Name: Pyzy ziemniaczane z mięsem: Polish meat-filled potato dumplings
Prep time: 55 min
Cook time: 65 min
Total time: 150 min
Yield: 12 large dumplings
Cuisine: Polish
Ingredients: 500 g ground pork; 150 g yellow onion, finely diced; 15 ml neutral oil; 5 g fine salt; 1 g ground black pepper; 2 g dried marjoram; 1,200 g floury potatoes, peeled weight, for grating raw; 600 g floury potatoes, peeled weight before boiling, for mashing; 150 g potato starch to start, plus up to 50 g held back for adjustment; 1 l arge egg, about 50 g without shell, lightly beaten; 6 g fine salt; 5 l water; 15 g salt; Fried onion, pan drippings or crisp pork cracklings; optional and not included in the nutrition estimate

A wide view of „Pyzy ziemniaczane z mięsem: Polish meat-filled potato dumplings“ arranged on a table for serving.

Yield 12 large dumplings

Servings 6, with 2 dumplings per person

Dish type Polish potato dumplings with meat filling

Difficulty Moderate; the dough needs draining and each dumpling must be sealed

Ingredients ↓

About pyzy z mięsem

Pyzy ziemniaczane z mięsem: Polish meat-filled potato dumplings

Pyzy are part of Poland's varied dumpling tradition, and the name covers more than one local style. Cultural descriptions of Warsaw pyzy feature a dough made with roughly two parts raw potato to one part cooked potato, with meat as one possible filling. Poland's Ministry of Agriculture also records a specific meat-filled pyza from Polskowola in Lubelskie, made with grated and cooked potatoes and a cooked meat-and-onion filling. This recipe takes practical cues from those sources while remaining a home-style adaptation.

The dough uses floury potatoes in two forms. Finely grated raw potato gives it a soft, slightly grey body; cooked mashed potato helps it hold together. Squeezing the grated potato removes excess water, while settling that water lets you return the naturally released potato starch. A little added potato starch and one egg help bind the dough. Add the reserved starch only if a test dumpling needs it, since potato moisture varies.

Cook the pork and onion filling before shaping. Once it has cooled, divide it into compact portions and wrap the potato mixture all the way around each one. Seal every seam, then lower the dumplings into gently simmering salted water in small batches. Serve them hot as a substantial main course, with crisp onion or pork cracklings if you like.

Tips for success

Use floury potatoes for both parts of the dough, and weigh the peeled potatoes so the proportions stay consistent.
Grate the raw potatoes finely. Squeeze until the pulp is damp rather than dripping, but keep the liquid so its settled starch can be returned.
Cool the mashed potato and cooked filling before mixing or shaping; warm ingredients can make the dough sticky and difficult to seal.
Keep each filling portion compact and leave a thick, even layer of dough around it. Patch thin spots before boiling.
Cook one test pyza first. If it splits or sheds dough, mix reserved starch into the remaining dough gradually and test again.
Simmer rather than boil hard, and cook only three or four dumplings at a time so they have room to move.

Ingredients

Pork and onion filling

500 g ground pork
150 g yellow onion, finely diced
15 ml neutral oil
5 g fine salt
1 g ground black pepper
2 g dried marjoram

Potato dough

1,200 g floury potatoes, peeled weight, for grating raw
600 g floury potatoes, peeled weight before boiling, for mashing
150 g potato starch to start, plus up to 50 g held back for adjustment
1 l arge egg, about 50 g without shell, lightly beaten
6 g fine salt

Simmering water

5 l water
15 g salt

Optional to serve

Fried onion, pan drippings or crisp pork cracklings; optional and not included in the nutrition estimate

