Name: Small Fish Pies (Расстегаи)
Yield: 2 Dozen Pies
Cuisine: Russia
Ingredients: ¼ teaspoon salt; 6 tablespoons whole milk, heated to lukewarm; Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste; 1 egg yolk, beaten; 2 tablespoons minced parsley; 2 egg yolks; ½ pound fish fillets (trout is especially good); 2 tablespoons butter; 2 tablespoons sour cream; 2 tablespoons melted butter; ¼ pound smoked salmon, finely chopped; ½ package active dry yeast; 1 tablespoon cold water; 2 cups (all-purpose) flour; ¼ pound mushrooms, trimmed and minced; 2 tablespoons warm water; Pinch of sugar

Preparation info

2 Dozen
Pies

Difficulty
Complex

Appears in

A Taste of Russia

By Darra Goldstein

Published 1983

About

These charming pies are the traditional accompaniment to fish broth, ukha. Their name comes from the Russian rasstegnut’, “to come undone,” because the pies’ fanciful shape (with their filling exposed) makes one suspect they’ve popped open in the baking.

In the past, when appetites were larger, rasstegai were often made the size of a salad plate. One noted Moscow tavern, Yegorov’s, claimed to serve the best rasstegai in town. When these fish pies were ordered, the ukha came free. It