Lithuanian Cepelinai Dumplings (Printable Version)

Hearty potato dumplings filled with meat and served with sour cream and bacon sauce.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Dumplings

01 - 3.3 lbs starchy potatoes, peeled
02 - 2 medium boiled potatoes, mashed
03 - 1 tsp salt
04 - 1 tbsp potato starch (optional)

→ Meat Filling

05 - 9 oz ground pork
06 - 5 oz ground beef
07 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
08 - 1 clove garlic, minced
09 - 1 tsp salt
10 - ½ tsp black pepper

→ Sauce

11 - 5 oz bacon or smoked pork belly, diced
12 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
13 - 1¼ cups sour cream
14 - 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped (optional)

# Step-by-Step Guide:

01 - Grate raw potatoes finely. Place in cheesecloth or clean towel, squeeze out excess liquid. Let liquid stand, pour off water, reserve potato starch sediment.
02 - In a bowl, combine squeezed grated potatoes, mashed boiled potatoes, salt, and reserved potato starch. Mix into cohesive dough, adding starch if too wet.
03 - Mix ground pork, ground beef, onion, garlic, salt, and black pepper until well combined.
04 - With wet hands, shape a portion of dough into a patty about the size of a large egg. Place a heaping tablespoon of meat filling in center, enclose filling, and form an oval-shaped dumpling, sealing completely. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
05 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle simmer. Carefully add dumplings in batches, ensuring they do not stick. Simmer 25 to 30 minutes until dumplings float and firm.
06 - Fry diced bacon over medium heat until crisp. Add onion and sauté until golden. Stir in sour cream and dill, heat gently without boiling.
07 - Plate hot dumplings and spoon bacon and sour cream sauce over them.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • They're comfort food that actually feels special, the kind of dish that makes people linger at the table longer than they planned.
  • Once you nail the technique, you can make a huge batch and freeze them, turning a weekend effort into weeknight magic.
  • The bacon and sour cream sauce is so good you'll find yourself scraping the skillet with a spoon when no one's looking.
02 -
  • The dough is forgiving up until you cook it, but undercooked filling is a real problem—always let those dumplings simmer the full 25 to 30 minutes, and don't trust just the floating; they need time for the meat to be safe and tender.
  • Never boil your dumplings aggressively or they'll crack and leak filling into the water, turning the outside pasty and sad.
  • If you're not serving immediately, keep them warm in a low oven with foil loosely draped on top rather than stacking them, so they don't steam themselves into mush.
03 -
  • Keep your hands wet while shaping dumplings—it's the best tool you have for preventing sticking and keeping the dough from drying out.
  • Save the potato cooking water to add back to the dough if it feels too dry; it's gentler than plain water and won't dilute the potato flavor.
  • If your sour cream is very thick, thin it slightly with a splash of the dumplings' cooking water before saucing, so it coats smoothly rather than clumping.
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