Kotsyurba (Ukrainian potato and dumpling stew)

Ingredients

• Potatoes
• Salt
• Carrot — 0.5 pcs
• Onion — 1 pcs
• Butter — 1 tbsp
• Potato cooking liquid (reserved broth)
• Flour (for dough and dusting)
• Baking soda — 0.5 tsp

Steps

1. Peel (optional) and cut the potatoes into pieces, place them in a pot, cover with water, salt the water generously, add half a carrot and one onion and 1 tablespoon of butter, and boil until the potatoes are tender and crumbly.
2. When the potatoes are cooked, do not drain the cooking liquid; reserve the pot on the heat so the broth stays hot.
3. Pour a portion of the hot potato broth into a mixing bowl, add a little of the reserved buttered broth and gradually add flour, mixing to form a soft, slightly sticky dough; add half a teaspoon of baking soda and mix until smooth.
4. Pinch off small pieces of the dough with your hands and place them on a board dusted with flour to prevent sticking.
5. Carefully drop the pinched dumplings into the hot potato broth and cook until they float to the surface, then scoop them out with a slotted spoon into the pot with the potatoes (or keep them in the broth so they finish cooking together).
6. Adjust seasoning of the pot with salt if needed and keep the potatoes and dumplings together in the hot broth until ready to serve.
7. Serve the potatoes and dumplings in bowls and top each serving with the pork cracklings and fried onion prepared in the subrecipe.

Pork cracklings with fried onion

• Pork belly (underbelly)
• Onion — 0.5 pcs

1. Cut the pork belly into small pieces and place them in a cold pan; render over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the fat has rendered and the pieces become translucent cracklings.
2. Slice the half onion and add it to the rendered cracklings; fry together until the onion is softened and lightly browned.
3. Remove from heat and keep the cracklings with onion to top the stew at serving.