Syrniki (Russian Cheese Pancakes)

Discover How to Make Syrniki (Russian Cheese Pancakes)! Syrniki, also known as Sirniki or Farmers’s Cheese Pancakes, is a popular cheese pancake in Russia and Ukraine. You can enjoy them as a snack, a dessert, or a special weekend breakfast.

Syrniki (Russian Cheese Pancakes)

Would you like to have a cheesecake for breakfast? Here you will find an easy-to-follow recipe with step-by-step pictures, helpful info plus tips that will help you make ‘Syrniki’ easy way at home. I hope you will try the recipe and enjoy ‘Syrniki’ as much as I do!!

What is Syrniki?

Syrniki (seer-nee-kee), also known as Sirniki or Farmers’s Cheese Pancakes, are fried cheese pancakes (or cheese fritters) that are very popular in some Eastern European countries such as Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. They’re typically served with sour cream, jam, or honey as a dessert or for breakfast, lunch, or even dinner.

Some say the name comes from the Russian word for cheese (сыр=syr) and the word “syrniki” literally means “a thing made of cheese.”

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe. For the exact quantities of each ingredient, check out the printable recipe card below.

• Cheese – Farmer’s cheese isn’t available in Japan, so in this recipe, I used homemade fresh cheese combined with cream cheese. You can also make them with other varieties of cheese such as quark, ricotta, mascarpone, paneer, or homemade cheese. If the cheese is too dry, add some sour cream, yogurt, or milk to make soft pancakes.
• All-purpose flour – Flour works as a binder.
• Egg – Adding whole egg plus egg yolk makes rich-tasting pancakes.
• Sugar – Don’t add too much sugar if you serve them with a sweet topping.
• Salt – Be sure to add a pinch of salt.
• Raisins – Adding raisins to the batter is very common. They add flavor and nutrition and are good for you. However, you can add anything you like to the batter: cinnamon, chocolate chips, dry cherries, nuts, etc.
• Oil and/or butter – Syrniki is typically fried in a generous amount of oil but I like to cook them using a minimum amount of oil. Syrniki fried in butter tastes good, so I recommend frying them in butter or a mix of oil and butter.

How Do You Make Syrniki?

Making Syrniki is different from making regular pancakes because the batter is quite sticky, fragile, and tender. Working with Syrniki batter is not easy, especially the first time, but don’t worry, it gets much easier after a few tries and with some practice.

Syrniki is mainly made from a fresh cheese known as farmer’s cheese (or tvorog) and also contains eggs, sugar, salt, and flour, sometimes raisins. Then the mixture is shaped into a bit thick rounds dusted with flour and fried in oil to create pancakes or fritters with a crisp exterior and a creamy cheesy center.

Alternatively, you can bake them after they are browned on both sides. Place them on a baking tray and bake them in a preheated oven (170C) for about 5 minutes on each side. After turning off the oven, let the Syrniki remain in the oven for about five minutes.

Serving Suggestions

You can serve them warm or cold for breakfast or as a dessert with sour cream, fruit preserves, jam, honey, or sweetened condensed milk. Keep them warm in the oven whilst you cook through the whole batter.

Useful Tips

Here are some useful tips that will help you make the best Syrniki.

Making the Batter

• Make the cheese mixture by hand with a wire whisk, fork, or wooden spoon not in a mixer.
• If you add a lot of flour, the Syrniki will turn out more dense. On the other hand, if you add a little less flour, it will become tender. Add the flour according to your preferences and as needed.
• If you add dried fruit like raisins, soak them in warm water for about 20 minutes, drain, and pat dry with kitchen paper. Make sure there is no excess water.

Shaping the Pancakes

• Before you put the Syrniki in the frying pan, they must be shaped into a bit thick discs dusted with flour.
• Rested cheese batter is easy to handle, especially in the summer. Rest the batter in the fridge for ten to thirty minutes before shaping it.
• The cheese mixture is very sticky and tender so I prefer shaping them on a board. Make sure to dust your board and hands with flour to keep the dough from sticking to the board/hands.
• Make the pancakes smaller rather than larger or you will find that they fall apart when you try to move them to the pan or flip them in the pan.

Cooking the Pancakes

• For best results, use a thick bottom pan that will hold and distribute the heat well.
• Be careful, if the oil is too hot, the pancake will burn on the outside while leaving them raw inside. On the other hand, if it’s cool, the pancake absorbs the oil and becomes oily.
• Even if the pancakes are browned, it doesn’t mean that they are done and they must be heated all the way through. Adjust the heat as needed so that they don’t brown too soon.

More Sweet Pancake Recipes to Try

Pancakes are one of the oldest, simplest, ubiquitous, and remarkably versatile foods, so every culture has ‘pancakes’ that they are proud of. “Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies” is one of the fantastic food journeys I am bound on. Would you like to join me?

Syrniki (Russian Cheese Pancakes)
Step-by-Step Recipe

(Check out the printable recipe at the end of the post)

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 6 to 8

Ingredients

150g homemade cheese* (see the notes)
150g cream cheese
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg +1 egg yolk
50g all-purpose flour, adjust as needed
2 tbsp raisins (optional)
Flour for dusting, as needed
Oil for frying
Honey for serving

Note: Farmer’s cheese isn’t available in Japan, so in this recipe, I used homemade fresh cheese combined with cream cheese. You can also make them with other varieties of cheese such as quark, ricotta, mascarpone, or paneer.

Instructions

Place the cheese in a large bowl and mix it with a fork, so that there are no large lumps left. Add the egg, egg yolk, sugar, and salt.

Mix everything thoroughly until smooth.

Add the flour and mix well until you have a smooth batter. The batter should be sticky, but not runny. If too runny, add more flour but the minimum amount to handle the batter, not more.

Fold in raisins if using.

Rest the batter in the fridge for 10 to 30 minutes. Rested cheese batter is easy to handle, especially in the summer.

Dust generously a cutting board with flour. Spoon the batter onto the dusted surface. Drizzle some flour on top of it and shape it into a pancake. Use just enough flour to keep your dough from sticking. You can shape a few pancakes at a time, as many as will fit your pan.

Heat the pan or a griddle over medium-high and grease generously with butter and/or oil. Carefully lift the pancake with a spatula and place it gently on the hot surface of the pan. Fry the pancakes for about 2 minutes until a golden crust appears. Flip and fry the other side.

Be careful, even if the pancakes are browned, it doesn’t mean that they are done and they must be heated all the way through. Adjust the heat as needed so that they don’t burn.

Transfer to a platter and serve warm with your favorite topping. Enjoy!

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Savory Pancake Recipes to Try

Pancakes are one of the oldest, simplest, ubiquitous, and remarkably versatile foods, so every culture has ‘pancakes’ that they are proud of. “Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies” is one of the fantastic food journeys I am bound on. Would you like to join me?