Syrniki: quark pancakes for breakfast
The Russian recipe for quark pancakes. Which curd cheese to buy in Spain, how much flour to use and why not to add more sugar.
Syrniki are fried curd-cheese pancakes, golden outside and creamy inside. The recipe uses curd cheese, egg, sugar, salt, flour and a little oil. If the cheese is wet, drain it before making the mixture.
Which curd cheese to buy
You need dry, pressed curd cheese, not a creamy spread. In Spain, well-drained requesón in tubs works, as does quark. If it releases whey, wrap it in a cloth and press it for half an hour: wet cheese needs more flour, making the pancakes tough.
The dough
- Mix 500 g of dry curd cheese, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of sugar and a pinch of salt with a fork, without beating.
- Add 3 tablespoons of flour. Only three: the mixture should stay sticky rather than firm.
- Leave to rest for 10 minutes so the flour absorbs moisture.
Shape and fry
- With floured hands, shape balls of about 60 g and flatten them to 2 cm thick.
- Coat both sides in flour and shake off the excess.
- Use a frying pan over medium-low heat with a little oil. Cook for three or four minutes on each side.
- Low heat is essential: high heat browns the outside while leaving the inside raw.
How to serve them
Serve warm with sour cream, berry jam, honey or condensed milk. The mixture is deliberately low in sugar: sweetness comes from the accompaniment, so savoury versions with dill also work.