Kartacze – Polish Potato Dumplings are made of raw potatoes with small (or non) addition of cooked ones. They are regional dish in Podlasie – North- Western part of Poland. Go to Białystok to try the best Kartacze ever:) Or make them yourself:)
In my family house we called them Kołduny, so the naming may vary:) My Grandma and Mum were born and raised on the present territory of Belarus, but back then it was Poland, language and cuisines mixed. Kartacze can also be called Cepeliny (dish with Lithuanian origins).
There is a range of Polish potato dumplings, they vary in size and ingredients, whether cooked or raw potatoes are used, what kind of flour is used and is it served as a side dish or a main course. If you are not sure which potato dumplings you like the most, check my short comparison of Polish potato dumplings with pictures and recipes: http://cookinpolish.com/5-kinds-of-polish-potato-dumplings/.
Ingredients
- 3 kg potatoes
- 2 onions
- 700 g ground pork meat
- salt, pepper, sweet paprika
- 4 tbs potato starch (optional)
Peel the potatoes.
Cook several potatoes in salted water. Mash them while they are still hot.
Grind the rest of the potatoes and one onion in food processor, use grater with smallest wholes. Place ground potatoes on the cloth and squeeze out all the moist. Put potato juices aside for few minutes. Then spill liquid. At the bottom there should be potato starch left. Depending on potato sort there will be more or less starch. You will use it later on.
Prepare for cooking: place a large pot with water on fire. Add salt.
Combine both potatoes in a bowl, add potato starch. If there is less than 3 tbs of natural starch, you can add extra potato starch. Mix all well. You can use your hands.
Place ground meat in a bowl. Season with salt, pepper and red paprika. Be generous. You can also add other favorite seasonings.
Take a large piece of potato dough, flatten on your hand. Place a tablespoon of meat in the middle and seal the edges to close the dumpling. Form an oval dumpling. I wanted them to be quite big, because of sentiment, this was the way my Grandma used to do it. Next time I will make them medium sized – they will cook shorter and portions will be more adjustable:)
Place Kartacze – Polish Potato Dumplings in boiling water one after another, do it slowly, so that the water did not stop boiling. Then reduce the fire to minimum.
Cook for 45-50 minutes.
Serve with sauteed onion.
Wow they look delicious brings back to me my childhood memory when my mama used to make them I am 79 years old left Poland in 1963 so there is a lot a lots of memory of eating them we call them Kołduny My family is from Będźkowo near Szczuczyn but I grew up in Sopot Thank you for reminding me how to make Kartacze-Kołduny
Hi! Nice to meet you:) I was raised near Szczuczyn, about 50 km from there:) My babcia also called them kołduny:) But it’s rare, so I decided to call them more popular ‘kartacze’.
Hi Marianna, I was born in Szczuczyn and grow up in village nearby. Kolduny are my childhood memories
My mother and babczia and dziadzia were born and raised in Naliboky which is now Part of Belarus they use to make these all the time such good memories thank you for sharing❤️
i have a small problem with making these dumplings. they look totally delicious, but i don’t have a food processor. how can i make these by hand.
You can grate potatoes on a grater.