Perfect Pierogi pizza is packed with garlic mashed potatoes, cheddar cheese, fresh yogurt, dry herbs and mozzarella cheese. My favorite Pittsburgh-area invention!
What is Pierogi Pizza?
Pierogi, the delicious dumplings of unleavened bread filled with potato, meat, or sweet food like fruit or cheese, are native to Poland and the Ukraine, where they’re considered a national food. Pizza, on the other hand, is consumed around the world, but is famous as an export of Italy, and of the city of Naples in particular. But, pierogi pizza, on the other hand, with its heavy use of mashed potato on an otherwise standard pizza, belongs to neither Polish or Italian cuisine, and was invented in the United States of America where the famous American “melting pot” allowed Polish and Italian migrants to convene, mix with one another and eventually produce this distinctive, if unorthodox, meal. Pierogi pizza is very carb-heavy and very starchy, but it’s fantastic winter warmer food and is sure to delight even the most discerning of palates.
Pierogi Pizza
This pizza might be considered an American take on the Italian concept of cucina povera, or “poor kitchen” cooking. Pittsburgh, the second largest city in the Eastern state of Pennsylvania, claims to have invented the pierogi pizza, and the dish is stubbornly representative of its Middle American roots. It’s hardy, practical and not particularly good for you, but it’ll fill your belly and give you enough energy to go to work in the morning. For a long time, that’s all that the American working class – which was comprised primarily of recent European migrants, many of whom in the post-war period were of Polish or Italian origin – ever demands of its cuisine. Although the trend in American food these days seems to be a dichotomy of organic, leafy, locally produced superfood and greasy fast food burgers, once upon a time every working household ate practically, and ate well.
Pittsburgh built its wealth on the steel industry, providing much of the metal to other manufacturing industries in the United States. Pittsburgh steel was renowned on a national and international scale for its workmanship and durability, and as a result Pittsburgh boasted a rough, working class reputation comparable to Liverpool, Manchester or Newcastle, the northern English powerhouses of the Industrial Revolution. Pierogi pizza would have provided Pittsburgh’s steel workers with the stamina and energy to do their physically demanding jobs day in and day out while simultaneously holding on to both their Old World heritage and the mingling of cultures in their American home.
How do you make pierogi pizza (TIPS)
Be wary that, when putting your pierogi pizza into the oven, the mashed potato will thin and spread out on the pizza base as it heats up. To prevent spillage, leave a moat of around three to four inches of pizza surrounding your mashed potato in the center. Although you can use frozen pizza dough for this pierogi pizza recipe, it’s best to make your own dough, as fresh dough always tastes the best. Make sure your onions aren’t too moist after being caramelized, as you’ll have more than enough moisture in your pizza from the mashed potato already, and you don’t want to saturate the pizza dough and make it all soggy. Excessive water leads to an excess of hot steam, which can even cause explosive bubbles to form in your topping and burst all over the oven, so be sure to remove as much moisture as you can from both the mashed potato and your onions.
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PIEROGI PIZZA RECIPE
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PIEROGI PIZZA RECIPE
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Yield: 6
Description
Perfect Pirogi pizza is packed with garlic mashed potatoes, cheddar cheese, fresh yogurt, dry herbs and mozzarella cheese. My favorite Pittsburgh-area invention!
Ingredients
- Pizza Crust
- Active Dry Yeast- 1 tbsp
- All -purpose flour- 3 ½ cup
- Warm water- 1 ½ cup ( 100 degrees, but not hot)
- Olive oil- 3 tbsp
- Salt- 1 tbsp
- Sugar- 1 tsp
- No-stick grilling spray ( for greasing)
- Filling
- Potatoes( boiled and mashed) - 4 large
- Baked garlic cloves- 4 ( grated)
- New Zealand Cheddar Cheese- 200 gm
- Fried turkey pieces- 200-300 gm
- Mozzarella Cheese- 400 gm
- Yogurt- 2 tbsp ( per a pizza)
- Dry oregano- ½ tsp
- Basil - ½ tsp
Instructions
- Take a medium bowl,combine 1 tbsp of active dry yeast with 1 ½ cup of warm but not hot water. Add 1 tsp of sugar and stir well. Put it aside for 5-10 minutes until yeast is completely dissolved.
- Add 3 ½ cup of all- purpose flour, 1 tbsp of salt, 3 tbsp of olive oil. Mix well.
- Knead the dough on the slightly dusted surface for 10 minutes. If you find that dough is a little bit wet, add ¼ cup flour and keep kneading. You will end with elastic and smooth dough.
- Form 2 balls, coat them with olive oil and transfer in bowls. Cover with plastic and let it rise for a few hours. Keep in mind that dough will rise in the warm environment only ( 27 C or 80 F).
- NOW IT IS TIME TO ASSEMBLE OUR PIEROGI PIZZA!
- Preheat your oven to 225 C or 425 F. Grease pizza baking tray with wholes.
- Spread sour cream over the rolled pizza crust.Top generously with grated cheddar cheese.
- In a large bowl mash boiled potatoes. Add grated baked garlic,fried turkey pieces, dry oregano,basil herbs and black pepper. Combine well.
- Top cheddar cheese with mashed potatoes.
- Finally top with cheddar and mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 25-30 min. Serve immediately with sour cream.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Pizza Recipes
- Cuisine: Italian
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