Postcard from Bishkek

The first time I came across Syrniki, I thought of them as  ”fat pancakes”.  (If you go to the Sierra coffee house here in Bishkek, for example, they have some pretty impressive thick pancakes, quite unlike the wafer thin Russian Blinis, a traditional Russian which are popular here in Kyrgyzstan both for breakfast and as a snack.

Syrniki are another culinary import, (wither Russian or Ukrainian), but whereas pancakes can be sweet of savoury, they are basically billed as a dessert,  dressed with smetana, (sour cream), jam, honey or something like apple sauce.

The  name is derived from the Russian word syr, which means cheese.  That’s because the dough used for the syrniki are made from quark, a form of white cheese – which is sometimes referred to as a “cottage cheese” although, strictly speaking, there are differences.  (Quark is an old German name – and apparently Tacitus describes the Germanic people’s of Roman times eating this sort of cheese.)    In America this form of cheese is often known as “Farmers’ Cheese” and in Russia, this type of dairy produce is also known as Tvorok - hence these little fried cakes are sometimes called tvorozhniki.

The cheese is made by warming soured milk until it changes form, when it is strained by hanging it to drain through the mesh of a cheesecloth sack or packet.   It may have more curds or cream added and in Germany rennet may be added in order to assist it to set.  It is often used as an ingredient ion sandwiches, salads, cakes and as fillings in Vareniki, (a sort of ravioli), and it can be mixed with mashed potato to make a form of pi-rogi.  When mixed with vegetable oil and flour it can use to make a dough which can be used in baking.

Syrniki are not only a versatile, pleasant and tasty snack, they are also relatively easy to make.  Here is a recipe for Syrniki:

For enough syrniki for about 4 to 5 people, you’ll need

• about 800g of the tvorok or curd cheese,
• 4 eggs,
• 4 tablespoonfuls of semolina and
• 3 tablespoonfuls of sugar,
• 50g of flour,
• 30g of vegetable oil.

A simple vanilla sauce would need

• about 100ml of cream,
• a tablespoonful of sugar and
• just a touch of vanilla on the tip of a knife

1. The first stage is to crack the eggs into a bowl and beat with a whisk or fork, adding the semolina, and when fully mixed together leave the mixture to stand for 10- minutes.

 

 

 

 

2. The Cheese should be placed in a bowl and “mashed”.  The egg and semolina mix should be poured over it, add the sugar, (you can also add a little of the flour),  and mix well.

 

 

 

 

3. Take some of the resulting dough with a wet spoon and form the syniki shape … roll in the flour – be sure to coat both sides.

 

 

 

 

 

4. Pour the cooking oil into a warmed frying pan and place the syrniki into it.  Fry on both sides until a golden brown.

 

 

 

 

 

5. Lay the cooked syniki on a plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with sour cream – or jam, honey of some other sauce.   For a simple vanilla sauce: warm the cream, sugar and vanilla on a low heat, mixing thoroughly.

 

 

 

 

Tags: Food and Drink, For_the_Record, Life_in_Kyrgyzstan