Vegan pierogi with mushroom filling. A simple recipe for Polish dumplings with a delicious filling of mushrooms, caramelized onions and vegan “bacon” made from coconut chips. The pierogi are part of my Polish Christmas menu and a vegan inspiration from our family recipe.
Wigilia – Christmas Eve full of Polish traditions
Today I have the second part – the main course – of my Polish Christmas menu for you. In the first part (you can find the recipe here) I already gave you a little insight into our Christmas traditions and presented you our traditional starter: vegan mushroom soup.
When I was young, my grandparents from Poland came to Germany a few times for Christmas. And such a visit always meant: (many) Pierogi! My mom did pierogi more often, too, but I don’t know anyone who can patiently stand in the kitchen for so many hours, fill and shape hundreds of perfect pierogi like my Babcia.
And how should it be otherwise: of course the Polish Pierogi are also part of our Christmas menu!
Our Polish Christmas menu
Our Christmas dinner is a traditional 3 course menu. I asked my mother about the recipes and received rough instructions on how to prepare the recipes. Every recipe was cooked vegan by me, slightly modified, partly improvised and a few steps “simplified”.
Of course, nothing beats the food from my mom or babcia (my Polish grandma), but I’m more than happy with my first vegan Christmas menu!
Today I will present you the main course. Dessert will follow at the weekend!
The main course: vegan pierogi with mushroom filling
Several dishes are served on Christmas Eve. Typical are fish (mostly carp or salmon) with potatoes, red cabbage, sauerkraut with mushrooms and – most importantly – pierogi!
Pierogi can be prepared in different variations (sweet and savory). For example:
- Pierogi ruski (potato and cream cheese filling)
- Pierogi z miesem (meat filling)
- Pierogi z kapusta i grzybami (sauerkraut and mushroom filling)
- Sweetly filled pierogi – a childhood dream!
Pierogi with sauerkraut and mushrooms are traditional at Christmas. Since we didn’t like sauerkraut as children, pierogi with mushroom filling have also become a tradition over time. (By the way, today I’m a big fan of the sauerkraut variant).
I modified the recipe a little for my vegan Polish-style Christmas menu. Instead of porcini mushrooms, I used fried mushrooms with onions for the filling and a boiled and peeled potato to thicken. Instead of potatoes, you can also use breadcrumbs (more alternatives in the recipe notes).
Vegan pierogi – tips for preparation
A small excerpt from my mom’s recipe instructions for me: “… and cut out circles. Put the filling on it and have fun gluing it together.” Haha. But with a little sensitivity and practice it works very well. Here are a few important tips to ensure that everything works out during preparation:
- If the dough is too sticky for the pierogi, add more flour. If the dough is too dry, however, add a little more water.
- Pierogi are best shaped and glued together with lightly floured fingers.
- When cooking the pierogi, it is important that the water does not boil too much, otherwise they could burst.
Good to know:
- The potato works as a binding. Instead, you can also use breadcrumbs for binding.
- For a sauerkraut and mushroom filling: use sauerkraut instead of potatoes and bind the mixture with a little breadcrumbs.
- Pierogi can also be frozen uncooked. To do this, place pierogi on a floured plate and put in the freezer until they are firm. Then carefully remove from the plate, put in freezer bags and store in the freezer compartment.
Pierogi with caramelized onions and vegan “bacon”
The pierogi taste best when served with caramelized onions and bacon. It’s also easy to do it vegan. For this I used my smoky and crispy “bacon” alternative made from coconut chips. For the quick and vegan variant, the coconut chips are marinated in oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, smoked paprika powder and smoked salt and then baked in the oven until crispy.
Looking for more vegan lunch or dinner recipes? Try one of these…
- Vegan Lasagna
- Oven Baked Crepes with Spinach Feta Filling
- Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
- Lentil Pumpkin Curry with Naan bread
- Creamy Tomato Soup
- Pumpkin Soup with crispy chickpeas
- Pumpkin Curry
- Cauliflower Soup with vegan Bacon
- Pumpkin Lasagna with Spinach and Cashew Ricotta
- Lentil Stew
- Fettuccine Alfredo with Brussels Sprouts
- Carrot Ginger Soup
- Creamy Mushroom Soup
If you make the vegan pierogi recipe, be sure to leave a comment and / or give this recipe a rating! I love to hear from you guys and how my recipes tasted to you! If you do make this recipe, share your creation on Instagram as a photo and use the hashtag #byanjushka. Always so happy to look through your photos of recipes!
Vegan Pierogi with mushroom filling, caramelized onions and coconut bacon
Ingredients
Pierogi Dough
- 250 g flour
- 1 pinch of salz
- 100 ml lukewarm water or more
Mushroom Filling*
- 1 potato*
- 2 tbsp oil
- 150 g mushrooms chopped
- 1 onion chopped
- salt and pepper
Coconut Bacon
- 75 g coconut chips
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp red pepper powder (smoked)
- 1/2 tsp smoked salt
Caramelized onions
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 onions chopped
- salt and sugar
Instructions
Pierogi Dough
- Put the flour and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the middle. Gradually pour in the warm water. Knead into a smooth dough for about 8-10 minutes. Add more water or flour as needed *. The dough shouldn't stick to your hands.Then cover with a cloth and let rest for 30 minutes.
Mushroom Filling
- Cook the potato in salted water until cooked. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion until golden brown. Add the mushrooms and fry for another 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Then set aside.
- As soon as the potato is cooked, drain it and press it through a potato press while still warm or mash it with a potato masher.
- Mix the mashed potato with the fried mushrooms and the oil from the pan well and season generously with pepper and salt to taste *. Put aside.
Pierogi
- Roll out the pierogi dough on a floured work surface 2-3 mm thin. Cut out circles with a cookie cutter or glass. Quickly knead the remaining dough together and cover.
- Place about 1 tsp of the filling in the middle of the circle. Moisten the edges with a little water. Fold the circles together and press the edges firmly with floured fingers. Make sure that the filling is not squeezed out and that everything is well sealed.
- Place the pierogi on a lightly floured plate and cover until boiling to prevent them from drying out *. Then continue until the batter is used up.
- In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil with a little salt and a dash of oil. As soon as the water boils, reduce the temperature and carefully add the pierogi in portions (approx. 15 pieces). The water should only simmer slightly, otherwise the pierogi can burst. Stir gently from time to time.
- As soon as the pierogi float on the surface of the water, simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Then remove with a ladle. Serve with caramelized onion and coconut bacon.
Coconut Bacon
- Mix all ingredients well in a bowl and let the coconut chips soak in the marinade. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 180 degrees top and bottom heat and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
- As soon as the oven is warm, spread the coconut chips on the baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes until crispy. Turn once after about 8 minutes of baking time.
Caramelized Onions
- Heat the oil in a pan. Sauté the onion in it until translucent over medium heat. Add a pinch of salt and sugar and fry for another 10 minutes until the onion is golden brown.
Notes
- For a sauerkraut and mushroom filling, use sauerkraut instead of potatoes and bind the mixture with a little breadcrumbs.The potato serves as a binding agent.
- Instead of the potato, you can also use breadcrumbs to bind it.
- If the dough is too sticky, add more flour. If the dough is too dry, add a little more water.
- If the filling is so coarse, put the mixture in a chopper and chop finely, but not creamy.
- The pierogi can also be frozen uncooked. To do this, place pierogi on a floured plate and put in the freezer until they are firm. Then carefully remove from the plate, put in freezer bags and store in the freezer.
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