are a traditional polish dumpling consisting of dough stuffed with a savory or sweet filling. I think a potato Pierogi is most common, but I know that there are many varieties. I of course love the potato cheddar Pierogi because not much beats the combo of potatoes and cheddar cheese, plus it’s what I grew up eating and loving, so it’s total childhood comfort food for me.
The dough is pretty simple. It’s your basic, flour, egg, salt, combo, but what’s unique about most Pierogi recipes is the use of sour cream in the dough. The sour cream keeps the dough moist and adds the slightest tang. Since I don’t cook with sour cream, I like to swap in plain greek yogurt, which works perfectly.
The key to a good Pierogi though is not about the dough, it’s all about the filling. Enter mashed potatoes with a little cheddar. Simplest filling ever, but so, so, so good. What’s not to love about a pasta style dough filled with cheesy mashed potatoes?
It’s the best.
The most important rule of Pierogi eating though?
Plenty of melted cheddar overtop each and every single Pierogi on your plate. I don’t know if this is how the Polish do it, but it’s how we do it in the Gerard household, and for me, nothing can beat it.
Especially when finished off with a little rosemary butter sauce. Yes, rosemary butter sauce. So. Good.
My family is in agreement that this is one of those recipes that everyone loves. Everyone from the picky eaters to the those with a more sophisticated palate. It’s just an all around favorite dish.
Homemade Cheddar Pierogies
Servings: 40 Pierogi
Calories Per Serving: 91 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 cup plain full fat greek yogurt
- 1 egg
Filling
- 4 russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
- 2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- kosher salt and pepper
Rosemary Butter
- 1 stick butter
- 1-2 cloves garlic, minced or grated (to your taste)
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
Instructions
- 1. To make the dough. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, butter, yogurt, and egg, and mix until combined. Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes. Cover and let sit 30 minutes.2. To make the filling. In a large pot of cold water, bring the potatoes to a boil. Salt the water and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.3. Drain the potatoes, return the potatoes to the pot and mash over low heat, or mash in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, adding the butter and cheddar cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 4. Roll the dough out onto a floured surface to 1/8 inch thickness. Using a biscuit cutter, cut out 3-inch circles. Spoon 2 teaspoons of filling into the center of each round. Brush the edges with water and fold half of the dough over the filling to enclose it. Press down the edges to seal, pressing out all the air. Be sure to keep the dough covered as you work work to prevent from drying out. At this point, the Pierogies can be flash frozen on a baking sheet for 30 minutes, then transferred to a freezer bag and frozen for up to 3 months. 5. When ready too cook, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the Pierogies in batches for 1-2 minutes, or until they float. Drain.6. To make the butter sauce. In a large skillet, brown the butter over medium heat, stirring often until the butter is golden and toasted. Add the rosemary and garlic and cook 30 seconds to a minute or until fragrant. Remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper. 7. Divide the Pierogies among plates and spoon the butter over the Pierogies. Top with cheddar and parsley. EAT!
What’s not to love of about a pillowy cheese filled dumpling with rosemary butter sauce, you know?
I made 60 of these babies today! It was a labor of love, but something I knew I could accomplish because the recipe is relatively easy to follow (thank you for that!) They turned out amazing and I’m really excited to share them with my family and friends. PS; this is my absolutely favorite website. Hands down
Hi Molly,
Happy Sunday! Thanks for giving the recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
The only pierogies I’ve ever had were frozen, and I baked them on a cookie sheet after brushing them with olive oil so they were a little crispy….would that work for this recipe?
Hi Linda,
Sure, you could do that after they cook in step 5. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
I made the pierogies yesterday and froze them. I only had a three and a half in biscuit cutter so they were larger and I only got eleven, so I’m guessing next time I need to roll the dough even thinner. Today I put them right from the freezer into boiling water till they floated to the top. Then I drained them and blotted them dry and put them on a sheet pan, where I brushed them with olive oil. I baked them for ten minutes at 400 degrees, then flipped them over and baked them for ten more minutes. I didn’t make the sauce, but served them with grated cheddar on top and they were really yummy! However, because I used leftover three cheese mashed potatoes (your recipe) instead of what’s called for, I think next time I make them I will include the salt, pepper and onion powder the recipe listed. The dough was very easy to work with. I pulsed it in the food processor till it formed a ball. Thanks for the great recipe!! Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving 🙂
Hi Linda,
Fantastic! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! Have the best week:) xTieghan
Made a second batch of the pierogies and found a trick to rolling the dough really thin- I pinched off a ball of dough from the large ball and then rolled it out. It was quick and I was able to get much thinner dough that way which equals more pierogies 🙂 These are great and I’m going to make them every time I have leftover mashed potatoes. Never going back to storebought again! Thanks so much and have a wonderful holiday season!
