The proper way to roll out pierogi dough for the best tasting and best looking pierogi.
A properly rolled out pierogi dough makes a very big difference in the end product.
In the first clip you see a member of the Warsaw Slow Food organization teaching a couple how to properly roll out a pierogi dough.
Note in these videos that the rollout process involves putting the rolling pin in the center of the dough and rolling to the outer edge.
When you are rolling the dough you are kneading it. And kneading a dough makes it tougher. So you want to minimize the number of times that you apply the roller to a dough. Rolling from the center uses the fewest strokes.
As you work the dough it will get tacky and you will probably have to add some flour to the surface in order to roll it out.
But as it gets thinner, it is best only to add flour between the dough and the rolling bench and to avoid adding flour to the top of the dough. You want the top of the dough to be flour free so that it is easy to create an effective seal.
Always remember that people eat pierogi for the filling and not for the dough. So roll your dough very thin.
You see a properly rolled dough held up to the light. That shows you how thin that dough is.
Also note that the dough held up for you to look at is very elastic.The dough is “ciasto parzone” or blanched dough – a dough made with boiling hot water.