flipPotato and Cheese Pirohy, Julia Warhola's Way
Potato and Cheese Pirohy, Julia Warhola's Way
Why this dish? Andrew Warhola grew up in a Greek Catholic Rusyn (Lemko) family in Pittsburgh. His mother Julia, an immigrant, made these filled dumplings, the centerpiece of the Rusyn Christmas Eve dinner and the family cooking that nourished his entire childhood.
Half-moons of tender dough filled with mashed potato and cheese, parboiled then browned in butter and onion. The handmade dish of the immigrant home, the exact opposite of the can — but coming from the same hand.
Before the money, before New York, there was my mother's kitchen in Pittsburgh. She barely spoke English and she folded these little dumplings one by one, by hand, hundreds of them, especially for Christmas Eve. Funny: I became famous painting cans, things made by machines, all the same. But these pirohy — none was ever quite like the other. My mother lived with me for twenty years, and she kept making them.
- •Wheat flour — enough (dough)
- •Egg — 1 (binds dough)
- •Potatoes — a few (filling)
- •Fresh cheese or curd — some (filling)
- •Onion — 1 (garnish)
- •Butter — generously (cooking and topping)
Potato and Cheese Pirohy, Julia Warhola's Way
Half-moons of tender dough filled with mashed potato and cheese, parboiled then browned in butter and onion. The handmade dish of the immigrant home, the exact opposite of the can — but coming from the same hand.
Why this dish? Andrew Warhola grew up in a Greek Catholic Rusyn (Lemko) family in Pittsburgh. His mother Julia, an immigrant, made these filled dumplings, the centerpiece of the Rusyn Christmas Eve dinner and the family cooking that nourished his entire childhood.
Before the money, before New York, there was my mother's kitchen in Pittsburgh. She barely spoke English and she folded these little dumplings one by one, by hand, hundreds of them, especially for Christmas Eve. Funny: I became famous painting cans, things made by machines, all the same. But these pirohy — none was ever quite like the other. My mother lived with me for twenty years, and she kept making them.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wheat flour — enough (dough)
- Egg — 1 (binds dough)
- Potatoes — a few (filling)
- Fresh cheese or curd — some (filling)
- Onion — 1 (garnish)
- Butter — generously (cooking and topping)
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour — 300 g (dough)
- Egg — 1 (binder)
- Warm water — 120 ml (hydrates dough)
- Floury potatoes — 400 g (filling)
- Mild cheddar or drained cottage cheese — 150 g (melty filling)
- Onion — 1 large (caramelized in butter)
- Butter — 60 g (final cooking)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Mix flour, egg, warm water, and a pinch of salt into a soft dough; let rest 30 minutes under a cloth.
- Cook potatoes, mash with cheese, salt, pepper: filling should be smooth and warm.
- Roll dough thin, cut out disks, place a dollop of filling, fold into half-moons and seal edges well.
- Poach pirohy in simmering water until they float (3-4 min), then drain.
- Melt onion in butter until golden, fry pirohy in it, and serve topped with the butter.
How it was made : Among the Rusyns (Lemkos) of the Carpathians and their emigrant descendants in Pennsylvania, pyrohy/pirohy are the heart of festive cooking, especially the meatless Christmas Eve supper. They were made in large quantities, together, around the table.
The contemporary twist : Line them up in perfectly even rows on the plate, like a silkscreen grid — the painter son's tribute to his mother's hand.
Sources : Biographies of Andy Warhol (Carpatho-Rusyn origin, Julia Warhola) · Lemko/Rusyn culinary traditions of Pennsylvania
Andy Warhol · Charactorium
