Hello All!
Happy Lunar New Year! Dumplings are commonly eaten during Lunar New Year to symbolize prosperity since they’re shape like ancient Chinese gold money. There’s so many amazing dumpling recipes out there, but I wanted to share with you my go to dumpling recipe. Pork & Chive version. It’s really simple to make and very delicious. I hope you all can give this one a try.
Main Ingredient
Ground pork: The most traditional meat to use for dumplings. Fat % should be at 25-30%. This will make a much juicier filling. You are free to use other protein as you please.
Sauces I used
Mix the filling
Dumpling wrapper
I tried 4 different kinds. They all work great. Just make sure you get “Dumpling” wrappers and not wonton wrappers. There are a wide variety of wrappers when you go to your local Asian grocery store. Take a look at the thickness and size. Most brands are only different due to ingredients, texture, & size.
After trying these 4, I like the Shanghai version the best (top right). It was not too thin and not too thick. It also had a very good chew to it when it was done cooking which I appreciated. The Northern Style dumpling wrapper (top left) was a little the thicker side. It was also chewy. I was good, but I think this version would work best for filling that has a lot of juice. The bottom two in the picture, also work great!. The Mr Kon’s (bottom left) is a little more on the smaller size (dimension wise). The Evergreen brand (bottom right) is a good basic dumpling wrapper.
Fill, wrap, and fold
Place on a sheet tray lined with parchment or a silpat. Freeze until they are solid enough to be put into ziplock bags for when you’re ready to use it
Cook and enjoy!
Enjoy it fried or boiled. Served with chili oil dipping sauce.
These are the sauces I used to make the dipping sauce
Happy Lunar New Year 2022
Enjoy!
-Cindy Her (C.HerCreations)
Ingredients
- ---FILLING---
- 1 lb ground pork (25%-30% fat content)
- 1/2 lb bok choy or cabbage of choice (blanched, squeezed & finely chopped)
- 1 oz ginger (Finely minced)
- 2 oz garlic chives (about a heaping 1/2 cup chopped)
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 2 Tbsp oyster sauce (Lee Kum Kee Panda Oyster Sauce)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce (Kikkoman)
- 1/2 to 1 tsp white pepper (depends on your preference)
- 2 tsp chicken bouillon powder (Totole brand)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 3 Tbsp water
- ---OTHER---
- 1 pack dumpling wrappers (about 38-40 wrappers per pack)
- Bowl of water for sealing the dumplings
- Oil to fry
- Cilantro/green onions for garnish
- ---CHILI OIL DIPPING SAUCE---
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 1 Tbsp water
- 1 Tbsp light or low sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp your favorite fried chili in oil or chili oil (I used Laoganma)
- 1 tsp Chinkiang Vinegar (more or less depends on you)
- Sesame seeds & sliced green onion (optional)
Instructions
- Prep the bok choy or your choice of cabbage before mixing everything. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add in the rinsed halved bok choy to quickly give it a blanched. Cook for only 1-2 minutes or so. Drain and rinse with cold water. Then with your hands, squeeze out the liquid as much as you can. Transfer to a cutting board and finely minced it. Add it into a bowl along with the meat, chopped chives, minced ginger, and all the seasonings. Mix for at least 30 secs to a minutes. Feel free to cook a little to taste before cooking.
- Time to wrap! Per each dumpling wrapper, dab the edges of each circle wrapper with some water. Place about a little shy of 1 Tbsp of the filling in the center. Fold the bottom part to meet the top (should look like a fan). Pinch the center to seal and then at this moment you can make your pleats or just fold the sides tightly to get a good crescent shape. The bottom should have a flat bottom and the sides and top should make a nice crescent shape. Place the dumpling on a lined parchment or silpat baking sheet. Continue and repeat.
- If you are not cooking these right now, I suggest storing the dumplings in the freezer until they are ready to be used. DO NOT keep in the fridge as the moisture from the filling will cause the wrapper to get soggy and stick to the pan. Once they have frozen. transfer the dumplings to a ziplock bag and place in the freezer up to 3 months or so.
Cooking: You can boil it for 4-5 minutes or until the center reaches 160'F. Drain and enjoy with chili oil, soy sauce, or your favorite sauce. You can also deep fry or pan fry the dumplings as well.
To pan fry, add 1 tbsp of oil to a good nonstick pan. On medium high heat, place the dumplings around (make sure they don't touch each other, this will help cook the wrapper properly). Cook for 2 minutes or until the bottom is golden. Then add about 1/4-1/2 cup of water, be ready with a lid to close and cover and let it steam & cook for 4-5 minutes. At this point, the water should all have evaporated and the filling should reach 160'F. To crisp up the bottom, just cook it for 1-2 more minutes to get it golden brown again. Transfer onto a place and let it cool for a bit before enjoying.
I like mine simple without any dipping sauce. I do like to eat it with a little garlic chili oil or Laoganma. 🙂
Happy cooking!
Notes
Store in a zip lock bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Use other proteins if you desire.
