Skip to content
FriendsPantry

Moldovan · Romanian

Plăcinte cu brânză

Contains egg (no meat or fish)

Thin stretched dough wrapped around salty sheep's cheese and dill, pan-fried until crisp and golden. Moldova's beloved everyday pastry, also made with potato or cabbage fillings.

Plăcinte cu brânză is a Moldovan pastry, ready in about 1 hour 40 minutes and made with all-purpose flour and feta. It serves 8 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking

No licensed photograph of this dish yet.

Prep
40 min
Cook
30 min
Rest
30 min
Total
1 h 40 min
Serves
8
Level
Intermediate
Calories
382

Ingredients

8 pies

For the dough

For the filling

For frying

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Mix the flour, warm water, oil, salt and vinegar and knead to a very soft, smooth dough. Divide into 8 balls, coat with oil and rest, covered, for 30 minutes.

    • 10 min
    Hands kneading dough on a floured surface
    How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Mash the feta (opens in a new tab) and cottage cheese (opens in a new tab) with the egg (opens in a new tab) and dill (opens in a new tab).

    • 5 min
    Potatoes being mashed
    How it looks · Photo: Mateusz Feliksik on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    On an oiled surface roll and then stretch each ball by hand into a very thin sheet. Put a spoonful of filling in the centre, fold the edges over like an envelope, and flatten gently to about 1 cm thick.

  4. Step 4

    Fry in oil over medium heat until golden and crisp on both sides. Drain on paper towels and serve warm with sour cream or a glass of yogurt.

    A finished dish being plated
    How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

About this dish

Origin
Moldova · Commonly attributedPlăcinte are made in both Moldova and Romania; the pan-fried style is strongly identified with Moldova.Also popular in RomaniaMore food from Moldova
Dish
Breakfast · Snack · Lunch · Pastries · Breads & flatbreads
Cooking method
Pan-fried
Taste
salty, savoury, herby, creamy
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Portable / lunchbox · Make-ahead
Cook more with
All-purpose flour · Feta · White vinegar · Cottage cheese · Egg · Dill
Techniques
Pan-frying · Kneading

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom feta, cottage cheese
  • Contains: Eggsfrom egg
  • Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour
  • Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

382 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 148 g · recipe makes 8

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 14%
  • Carbohydrate 42%
  • Fat 44%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy382 kcal258 kcal
Protein13.2 g8.9 g
Carbohydrate40.3 g27.2 g
Net carbohydrate38.9 g26.3 g
Sugars0.8 g0.6 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre1.4 g0.9 g
Fat18.4 g12.4 g
Saturated fat5.8 g3.9 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol55 mg37 mg
Sodium591 mg399 mg
Salt equivalent1.5 g1 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
109 mg
Calcium
189 mg
Iron
2.7 mg
Magnesium
20 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
59 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
—
Vitamin B12
0.7 µg
Folate (DFE)
162 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Oiling, not flouring, the dough lets you stretch it paper-thin without tearing.

Storage

  • Keep 2 days covered; good at room temperature.

Reheating

  • Warm in a dry pan or 180 °C oven.

Variations

  • Plăcinte cu cartofi: Filled with mashed potato and fried onion.
  • Plăcinte cu varză: Filled with braised cabbage.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

Structure

For the dough

Used in steps 1, 4

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

  1. Mix and knead · about 40 min

    Knead until smooth and soft; it should feel like an earlobe.

  2. Rest · about 30 min

    Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.

  3. Bake · about 30 min

    Puffed with golden-brown spots on both sides.

  4. Start to finish: about 1 h 40 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
IngredientRoleWeightBaker’s %
All-purpose flourFlour400 g100%
WaterWater200 g50%
Sunflower oilFat41 g10.2%
White vinegarOther5 g1.2%
SaltSalt3 g0.8%
Total flour
400 g
Hydration
50%
With milk, eggs…
50%
Wholegrain
0%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

  • Stiff dough (under 55% hydration) — firm, easy to roll; typical of bagels, pretzels and many flatbreads.
  • Salt 0.8% — on the low side (1.8–2.2% is typical for bread).
  • Fat 10.2% — a rich, tender dough.

If something goes wrong

  • Pale crust

    Likely causes

    • Oven too cool
    • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
    • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

    What to do

    • Check the oven with a thermometer
    • Brush with egg wash or milk
    • Shorten the fermentation
  • Burnt bottom

    Likely causes

    • Tray too close to the heat
    • Dark tray absorbs more heat
    • Too much sugar in the dough

    What to do

    • Bake on the middle shelf
    • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
    • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
  • Crust too hard or thick

    Likely causes

    • Baked too long at too low a temperature
    • No steam at the start

    What to do

    • Bake hotter for a shorter time
    • Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
    • Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

You might also like