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Ukrainian Syrniki – High-Protein Cheese Pancakes

Syrniki are the classic breakfast of Ukraine and its neighbours: little pancakes made from curd cheese. 24 g of protein a serving, 15 minutes to prepare.

Total
30 min
Servings
4 servings
Difficulty
Easy
Calories · per serving
285 kcal
Ecem Akkaba

Written by

Ecem Akkaba · Dietitian

Dietitian, graduate of İstanbul Medipol University. She develops the recipes and nutrition values on FitZen.

Updated:

Ukrainian Syrniki – High-Protein Cheese Pancakes

In short

Ukrainian Syrniki – High-Protein Cheese Pancakes contains 285 calories per serving: 24 g protein, 26 g carbohydrate and 9 g fat. It takes 30 minutes in total and makes 4 servings.

About this recipe

Syrniki are a breakfast staple across a wide region, from Ukraine to Poland. The name comes from "syr", cheese — because the base of the batter is not flour but curd cheese.

That ratio is what separates syrniki from an ordinary pancake. A classic pancake carries 6-8 g of protein per serving; here it climbs to 24 g, because most of the mass is milk protein. That is exactly what stretches breakfast satiety into the afternoon.

The secret to the texture is draining the curd. Work with wet cheese and you will have to add flour to hold the batter together — and the whole advantage of the recipe disappears.

Method

  1. 1

    Press the curd through a fine sieve or squeeze it in a cloth to remove the whey. This step alone decides the texture; wet cheese makes the batter collapse.

  2. 2

    Beat the curd in a bowl with the egg, yolk, honey, vanilla, salt and lemon zest. It does not need to be smooth — a slightly grainy texture is good.

  3. 3

    Add the flour and mix only until it comes together. Overmixing tightens the batter and makes the pancakes rubbery.

  4. 4

    Chill the batter for 10 minutes — the flour absorbs moisture and shaping becomes far easier.

  5. 5

    Flour your hands lightly, take walnut-sized pieces, roll them into balls and flatten to about 1.5 cm thick. Dust each one lightly with flour.

  6. 6

    Heat the fat in a non-stick pan over medium-low heat. Fry the syrniki 3-4 minutes per side until golden. Too high a heat burns the outside while the centre stays raw.

  7. 7

    Serve hot with yoghurt, fresh berries and a little honey if you like.

Tips

  • Draining the curd is the one critical step here. Supermarket cottage cheese is usually wet; leaving it in a sieve overnight in the fridge gives the best result.
  • Keep the heat medium-low. On high heat the outside darkens fast while the middle stays cold — three or four minutes of patience genuinely matters here.
  • For a savoury version, drop the sweetener, add an extra pinch of salt and fold in dill and garlic. Serve with yoghurt.

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