Recipe for Famous Finnish Karelian Pies (2024)

Let me get one thing straight right here in the beginning– famous (and super delicious) Finnish Karelian pies are not hard to make. They may look like they are but actually, they aren’t. Making them requires just a little time.

Here are the recipe and step-by-step photo instructions how to make these salty delicacies that are an integral part of everyday life here in Saimaa and Finland.

There are two things in Karelian pies; rice porridge and rye crust.

Ingredients for both of them are very simple. Ok, rye flour you can’t find every grocery outside Finland but what I’ve heard special stores sell them in many countries. Rice for the rice porridge in Finland is called “Puuroriisi”. You can ask that butshort-grain rice, like Arborio or Calrose, works fine too.

This recipe is for 25-30 Karelian pies. Consider halving the recipe if you are first-timer.

Start by making the filling, rice porridge, ready. I often make it a day before baking because the porridge needs to be cold when you put it in the pies.

Rice porridge/filling:

  • 2 dl / 0,8 cup short-grain rice (eg. Arborio / Calrose)
  • 2 dl /0,8 cup water
  • 1 liter/4 cup milk (fatty)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • (2 tbs butter)

Bring water to a boil in a kettle. (Add some butter if your milk is not very fatty. The fattier the better you know.) Add the rice and cook until the water is absorbed.

Add milk and bring to a boil whilst frequently stirring. Simmer at a low heat for about an hour (time depends on the rice you use of course). Season the rice porridge with salt.

Let the rice filling to cooldown. SaimaaLife way is to take the filling outdoors 🙂

Then it’s time to make the dough for the Karelian pies.

Dough / crust:

  • 2 dl /0,8 cup water
  • 4 dl / 1,7 cup rye flour
  • 1 dl / 0,4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp salt

This can’t be easier! Just stir the flours and salt into water and knead into a solid dough.

Now you have the filling and the dough ready.Here comes the trickiest part.

I will show you the technique how to “rypyttää”(crinkle) Karelian piesbut remember that it’s OK that we all have our own unique style. So, instead of focusing on how your pies look different than mine, focus on being proud how Karelian pies made by YOU look like!

In Finland, we have also a proverb for this. It says that Karelian piesare always “lookalike with their maker”.

But here are first the step-by-step photo instructions. The most important thing is the position of the fingers and that you don’t close the Karelian pie by pushing too hard.

Note! With a rolling pin flatten half of the dough on a well-floured baking board. Rye/wheat flour mixture (50/50) is good for that.

It is a matter of taste how thin you roll the crust. Some like to have thin crust and a lot of porridge inside. Others, like me, vice versa. If you are first-timer, make different and taste which ones you think are the best.

Here, above, is my style and below you see our Karelian pies made by our children.

My favorite one was the Karelian pie muffin that our youngest one innovated!

Place the pies onto a baking tray covered with baking paper.

Bake the Karelian pies at 275°C for 10 – 15 minutes, until the porridge is golden brown.

When the pies are removed from the oven, brush them with melted butter or a butter and water / milk mixture.

I use normally 50 % butter and 50 % water. If I have just a small amount of pies I do buttering with a brush, and if a big amount, then in a pan.

After buttering, cover the pies with baking paper and a kitchen towel to soften.

Of course, you have to taste one (or two) right after buttering.

If you want to enjoy Karelian pies in a traditional Finnish way, you make egg-butter with them. Here are the instructions for that too:

Recipe for Finnish Egg-Butter Spread

  • 2 hard-boiled eggs
  • 50 gr / o,2 cup butter (only soft, not grease)
  • (½ tsp salt)

Boil the eggs in water for at least 8 minutes. Rinse the boiled eggs under cold water and remove their shells. Use a fork to mash the eggs finely together with the soft butter, in a mixing bowl. Add some salt if needed.

For the best experience, please watch this 360° video in Youtube app with virtual reality headset and remember to turn on HD!Tap on Youtube icon in the player below or open this linkhttps://youtu.be/V3l5myZF-ucin your Youtube app.

As I said Karelian pies are an integral part ofFinnish culture. That’s why I decided that in the future I actually tell you more about “the world of Karelian pies”. So, stay tuned!

Recipe for Famous Finnish Karelian Pies (2024)

FAQs

What is Karelian pie made of? ›

The usual fillings were barley and talkkuna. In the 19th century, first potato, and then buckwheat were introduced as fillings, and later, boiled rice and millet. Today, the most popular version has a thin rye crust with a filling of rice. Mashed potato and rice-and-carrot fillings are also commonly available.