Hey Linda,
Seriously amazing! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Easy and delicious. I usually end up cutting the circles, rolling them thinner, and stuffing with more potato filling.
Hey Rachel,
I am delighted that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it. Happy Sunday! ☀️Tieghan
I do the same because my shoulders had been injured at one point.
I roll the dough as much as I can. Then cut out. Roll each cut out more to make it thinner and fill.
Thanks
Pierogi with cheddar? What a strange idea. Definitely not Polish. Potatoes and special farmer’s cheese is the filling for Polish ruskie pierogi.
Hey Anna! Thanks so much for the info. I had no idea, but am curious to try a more traditional Pierogi now! Thank you! xTieghan
Struggling with the dough. These seem very wet. Used 240 Grams of all purpose flour. Very tough to roll out with out tearing and sticking. Did you really use a full cup of yogurt? I am waiting on my second batch to set up the fridge. Will see how those turn out.
Hey Tom,
So sorry you are having issues with the dough! Did you knead the dough well? This is key. Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
Add some sauted leeks to the filling….
Yum! Thanks Nadine! xTieghan
Hi there – does plain yogurt work (not greek) or is it not thick enough? thanks!
Hey Kristina,
Plain yogurt will work just fine. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Why don’t you use sour cream? I noticed in your comment that your don’t use it. Is there a reason? thanks and sorry for the random question. 🙂
Hey Ann,
I just don’t love it, I prefer to use greek yogurt:) Let me know if you have any other questions! xx
hi would this work with fat free Greek yogurt? TIA. 🙂
Hey Andrew,
Yes that would work! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
In Poland we eat them with melted butter and fried, chipowe onion and we definitly use water in the dough instead of Sour cream or yogurt.
But I like your American take On it too, maybe I will made them 🙂
Yum!! I hope you love this version just as much, Patricia! xTieghan
I had a really hard time with this recipe! I literally make something almost every night from your site/book.
I used whole wheat flour.. do you think that could have hurt my dough? I could not get it rolled out without breaking and when adding to my pierogi press it puffed right back up!
Hi Kelsey,
So sorry you had issues with this recipe, unfortunately I think the whole wheat flour was your issue. Next time I would recommend using all purpose flour. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This recipe was amazing !! After boiling I put them in a frying pan with the rosemary butter sauce. OMG so good!
Thank you Adam! I am so glad to hear that! xTieghan
these are the greatest perogies i have ever tasted keep cooken up great recipe
Thank you! Could I ask why you gave them one star? I hope you really did enjoy! xTieghan
I also grew up eating pierogies, but we always topped ours with sauteed onions, with potatoes and cheese inside. I could literally eat pierogies every day! Can’t wait to try your recipe!! P.S. Yours is my absolute favorite food blog, hands down.
Aw you are too kind!! I am so glad you have been loving my recipes, Laken! I hope you love these pierogies! xTieghan
I beg to differ. Of course fillings are important but there are countless variations and it is almost impossible to go wrong with any of them. Personal taste is the deciding factor. The dough, on the other hand, is crucial. A dough that results in a tough, chewy perogy will always ruin the dish, no matter how good the filling. Only a few recipes published today will produce a dough that will result in the finished product that allows you to totally enjoy this wonderful dish. Take this from someone who has been making perogies for decades and has enjoyed devouring them for even longer.
Thank you so much Ron! Is there a certain recipe that you always make? xTieghan
Pierogies were a staple in my house growing up! I can’t wait to try this homemade version. Is flash freezing necessary because they would stick together if they went into plastic bags immediately?
HI! Yes, it is so that they do not stick together. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!! xTieghan