3 most popular recipes for Russian ‘bliny’ pancakes (PHOTOS)

1. Puffy ‘bliny’

Puffy ‘bliny’ are considered the traditional type of Russian ‘bliny’ aka pancakes. Famous writer Anton Chekhov in the story ‘About frailty’ compared this appetizing puffiness to "the shoulder of a merchant's daughter".

Previously, a special sourdough starter was prepared in advance for puffy ‘bliny’, while ‘bliny’ themselves were baked in the oven. Now, the process is simplified – ordinary yeast is used, but if you want to get thick ‘bliny’ "like grandma makes", it is better to let the dough sit for at least an hour.

Ingredients (for approx. 20 pancakes):

• 300-320 g flour
• 1 egg
• 550 ml of milk
• 1 tbsp of sugar
• 25 g of butter
• 20 g of fresh pressed yeast (or 10 g dry quick-acting yeast)
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• 50 g of butter for greasing the pancakes
• 50 ml of vegetable oil for greasing the frying pan

Preparation:

1. Dissolve the yeast in warm milk (30 - 35°C).
2. Mix the flour with the sugar and salt, then add milk and mix. Beat the egg lightly with a fork, add it to the dough and stir.
3. Melt the butter, add it to the batter and mix.
4. Cover the container with a towel or cling film and leave the batter in a warm place for approximately 90 minutes. Then, stir the batter and let it rest again (another 90 minutes). If you use dry yeast, it is enough to let the dough rest once for 60 minutes. The dough should increase in volume and many bubbles should appear on the surface.
5. Now you need to heat a thick-bottomed skillet and grease it with vegetable oil.
6. It is best to pour the batter into the pan with a ladle; then, slightly moving it around, cover the entire surface with batter – until you achieve a perfect circle.
7. Cover the pan with a lid and fry the ‘blin’ for about two minutes on each side.
8. Now, it's time to remove the blin from the frying pan and grease with melted butter on both sides. Such thick ‘bliny’ are usually served with milk, sour cream, jam, honey, caviar or slices of salmon.

2. Thin ‘bliny’

These ‘bliny’ are characterized by the elasticity of the dough and beautiful patterns with cute holes. Their main peculiarity is that boiling water is poured into the batter in the process of cooking. These ‘bliny’ are fried quickly and are eaten even faster!

Ingredients (for 25 pancakes):

• 3 eggs
• 2-3 tbsp of sugar
• 250 g flour
• 500 ml of milk
• 250 ml of boiling water
• pinch of salt
• 40 ml of vegetable oil

Preparation:

1. Break 3 eggs into a deep bowl and add a pinch of salt. Beat the mass with a mixer until foamy.
2. Add sugar and pour half of the milk (room temperature); mix everything.
3. Pour in the sifted flour and mix thoroughly so that there are no lumps.
4. Add the rest of the milk and mix.
5. Pour in a cup of boiling water and mix quickly with a whisk.
6. Add the vegetable oil to the dough and mix. Then, allow it to rest for 10 minutes.
7. Grease a frying pan with vegetable oil and fry the ‘blin’ on both sides in a heated frying pan until golden. Thin ‘bliny’ can be eaten on their own or you can wrap your favorite filling in them (Check out how to mind-blowing Russian bliny with minced meat).

3. ‘Bliny’ with 'pripek'

‘Bliny’ combine well with a variety of fillings and ‘bliny’ with 'pripek' (a fried filling) differ in that they are prepared with the filling from the very beginning. Most often, cottage cheese, mushrooms, green onions, boiled eggs, salted fish, grated cheese or berries are used for ‘pripek’.

Ingredients (for 25-30 pancakes):

• 700 ml of warm milk
• 300 ml of warm water
• 1 tsp of dry yeast
• 450 g flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp of sugar
• 1 tsp of salt
• 2 tbsp of vegetable oil
• 250 g of ‘pripek’ (champignons or other mushrooms with onions and herbs)

Preparation:

1. Pour warm milk (35°C) and warm water into a bowl.
2. Add eggs, salt, sugar and mix everything together.
3. In another bowl, where you're going to prepare the batter, mix the flour and yeast.
4. Pour the milk and egg mixture into the flour and yeast in portions, stirring with a whisk. Cover the bowl with foil and place it in a warm place for an hour.
5. At this time, prepare the 'pripek'. Wash and chop the champignons (or other mushrooms) finely. Also, finely chop the onions. You can add some fresh herbs for color (dill, parsley or spinach will do). Fry the champignons, onions and herbs in vegetable oil for 5 minutes (if you have other mushrooms, the cooking time may vary).
6. When the dough has risen slightly and bubbles have formed on the surface, pour the vegetable oil in and stir. Allow to rest for another 20 minutes. Then, stir the dough gently once more before frying.
7. Heat a frying pan and grease with vegetable oil.
8. Pour the batter into the pan with a ladle, then place the batter on top and press down lightly with a spatula so that it adheres to the batter.
9. Fry at medium heat until ‘blin’ starts to turn brown, then flip and bake the other side. The ‘bliny’ can be lightly greased with melted butter before serving.

READ MORE: 8 traditional Russian pancake fillings (RECIPES)