What do you eat with Karelian pies? ›

It's often eaten with egg-butter (munavoi) which is spread over the hot pie before eating. This egg-butter is supposed to be eaten ONLY with karelian pies.

What is the name of the pasty that is a traditional Finnish dish made from a rye crust filled with rice? ›

These savory Karelian pies (karjalanpiirakka) were my favorite thing to eat in Finland. Rice porridge surrounded by a rye flour crust, baked until slightly browned. In Finland, these pastries are often eaten at breakfast or lunch.

What is the history of Karelian pasty? ›

The open, oval shaped karjalanpiirakka has its origins in Karelia, a historical region now divided between Finland and Russia. The first written reference to karjalanpiirakka dates back to 1686. The dish originally spread during the 1600s and 1700s to southern Finland and even into Sweden through Karelian migrants.

What do they eat in Karelian Finland? ›

Karelian meat stew is the national dish of Finland, which is a mixture of beef, pork, and lamb seasoned with peppercorn and allspice. The dish is slowly cooked in a pot placed inside an oven. The longer the meat is stewed, the better the result will be. The dish is complemented with boiled potatoes or mashed potatoes.

What is a shepherds pie called when it is made from beef? ›

The two English terms have been used interchangeably since they came into use in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, although some writers insist that a shepherd's pie should contain lamb or mutton, and a cottage pie, beef.

What is Finland's favorite dessert? ›

Cinnamon buns, also known as Korvapuust, are a popular pastry in Finland. These buns are made with a sweet bread dough that is filled with a mixture of cinnamon, sugar, and butter. The dough is then rolled up and cut into slices before being baked in the oven. These buns are often enjoyed with a cup of coffee or tea.

What is the signature dish of Finland? ›

Sautéed reindeer with mashed potatoes, lingonberry jam and pickles Karelian stew has been voted as the national food of Finland.

What Finnish dessert looks like poop? ›

Mämmi is traditionally made of water, rye flour, ground malted rye, salt, and dried, ground Seville orange zest. The mixture is then left to sweeten naturally, before being baked in an oven until set, by which time the colour and flavour has developed due to the Maillard reaction.

What is the difference between Finnish and Cornish pasties? ›

In Cornish pasties, the vegetables were sliced, or “chipped.” Finns diced theirs and they added carrots, while Cornish pasties were strictly potato and rutabaga.

Is Karelian pasties Finnish? ›

A Karelian pasty, also called a Karelian pie or Karelian pirog, known in Finnish as karjalanpiirakka, is a traditional Finnish cookie, where inside a thin rye layer is rice pudding, pearl barley pudding, or mashed potatoes.

What is Perunapiirakka? ›

Noun. perunapiirakka. Karelian pasty made with potato filling. potato pie.

Are pasties Irish or Scottish? ›

The Cornish Pasty originates from Cornwall (Southwest England) and can be traced back as far as the 1200's. Mining was once a thriving industry in Cornwall and at that time pasties were baked by the wives and mothers of the tin miners.

Is shepherds pie made of sheep? ›

Shepherd's pie comes to us from England, and is traditionally made with lamb or mutton. Here in the states we are more of a beef eating culture than a lamb eating one, and when one is served "shepherd's pie" here, it is most often made with ground beef.

Are meat pies Aussie or Kiwi? ›

This variant of the standard meat pie is considered iconic. It was described by New South Wales Premier Bob Carr in 2003 as Australia's "national dish". New Zealanders regard the meat pie as a part of New Zealand cuisine, and it forms part of the New Zealand national identity.

What is German chocolate pie made of? ›

German chocolate pie is made with many of the same staples as the cake: chocolate, eggs, pecans, and shredded coconut. Instead of making a separate chocolate cake and coconut frosting, the pie combines everything in the filling! There's some sweetened condensed milk and vanilla that help tie it all together.

What was humble pie made from? ›

An umble pie is a pie filled with chopped or minced offal, especially of deer but often other meats, called umbles in Middle English, which derived from the word numble (after the Middle French nombles), meaning "deer's innards".

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Kimberely Baumbach CPA

Last Updated:

Views: 6478

Rating: 4 / 5 (41 voted)

Reviews: 88% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Kimberely Baumbach CPA

Birthday: 1996-01-14

Address: 8381 Boyce Course, Imeldachester, ND 74681

Phone: +3571286597580

Job: Product Banking Analyst

Hobby: Cosplaying, Inline skating, Amateur radio, Baton twirling, Mountaineering, Flying, Archery

Introduction: My name is Kimberely Baumbach CPA, I am a gorgeous, bright, charming, encouraging, zealous, lively, good person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.