kreplach

American  

[krep-luhkh, -lahkh] / ˈkrɛp ləx, -lɑx /

Also kreplech

noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)

1. Jewish Cooking. turnovers or pockets of noodle dough filled with any of several mixtures, as kasha or chopped chicken livers, usually boiled, and served in soup.

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kreplach British  

/ ˈkrɛplɑːk, -lɑːx /

plural noun

1. small filled dough casings usually served in soup

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Etymology

Origin of kreplach

1890–95; < Yiddish kreplech, plural of krepl, akin to dialectal German Kräppel fritter, German Krapfen apple-fritter

Explanation

Kreplach are delicious soup dumplings filled with meat, cheese, or other fillings. Part of traditional Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine, kreplach are often served on holidays. Ground beef or cooked brisket is the most typical filling for kreplach, but the dumplings are also commonly made by wrapping small pieces of dough around mashed potatoes. While these tasty little pockets of dough are sometimes fried, most cooks boil kreplach and serve them in hot chicken soup. Kreplach is from the Yiddish kreplekh and a Middle High German root that means "a piece of pastry."

Example Sentences

In the extensive culinary archives of the New York Public Library, he found an 1890 advertisement for a restaurant at 64 Delancey Street serving “Buckarester” blintzes, kreplach and “mamaliga de lux.”

From New York Times • Apr. 6, 2020

In one grouping, the diners - of Irish, German, Polish, Mexican, Cambodian and Italian descents - talked about a dumpling being a universal food, with multiple cultures having a version: pierogi, ravioli, empanadas, kreplach.

From Washington Times • Jun. 24, 2017

Chutzpah Deli, an unassuming Jewish deli in Vienna, serves up delicious kreplach two ways — in a comfort-filled chicken noodle soup or deep-fried and served with onions.

From Washington Post • Mar. 9, 2017

Bernstein’s deli in the Lenox Hill area of Manhattan, and promptly dove into a bowl of kreplach, a Jewish dumpling soup.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2016

Almost unknown here a decade or two ago, it has joined blinis, kreplach and cheeseburgers as a quick and sustaining lunch for office workers.

From The Complete Book of Cheese by Brown, Robert Carlton