½ cupbread cubesmade from stale white bread, cut into 1/3-inch pieces
1egg
2teaspoonsactive dry yeastor 10 g fresh yeast
½teaspoonsalt
a pinch of granulated sugar
Instructions
Cut the stale white bread into ⅓-inch cubes.
Combine the flour with 2 pinches of salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center. Put yeast in the center, sprinkle with a pinch of sugar. Pour in ⅓ of lukewarm milk and stir with a little flour using a fork. Let it sit for 5 minutes until yeast dissolve.
In a separate bowl, whisk the remaining milk with an egg. Add the mixture to the bowl with flour and yeast.
Knead the dumpling dough until smooth. Use your hands (my choice) or a kitchen mixer with a proper attachment. Add a bit of flour if the dough is too sticky.
Only now add cubed bread and combine.
Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise for 45 minutes in a warm place until double.
Meantime, prepare a pot with low boiling salted water to boil the dumpling or a steamer in case you intend to steam the dumpling.
Divide the proofed dough into two pieces, form a cylinder shape out of each piece. One loaf should be about 8-10 inches (20-25 cm) long and 3-inch (7 cm) thick.
Boiled dumplings:
Boil the dumplings in simmering salted water for 18 minutes, flipping the roll halfway through (after 9 minutes). Cover the pot with a lid while boiling.
Steamed dumplings:
Steam the dumplings for 25 minutes in a pot with a suitable steamer insert or in a steamer covered with a lid. Do not flip the dumpling while steaming.
Finishing:
Take out the cooked dumplings carefully. A large dumpling spatula might be useful.
If you boiled the dumplings, prick them immediately a few times with a fork. Pricking the rolls when taken out of the water is necessary. Otherwise, the steam would remain inside, and the dumplings wouldn’t be as fluffy as they should be.
You do not prick steamed dumplings, since they don’t absorb as much water as their boiled siblings.
Slice dumplings into 1/2-inch thick pieces and serve warm as a side dish.
Notes
Makes 2 dumpling rolls (each roll makes about 12-15 dumpling slices, it will be enough for 4-6 yields)
If you don’t serve the dumplings right after cooking, brush their surface with a little melted lard or butter. This way, the dumpling rolls remain soft, and the surface won’t dry out.
How to slice the dumplings right: The old-fashioned method Czechs slice knedlíky is by using a cotton thread. You can cut a still warm dumpling roll with a very sharp knife. You can also use a dumpling cutter – the whole roll will be sliced in one step.
Steamed dumplings will always offer the most visually appealing result. The surface will be pretty smooth and regular.
TIP: Every flour is different. If the dough is too thin, add a little flour. And vice versa: if the dough is too dense, add a little water by teaspoonfuls.