Reuben Perogy

Jun
18

I have not had a reuben sandwich in ages! My husband ordered a reuben sandwich at the Enjoy Centre not long ago and he had no choice but to share. My mouth is watering as I am writing this entry; the flavour of the sauerkraut and hot smoked meat together, the heat from the mustard and sweetness of the sauce came together deliciously!

I began to conjure up ideas for a perogy recipe. Let’s just get into it, shall we?

A traditional reuben is made up of rye bread, a filling of sauerkraut, caraway seeds, smoked meat or corned beef, swiss cheese and a thousand island sauce or Russian sauce, a sauce with a base of mayo, ketchup and horseradish. There are variations on the Russian sauce and I made a basic sauce using what I had in the fridge. I did not add caraway seeds because I do not like them at all. My late great Babcia would flavour her sweet sauerkraut dishes and beef stews with the seed and I would always pick out each and every little seed. Yes it did leave behind the seed flavour but I could not stand to bite into the actual seed! The meat I used was a smoked kielbasa that I purchased from a local Polish deli shop known as Hunter sausage.

I decided to bake the perogy to be able to hold the filling in and have the texture of rye sandwich bread.

Rye Perogy Dough

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup rye flour
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup warm water
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 tbsp. melted butter
  • 1 egg with a little water for the egg wash
Reuben filling
  • 1 round link of smoked kielbasa, diced
  • 3 cups store bought jar of sauerkraut, chopped
  • 1/2 onion, chopped very fine
  • 150ml of beer ( i used a lager that we had on hand, but a darker ale might be a better choice to add more depth and flavour. With the lager, once cooked down with the filling the flavour was reminiscent of white wine, which could also be used in place of beer)
  • fresh cracked pepper
  • slices of swiss cheese (slices will be placed on perogy dough, upon which the filling will be added; I just used a marble cheese that I had on hand; swiss cheese will add much more flavour; maybe a smoked gouda can be added in future?)
Russian Sauce
  • 2 tbsp mayo
  • 1 tbsp ketchup
  • 1 tbsp sweet chili sauce
  • salt and pepper
  • creamed horseradish; I used a roasted beet and horseradish sauce that I had made at Easter time. In Polish it is called cwikla (pron. ch-vee-kwa). Goes great with meat sandwiches and on hard boiled eggs.
1. Mix all dough dry ingredients in bowl.
2. Mix all wet ingredients for dough in separate bowl, adding to dry mix. Mix with hands or let your mixer do the work for you!
3. Turn out dough on floured surface and knead until dough is soft. Cover and let rest while the filling is made.
4. Saute onion and sausage together in pan until lightly browned. No need to add oil as the fat from the sausage will help cook the onions and meat together.
5. Add sauerkraut and beer, cooking on med-low heat. Add some fresh cracked pepper for seasoning. Cook until most of beer is absorbed, about 10-15 minutes.
6. Let filling cool. In the meantime make the russian sauce as a side and at this time set the oven for 350F.
7. For the sauce, mix all ingredients together and refrigerate.
8. When filling cooled, begin to roll out your perogy dough until about 3mm in thickness. I used a 3.5″ diameter glass/cookie cutter this time.
9. Place a slice of cheese on the dough circle, followed by 2 tbsp of filling.
10. Continue to bring together the dough like a taco and pinch the sides to form your perogy.
11. Place on parchment paper on baking sheet. Paint some egg wash on each perogy and puncture with fork. At this point, if caraway seeds are up your alley go ahead and sprinkle some on.
12. Bake for about 12 minutes, flipping over halfway to get both sides nicely browned.
13. Serve with the homemade russian sauce and a side of dill pickles.And a glass of beer.
Just a side note, the filling for this recipe can also be used as a main or side dish alone. Add some chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, bacon, beef cubes, peppercorns, and potatoes and you have yourself a typical rustic Polish dish known as Bigos (pron. bee-gos). I love my bigos, especially in the winter, around a fire or at home with family and friends, served with a thick slice of rye or sourdough bread and a beer. My mom makes huge batches a few times a year and shares the wealth. Quick and easy, makes lots and freezes really well!
Smacznego!

Categories: Fusion, SavouryNo Comments

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