Your Frozen Pierogi Are Begging For Breadcrumbs To Give Them Texture

If you haven't experienced the deliciousness of pierogi yet, do yourself a favor and get down to the nearest Polish restaurant for a fresh plate. Okay, maybe you don't have a Polish restaurant nearby, but you can still try the next best thing: frozen pierogi from the supermarket. Pierogi are an Eastern European take on dumplings, using unleavened dough to hold a range of sweet or savory toppings, such as potatoes, onions, cheese, and fruits. When you buy them from the supermarket, they're convenient, easy to prepare, and great to have in a pinch.

Great though they may be, pierogi do suffer from one textural drawback. Since they are boiled dumplings, they have a fairly soft consistency. Even when you finish them in a saute pan, they are sorely lacking good textural contrast. Thankfully, breadcrumbs exist, which you probably have sitting in your pantry already. To add breadcrumbs to your pierogi, boil them until they are 80 percent cooked, then drain them. Then, add the dumplings to a pan full of melted butter to get them coated and starting to fry. Finally, sprinkle on a generous handful of breadcrumbs and let everything fry together for another minute or two to let the flavors mingle. And voila, you've got buttery pierogi with a bit of crunch!

There are more ways than breadcrumbs to level up the taste and texture of your frozen pierogi. When you consider the common fillings, like potatoes, cheese, onions, and meat, it's easy to amplify those delicious flavor combinations. Grab an onion and some garlic from your fridge or pantry. Slice the onion how you like, and lightly saute it together with garlic and herbs until they are just starting to become soft. When you add your semi-boiled pierogi with the onions and bring it all together with a bit of butter and a healthy sprinkling of breadcrumbs, you have a savory, crunchy dish that won't break the bank.

Want to add some protein to the party? Grab a kielbasa sausage from the market and cut it into coins. Fry them together with some onions, and your diners won't even know they are eating frozen pierogi. Then add breadcrumbs to provide a crunch that you won't get from the other ingredients alone. And if you want to experiment with even more flavor, pick up some Italian-style breadcrumbs from the market to bring classic herbs like oregano, parsley, and basil to the mix.