Chicken Soup with Dumplings (Russian)

At Bear, a homey Eastern European restaurant in Astoria, Queens, chef Natasha Pogrebinsky serves a pelmeni stew she calls "Siberian Express," adding marinated mushrooms, brined cherry tomatoes, fresh herbs, scallions, and a soft-boiled egg all to colour up the dish's otherwise beige landscape. But her customers call it something else: Russian Ramen. This chicken-and-dumpling soup also takes advantage of two ingredients more common in Asia than Eastern Europe - sesame oil and cilantro - for a simple but rewarding soup that probes the boundaries of what we think of as Russian cuisine.

2 cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
1½ tsp. kosher salt
3 large eggs
4 chicken thighs (2 lbs)
1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 bay leaf
1 lb ground chicken
1 Tbsp. fresh dill, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp. ground caraway
1 tsp. ground coriander
black pepper, freshly ground

Garnish:
2 eggs, soft-boiled, halved
cilantro leaves
fresh dill
thinly sliced scallions
toasted sesame oil

In a medium bowl, mix the flour with ½ tsp. salt. Make a well in the center and, using your fingers, stir in 2 eggs and ¼ cup water. Scrape the dough onto a work surface and knead until smooth. Transfer the dough to a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 45 minutes.

In a 4 qt saucepan, combine the chicken thighs with the onion, garlic, and bay leaf, and cover with 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and cook, skimming any foam that rises to the surface, until the broth is reduced and the chicken is cooked through, about 45 minutes. Pour the broth through a fine strainer and discard the solids.

Meanwhile, beat the remaining egg in a small bowl and pour 2 Tbsp. into a medium bowl; discarding the rest of the egg. Stir in the remaining 1 tsp. salt, the ground chicken, dill, parsley, caraway, and coriander and stir to combine. Refrigerate the filling until ready to use.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into an 18" circle, about 1/8" thick. Using a 2½" cutter, cut out 32 circles, re-rolling scraps as needed. Place 1 Tbsp. of the filling in the center of each circle of dough, brush the edges with water, and fold in half to form a half moon, sealing the edges. Take the two points of each half moon and bring them together to form a tortelli-like dumpling.

In a large pot of generously salted water, cook the dumplings until they float to the surface and are cooked through, 4-5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the dumplings from the water and transfer to 4 serving bowls. Ladle the broth over the dumplings and top each with more chopped dill, half a soft-boiled egg, cilantro leaves, scallions, and a drizzle of sesame oil before serving.

Makes 4 servings.