Russian cuisine is famous for its cakes. Kurnik occupies a special place in it - a festive cake with savory and often multi-layered filling. It may be different, although it used to be predominantly chicken, hence the name of the dish. The basis for it can be made from different types of dough, many chefs prefer sand. The traditional shortbread dough for kurnik included a minimum of ingredients: butter, flour, sugar, sometimes milk or water. Today it is made with the addition of sour cream, kefir, eggs, baking powder. The taste of dough depends on the taste of the finished cake, so its choice should be approached seriously.
Cooking Features
Despite the variety of recipes for unleavened dough for kurnik, the rules for its preparation remain unchanged. Knowing them, a perfect hostess will get a perfect result.
- Kurnik is a festive cake, and it does not rely on him to save on products. Flour for the cake to take high quality. It will provide the necessary elasticity of the dough, the cake will come out light, appetizing, it will not have an unpleasant taste. The most delicious dough is obtained from butter, but if you replace it with margarine, the difference will not be very noticeable, such a replacement is permissible.
- Flour must be sifted before use. This is done not only in order to rid it of insects and small litter. The main task is to saturate the flour with oxygen. After sifting, it becomes light, loose, it is easy to combine it with other ingredients without the formation of lumps. Baking from such flour turns tender and airy.
- Butter in shortbread dough is added cold, softened or melted - the cooks do not have a common opinion as to which option allows to obtain the most tender and crumbly shortcrust dough. But all the cooks are unanimous that after cooking the dough itself must be removed for an hour in the refrigerator. Many people advise to minimize the contact of the short pastry with hands, for this purpose at the first stages it is kneaded with a spoon or spatula, with a mixer equipped with a special nozzle, and only at the very end quickly complete the process of kneading the dough with your hands.
- Baking powder is not required. You can refuse to use it, even if it is indicated in the recipe, or replace it with quenched soda. However, this component makes the dough a little more loose and crumbly.
Ready-made dough for cooking kurnik is divided into two parts. One spread on the bottom and sides of the form, the other is rolled and used instead of the cover. Sometimes it makes a hole for steam. Place the cake in an oven preheated to 180-200 degrees and bake for about an hour. The exact preparation time depends on the size of the product and its filling.
Dough for kurnik on milk and butter with the addition of egg yolk
Composition:
- wheat flour - 0, 4 kg;
- milk - 150 ml;
- sugar - 10 g;
- baking powder for dough - 3 g;
- salt - a pinch;
- egg yolk - 1 pc .;
- butter - 80 g.
Method of preparation:
- Pour the milk into the pan. Heat it, stirring, over low heat or a water bath, until the butter melts. Try not to let the milk boil.
- Allow the milk to cool to at least room temperature by pouring it into a bowl.
- Sift the flour and mix it with baking powder, sugar and salt. Pour half of the flour mixture into the milk, mix with a spoon or spatula.
- Add egg yolk. Stir.
- Gradually add the remaining flour, knead the soft and plastic dough, not sticking to the hands.
- Put the dough in a plastic bag and put it in the fridge - it will be ready to work in an hour.
It remains only to form and fill the cake, put it in a preheated oven and wait for its readiness.
Shortbread dough for kurnik on milk, margarine and eggs
Composition:
- wheat flour - 0, 5-0, 6 kg;
- creamy margarine - 0, 25 kg;
- chicken egg (yolks only) - 2 pcs .;
- milk - 150 ml;
- baking powder for dough - 10 g;
- sugar - 5 g;
- salt - a pinch.
Method of preparation:
- Mix sifted flour with baking powder, temporarily set aside.
- Remove the margarine from the refrigerator beforehand so that it can become soft by the time the dough is kneaded.
- Separate yolks from proteins.
- Put the yolks in a bowl, add sugar and salt to them, rub the white-hot.
- Add cold milk to them, whisk with a whisk.
- Put the softened margarine in the bowl with the rest of the products. Whisk it all together.
- Pour the flour into the mixture in portions and stir it with a spatula or mixer until it is easy to do. Complete the kneading process with your hands. It should turn out elastic, not sticking to hands.
- Put the dough in a plastic bag, put it in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes.
After a specified time, the dough can be taken out of the refrigerator and form the basis for the chicken.
Shortbread dough for kurnik on sour cream and butter
Composition:
- wheat flour - 0, 25 kg;
- salt - a pinch;
- butter - 0, 2 kg;
- sour cream - 100 ml.
Method of preparation:
- Sift the flour through a fine sieve, even twice.
- Mix the flour and salt, pour it onto the working surface of the table.
- Top with grated chilled oil.
- Quickly rub the flour with butter with your fingers, as if pinching them. The result should be a flour crumb.
- Collect a crumb in a heap, make a funnel in the center. Put sour cream in it, stir with a spatula.
- Quickly knead the dough with your hands, trying to keep within 5 minutes.
- Form a ball from the dough, wrap it with cling film and put it in the refrigerator for 30-40 minutes.
The dough in this recipe is tender and crumbly, even without adding baking powder. The cake made from it does not dry out for a long time.
Kurnik - a festive pie with meat filling. The basis for it can be made from different types of test. One of the most popular is the shortbread. There are several recipes for its preparation, they are all equally good.
