This is a rich flaky pastry, filled normally with a mixture of salmon, cabbage, and mushrooms (many other filling choices are possible as well), then rolled up and baked. It is served hot or cold in thick slices, with the addition of extra butter and the inevitable sour cream or hot chicken bouillon.
I would have never attempted to take on this recipe without the presence of an expert like my grandma by my side. What changed my mind is a book by Anya Von Bremzen “Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking: A Memoir of Food and Longing”. In this book Anya Von Bremzen describes the life of her family in Russia during the years of 1910-2011. After reading it, I felt like it filled in my mind many missing pieces of the puzzled history of my home county and inspired me to make this dish.
Ingredients:
Pastry
- ¼ cup warm milk
- 2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 tsp. sugar
- 1 large raw egg
- 2 hard-cooked eggs
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 8 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut in small cubes
- + 4 Tbs. for the filling
- 2¼ cups flour, more if needed
- 3 Tbs. canola oil
Filling
- 8 oz. salmon, cut into 1-inch
pieces - 8 oz. cod, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 medium chopped onions
- 10 oz cremini mushrooms, finely
chopped - 1 cup cooked rice3 Tbs. chopped dill
- 3 Tbs. chopped parsley
- 2 Tbs. vermouth or dry sherry
- 2 Tbs. lemon juice
- 3 Tbs. chicken stock
- Pinch of nutmeg
- pepper
For assembling
- 2-3 Tbs. dried bread crumbs
- 1 egg yolk whisked with 2 tsp.
milk for glazing
Directions
Pastry
In a medium bowl stir together : ¼
cup warm milk, 2¼
teaspoons active dry yeast and 2
tsp. sugar and let
stand until foamy. Whisk in the raw egg,
½ cup sour cream, and the salt.
In a large bowl, combine the 8 tablespoons of cut butter with 2¼ cups flour.
Using your fingers, work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles
coarse bread crumbs. Add the yeast mixture and stir well with your hands to
make a soft dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Bring the dough to room temperature, about 1
hour. Grease a mixing bowl with a little butter or oil. Turn the dough out onto
a floured work surface and kneads, adding more flour as needed, until smooth
and no longer sticky, about 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to the greased bowl,
cover with plastic wrap, and leave in a warm place until doubled in size, about
2 hours.
Filling
In a large skillet heat the oil and 2
tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add the salmon and cod and cook,
turning once, with fish just begins to flake, about 7 minutes. Transfer the
fish to a large bowl. Return the skillet to medium-high heat and add the
remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Add the onions and cook until golden. Add the
mushrooms and cook until they are golden and the liquid they throw off has
evaporated, about 7 minutes, adding more oil if the skillet looks dry. Transfer
the mushrooms and onions to the bowl with the fish. Add the remaining ¼ cup
sour cream, the hard-cooked eggs, rice, dill, parsley, vermouth, lemon juice,
stock and nutmeg. Mix everything well with 2 forks, stirring gently to break up
the fish. Season with salt and pepper. Let the filling cool to room temperature.
Assembling
Preheat the oven 400°F with the rack set in the center. Half the dough and form 2 logs. On two lightly floured sheets of wax paper, roll each log into a 10×16-inch rectangle.
Transfer one dough sheet to a large foil-lined baking
sheet. Sprinkle with bread crumbs, leaving 1-inch border. Spread the filling
over the bread crumbs, leaving 1-inch border.
Spread the filling over the bread
crumbs in a neat compact layer. Drape the remaining dough over the filling and
pinch the edges to seal. Trim excess dough from the edges, and reserve scarps.
Fold up the edges of dough and crimp decoratively. Let the kulebiaka rise for
15 minutes. Brush the top of pastry with egg glaze made of 1 egg yolk whisked with 2 tsp. milk.
Poke small holes through the top of the dough for steam to escape. Bake
until golden and beautiful, about 35 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, cut into
slices, and serve.