Czech Dumplings Food

TRADITIONAL CZECH BREAD DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
• Whisk together egg yolks and milk in a separate medium bowl.
• Pour the egg-milk mixture into the bowl with flour.
• Work the dough-with a Danish dough whisk, hands, or a stand mixer with the dough hook-until it no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl.
• Cover and let stand for 1 hour.
• Bring a large stockpot of salted water to a slow boil.
• Work the 4 cups of bread cubes into the batter by hand or in a stand mixer with the dough hook until well incorporated.
• Shape the dough using floured hands into 3 or 4 rolls that are about 8 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide.
• Carefully slip the rolls into the water once it is boiling, giving them a stir so they don't stick. If the pot doesn't comfortably fit all the rolls, boil them in batches.
• Reduce heat, cover, and cook 10 to 15 minutes. Cooking the rolls at a rapid boil can cause them to disintegrate.
• Remove 1 dumpling from the pot using a slotted spoon after 10 minutes of cooking and test for doneness by cutting through the middle of the dumpling with a thread or sharp knife. The dumpling is done when the knife comes out almost clean after slicing it.
• Remove the dumplings one by one when done and slice into 3/4-inch pieces using either a thread or sharp knife. Repeat until all dumplings are removed from the water and sliced.
• Serve warm with gravy and garnish with fresh parsley.

KNEDLIKY - CZECH DUMPLING WITH SAUERKRAUT (ZELI)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center, and pour in the eggs and 1 cup of milk. Stir to blend, and add enough additional milk to make a moist battery dough, not like pancake batter. Use a sturdy wooden spoon to beat the dough at least 200 strokes, rolling it over and over in the bowl until smooth and an occasional bubble appears on the surface. Add the dry white bread cubes, and stir into the dough until they disappear.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place the dough onto a cheesecloth or white cotton cloth, and form into a loaf shape. Wrap the cloth around the loaf, and tie the ends.
• Place the loaf into the boiling water, and cook for 45 minutes, turning the loaf over about half way through. Remove from the water, unwrap, and cover with a tea towel. Let stand for 10 minutes.
• Fry bacon in a small skillet over medium-high heat until evenly browned. Set aside. Place the drained sauerkraut into a saucepan, and add enough water to cover the surface. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add bacon, and season with salt, pepper and caraway seeds. Stir together the cornstarch and water; mix into the sauerkraut, and simmer for a few minutes before removing from the heat.
• Slice the dumpling loaf. Drizzle dumpling slices with some of the roast drippings from the pan. Serve with sauerkraut.

CZECH DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• Beat egg and milk together until smooth. Beat in flour and salt. Mixture will be thick: add a little more milk if needed.
• Beat about three minutes.
• Fold in bread cubes. Form into a rough cylinder.
• Allow mixture to sit for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• Carefully drop dumpling into boiling water.
• Boil covered for 15 minutes.
• Uncover, and boil an additional 10 minutes.

CZECH BREAD DUMPLINGS (KNEDLíKY)

Steps:

• Combine warm milk, sugar, and yeast in a bowl. Let sit and bloom for about 10 minutes.
• Add egg and kosher salt to the yeast mixture. Pour in 2 ¾ cups flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until it starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and forms a dough.
• Knead on a lightly floured surface until dough is smooth and slightly elastic, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, flipping the dough to coat the top in oil. Cover and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Transfer back to your work surface; press out the excess air and form dough into a relatively uniform ball.
• Cut dough into two equal pieces. Form each piece into a uniform ball. Roll each ball into a tube, 2 to 2 ½ inches wide.
• Cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let proof for 20 to 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a steady simmer.
• Carefully pick up a risen piece of dough and transfer to the simmering water. Bring back to a simmer. Cover tightly and let simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover, flip, and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes.
• Transfer to a plate and poke all over with a toothpick or wooden skewer, which releases the steam from the center.
• Use a piece of string or thread to cut into 3/4- to 1-inch dumplings. Transfer to a serving plate.
• Repeat Steps 9 to 11 to cook remaining dough.

CZECH POTATO DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• Peel and boil potatoes until done.
• Drain potatoes and mash.
• Do not add butter or milk.
• Cool potatoes in refrigerator until cold.
• Mix in order given.
• Mix well, and knead on a floured board until smooth.
• Divide dough in half and make each half of dough into a roll about 3 inches in diameter and about 12 inches long.
• Cut into dumplings about 2 inches long with a sharp knife that has been dipped in flour.
• While you are cutting the dumplings, bring a large stockpot about 2/3 full of water with 1 teaspoon of salt added to water to a boil.
• Once the water is boiling, add half of the dumplings to the water and stir so they don't stick to the bottom.
• Boil for 15 minutes.
• Remove from water with slotted spoon to drain.
• Place dumplings in roaster sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
• Cover and keep warm in oven set to low.
• Boil the rest of the dumplings, remove from water and add to roaster.
• Serve.
• These are wonderful eaten with butter or sauerkraut or gravy.
• I use all of my leftover mashed potatoes for this recipe.
• To freeze:.
• Place leftover dumplings on waxed paper lined baking sheets and freeze until solid.
• Remove from baking sheet and place in ziplock freezer bags to store in freezer.
• Will keep for 6 months in freezer.