A couple of articles ago I talked about Shish Kabob - skewered food (Mar 17) and promised an article on one of my favorite foods Stuffed Dumplings. As I've mentioned before I am always surprised that cultures around the world have developed similar cooking styles. I guess in a way it shouldn't be surprising because eating the same food all of the time gets boring, right? Now that I'm thinking about it – are dumplings, empanadas, pasties and meat pies related? I'm not sure – but I am sure that they can be bad for you. So make them yourselves, watch what you put in them and don't eat them too often!
I love Chinese dumplings – and I prefer them fried over steamed, although in reality they're steamed too. I'll also tell you now that I cheat. A very long time ago I made the wrappers from scratch – but even I don't want to spend that much time preparing my meal and there's not that many ingredients that go into them (flour & water), so go ahead and buy them from either the grocery store or your local Asian market.
Shuumai, or Chinese dumplings, are most traditionally filled with pork, they are also filled with other ingredients as well such as lamb, chicken, shrimp, crab, tofu/rice and vegetables. You can make extra and freeze them, so that next time all you have to do is heat them up.
Basic Shuumai
wrappers – shuumai or wonton
½ lb pork, ground½ onion, chopped
1 tsp grated ginger
1 Tbl soy sauce
1 Tbl mirin (rice wine or sherry)
½ Tbl sesame oil
1 Tbl corn or potato starch
salt & pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients well to form a paste. Place a wrapper in your hand (keep wrappers to be used covered with a damp cloth), place a ½ Tbl of filling in the middle of the skin. Make a circle with your thumb and forefinger. Push the skin into the circle, squeeze the dumpling from the sides, while pressing the top and bottom. Or you can use a dumpling press to make pot stickers, place wrapper in the press, add the filling, moisten edges and close press. Makes about 2 dozen.
To Steam:
Lightly oil the bottom of the steamer. Place the shuumai in the steamer, but don't let them touch. Steam for 10-15 minutes.
Steam/Pan Fry:
Place a little oil in the skillet. Place shuumai in the skillet, don't let them touch. Fry on low heat for a minute or two. Add water to about ¼ of the way up the dumplings. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes.
Dipping Sauce (1)
1 Tbl ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 Tbl soy sauce
1 Tbl mirin
1 tsp chili oil
Mix all ingredients together and serve.
Dipping Sauce (2)
3 Tbl soy sauce
2 Tbl rice vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
1 tsp ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, chopped
Mix all ingredients together and serve.
Dipping Sauce (3)
3 Tbl rice vinegar
2 tsp ketchup
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
Mix all ingredients together and serve.
As usual I encourage you to get creative with what you use to stuff your dumplings and with your dipping sauces. Have fun and enjoy!
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