Cepelinai

Cepelinai

Cepelinai in a restaurant, served with cream sauce
Alternative names	Didžkukuliai
Type	Dumpling
Place of origin	Lithuania
Main ingredients	Potatoes, ground meat or dry cottage cheese (curd) or mushrooms

Cepelinai (lit. 'zeppelins'; singular: cepelinas) or didžkukuliai is a traditional Lithuanian dish of stuffed potato dumplings. The dumplings are made from grated and riced potatoes and stuffed with ground meat or dry cottage cheese (curd) or mushrooms. It has been described as a national dish of Lithuania, and is typically served as an entree.

So named because their shape resembles that of a Zeppelin airship, cepelinai are typically around 10–20 cm long, although the size depends on where they are made: in the western counties of Lithuania cepelinai are made bigger than in the east.

After boiling, the cepelinai are sometimes served with sour cream sauce and bacon bits or pork rinds.

Similar dishes include Swedish kroppkaka, Acadian poutine râpée, Norwegian raspeball and German Kartoffelklöße.