Czech Filled Dumplings

Very often Czechs will eat smoked pork or what we call Uzena. From the original joint, part will be cooked immediately and part will be frozen to use later. Filled dumplings are what we use it for. Strangely, if a dumpling is filled with meat it’s often just referred to as a filled dumpling whereas a dumpling filled with fruit is always called a fruit dumpling.

Czechs are big on dumplings. Mostly it’s bread or potato but when referring to anything which has a meat filling then only potato dumplings are used.

On a menu it will be in the main course section and may be described in Czech as “plnene bramborove knedliky s uzenym masem” or in English simply “potato dumplings filled with meat”. The method of cooking is to fill the dumpling and then boil it.

czech filled dumplings with spinach side — Czech filled dumplings with a side of spinach

The meat is always smoked pork so when you cut it open it’ll have a pinkish colour on the inside with a taste of cured ham. Potato dumplings are notoriously dry to eat so the dumplings should normally be served either on a bed of caramelised onions or more usually with a butter/onion sauce.

czech filled dumpling on a bed of caramelised onions — Czech filled dumplings that you may find as a starter in a restaurant

The side dish with filled dumplings can only be our sweet cabbage called Zeli or pureed spinach which we call Špenát. The cabbage will give the meal a sweet/vinegar flavour. The spinach option will be more salty and is often accompanied by a taste of garlic.