Zeppelin is a rather original dish originally from Lithuania. These are large dumplings. They are prepared from potatoes with the addition of meat, served with sauce or fried. If you want to diversify your family menu, try this dish.
This dish appeared in Lithuania and its neighboring countries for a long time, but its modern name took root only during the First World War, when the country was under occupation. Many military airships flew across the sky over Lithuania every day. These airships were manufactured by Zeppelin. And since the dish was very much like airships in shape, everyone began to call it nothing more than zeppelins.
There are a lot of Lithuanian zeppelin recipes, as well as gravies or fries for them.
Boiled and raw potato zeppelins
Zeppelins are made from both raw and boiled potatoes, and, accordingly, the taste of different zeppelins is also different. And the most popular are recipes with raw and boiled potatoes at the same time.
Such zeppelins are very convenient to form, but the preparation process takes a little longer.
What products you need:
- potatoes - 1.5-2 kg;
- minced meat (better pork in half with beef) - 0.5 kg;
- medium-sized onions - 3 pcs.;
- fresh or frozen champignons - 300 g;
- vegetable oil - 3 tablespoons;
- lemon juice - 2-3 tsp;
- starch - 2 tablespoons;
- salt to taste;
- ground black pepper - to taste.
Step-by-step recipe:
- Boil one third of all potatoes. It is recommended to cook potatoes for zeppelins in their uniforms, so they will be more delicious. Then cool and peel it.
- Peel the onion, then chop. Do not grind too much.
- Defrost the mushrooms, if necessary, and then rinse thoroughly, dry and cut into medium pieces.
- Heat a frying pan with vegetable oil, fry the mushrooms on it until half cooked. Then add the onion to the mushrooms and mix.
- When the onion is light golden, remove the pan from the heat and set it aside temporarily.
- Grate the peeled, raw potatoes with the finest grater you can find. To prevent your dish from turning out an ugly dark color, immediately add fresh lemon juice to the potato mass and stir.
- Mash the boiled potatoes until smooth, or puree them with a blender if you have a special nozzle for mashed potatoes.
- Mix both potato masses - boiled and raw - and add starch to them. Season with salt and pepper, stir. The dough is ready!
- Next, you need to do the stuffing. In a separate deep bowl, combine the minced meat with mushrooms and onions. Add some salt and black pepper to the filling.
- Now you can sculpt zeppelins. Divide the dough into equal portions. Each zeppelin is supposed to be about the size of a small female hand.
- Take one piece of dough and crush it in the palms of your hands to form a cake. Place the filling in the middle of the cake. Pinch the edges of the cake and at the same time give your zeppelin an oval shape, slightly tapered at the edges. Repeat this with the rest of the dough and filling.
- Fill a large saucepan with water until it boils. Salt the water, dip all the zeppelins in it.
- Once the zeppelins float to the surface, cook them for about 15-20 minutes. Then very carefully remove them one at a time with a slotted spoon, being careful not to hit or damage the rest.
- Serve hot zeppelins with stir-fry or sauce.
Zeppelin with pork in the oven
If you don't want to bother cooking zeppelins or are not sure what you can do, try cooking zeppelins in the oven. They differ from the classic ones in their beautiful golden crust and maximum ease of preparation. Your family will definitely like it!
What products you need:
- potatoes - 2 kg;
- pork (with the addition of lard) - 0.5 kg;
- medium-sized onions - 2 pcs.;
- garlic - 2-3 cloves;
- fresh herbs - 1 small bunch;
- vegetable oil - 2-3 tablespoons;
- fresh lemon juice - 3 tsp;
- salt to taste;
- black pepper and other spices to taste.
Step-by-step recipe:
- Rinse all potatoes thoroughly. Peel one half of the potatoes and leave the other in the skins.
- Boil the peeled potatoes. Then cool and only then peel off the "uniform".
- Pass the raw peeled potatoes through a very fine grater, then add lemon juice to the mass, mix.
- Thoroughly squeeze out all excess liquid from the potato mass using gauze. To do this, roll the cheesecloth in several layers, place the potatoes in the middle, collect the cheesecloth with a bag and squeeze this bag well with your hands.
- Purée the boiled potatoes with a pusher or blender.
- Mix raw potatoes with boiled ones. Add salt and a little black pepper, stir.
- Pass the pork with onions, garlic and herbs through a meat grinder. Add salt and spices to the minced meat.
- Divide the potato mass into equal parts. Make sure your zeppelins are not too large or too small. Their length should be about 10-11 cm.
- Sprinkle some starch on a table or cutting board. Take the first piece of potato dough and flatten it well. Put the minced meat in the middle of the tortilla, and then form an elongated and slightly pointed zeppelin at the edges.
- Shape the rest of the zeppelins in the same way.
- Heat a skillet with sunflower oil. Fry the zeppelins for 5-10 minutes until light golden brown.
- Line a baking sheet with baking paper or pour some vegetable oil into it and spread with a silicone brush. Place the zeppelins on a baking sheet.
- Preheat the oven to 180-190 degrees. Bake the zeppelins for about 30-35 minutes.
- Serve the baked zeppelins hot with a light sour cream sauce.
Fried bacon and onions
This is a classic zeppelin roast. It is easy to prepare, it always turns out. Zeppelin with this roast becomes even more satisfying and tasty.
What products you need:
- lard (smoked breast or bacon) - 250 g;
- white onion - 1 pc.;
- sunflower oil - 2-3 tablespoons;
- salt - a pinch;
- ground black pepper to taste.
Step-by-step recipe:
- Take lard, smoked brisket or bacon (whichever you prefer), cut it into small pieces.
- Peel the onion and chop finely.
- Heat a skillet with sunflower oil, and then put the prepared bacon on it.
- Add the onion as soon as the fat begins to melt and brown.
- When the onions take on a light golden hue, remove the pan from the heat and season with salt and pepper. Mix everything. The frying is ready!
Sour cream sauce for zeppelins
This delicate and hearty sauce goes no less well with zeppelins than frying lard and onions. Moreover, his recipe is very easy and straightforward.
What products you need:
- low-fat sour cream (10-15%) - 200 ml;
- onion - 1 head;
- sunflower oil - 2-3 tablespoons;
- salt, spices - to taste.
Step-by-step recipe:
- Peel the onion and chop finely with a sharp knife. To keep the onion from pinching your eyes, constantly spray the knife and board with water.
- Take a small frying pan, pour oil into it. Put the onion in a well-heated skillet. Fry the onions until they are golden brown, stirring constantly to prevent them from burning.
- Combine sour cream, onion, salt and spices in a separate bowl. Serve chilled.
