Title: Pelmeni [Siberian Ravioli]
Categories: Appetizer Beef Russian Pastry
Yield: 1 Servings

350	g	Flour
1	ts	Salt
1		Or 2 eggs
1/2		Glass warm water
200	g	Beef
200	g	Pork
		Onions

Making pelmeni begins with the preparation of the pastry. Sift flour into a mound, make a well in the centre and add salt, eggs, warm water and knead the dough. Cover it with a tea towel and leave to stand for 30-40 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the meat filling. Take beef and pork and put through the mincer twice, together with onions. Add first salt and ground black pepper to taste and then some coldboiled water. The mixture should be not quite so thick as for rissoles.

Roll it out thinly, cut out circles and put a small ball of filling onto each. The edges have to be joined and pinched together, which is not as easy as it sounds. No one cook's pelmeni are the same: some make large ones, others small ones.

To serve, cook the pelmeni in boiling salted water for about 10 minutes, until they rise to the surface. They are served with sour cream, melted butter, vinegar, pepper and mustard.

Author's Notes: Someone recently requested a recipe for pelmeni (Siberian Ravioli). I was in the Soviet Union recently, and this is a recipe I brought back with me - I haven't tried it yet, but here it is.

There you have it. Just one small note: I've never made them, but I've bought them at the Russian bazaar we have here every year, and I've found that they are wonderful boiledin chicken broth rather than water.

Recipe By: Christopher Possanza norvien@byron.u.washington.edu

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