Method

Directions

Cook the filling.Heat the oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook for 6–8 minutes, stirring, until soft and translucent. Add the ground pork, 5 g salt, pepper and marjoram. Break the meat into small pieces and cook, stirring, until no pink remains and the thickest pieces reach at least 71 °C. Spread the filling in a shallow tray and let it cool. Once cool, divide it into 12 compact portions of about 30–35 g.
Boil and mash half the potatoes.Put the 600 g peeled potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 18–22 minutes, until a knife enters easily. Drain thoroughly, return them to the warm pan over low heat for 1–2 minutes to steam-dry, then mash until smooth. Spread the mash on a tray and cool until no longer hot.
Grate and drain the raw potatoes.Finely grate the 1,200 g raw potatoes. Put the pulp in a clean cloth or fine sieve over a bowl and squeeze firmly until damp rather than dripping. Let the collected liquid stand for 10–15 minutes. Slowly pour away the water, leaving the white starch at the bottom; scrape that starch into the drained potato pulp.
Mix and test the dough.Combine the raw potato pulp with the cooled mashed potatoes, beaten egg and 6 g salt. Mix in 150 g potato starch, keeping up to 50 g aside. The dough should hold together when pressed but stay soft and slightly tacky. Bring the 5 l water and 15 g salt to a boil, then lower it to a gentle simmer. Shape one test dumpling around a little filling and cook it. If it splits or dissolves, add reserved starch to the remaining dough a spoonful at a time and test again.
Fill and seal.With damp hands, divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Flatten one portion in your palm, set a cooled pork portion in the center and wrap the potato dough fully around it. Pinch the seam closed and smooth the surface. Shape each dumpling into an oval about 8 cm long, checking for cracks or thin patches before cooking.
Simmer and serve.Lower 3–4 pyzy at a time into the gently simmering water. Loosen them carefully from the bottom with a slotted spoon. When they rise to the surface, simmer for 4–5 minutes more. Cut the first dumpling open to check that the potato shell is cooked through and hot at the center. Lift out the batch and drain well. Serve hot with fried onion, pan drippings or pork cracklings if desired.

Troubleshooting

The raw potato pulp is still waterySqueeze it again in a clean cloth. Let the liquid settle fully so the recovered starch can be added back separately.
The dough sticks heavily to your handsThe potato mixture may be too wet or still warm. Cool it, then work in reserved starch a spoonful at a time; avoid adding all of it automatically.
The test dumpling breaks apartAdd a little reserved potato starch and check that the water is at a gentle simmer rather than a rolling boil.
The filling leaks throughThe potato layer may be too thin or the seam not fully closed. Use a compact, cool filling portion, cover it evenly and smooth every crack before lowering it into water.
The dumplings are gummy or denseThe dough may have been overworked or the potatoes may have been mashed while waterlogged. Mix only until combined and drain both potato components thoroughly.
The dumplings stick together after cookingCook in smaller batches, lift them with a slotted spoon and drain in a single layer before serving.

Nutrition per serving

Serving basis2 dumplings; one-sixth of the batch
Caloriesabout 575 kcal
Carbohydratesabout 85 g
Proteinabout 22 g
Fatabout 15 g
Saturated fatabout 5 g
Fibreabout 7 g

These rounded values are estimates for the dumplings without optional toppings. Pork fat percentage, potato moisture, the amount of starch retained or added, salt in the cooking water and portion size can change the result. They are not laboratory analysis.

Allergens and food safety

Serving, storage and make-ahead: Serve two large pyzy per person, with the seam side down and a little fried onion, pan drippings or crisp pork cracklings on top. The toppings are optional and are not included in the nutrition estimate.

Serving, storage and make-ahead: You can cook the filling a day ahead. Cool it in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours; keep it covered and use it the next day. Cooked dumplings should also be cooled in shallow containers and refrigerated within 2 hours. Use within 3–4 days or freeze. Reheat leftovers until they reach 74 °C throughout, using a covered pan with a splash of water or gently simmering water. Do not cool a deep pile at room temperature.

This recipe contains egg. Keep the egg refrigerated and wash hands, utensils and work surfaces after handling it. Cook the ground pork to at least 71 °C before cooling it for the filling. Use a clean tray and utensils for the cooked filling; never place cooked meat on a plate that held raw pork. Refrigerate the filling and cooked dumplings within 2 hours. Use cooked leftovers within 3–4 days or freeze, then reheat to 74 °C throughout. Do not taste the raw dough. Simmer the dumplings gently and cut one open to check that the potato shell is fully cooked. Check package labels for cross-contact, and check optional gravy or toppings for additional allergens.