Get your dumpling on

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-11-06 10:30

Place a spoonful of filling in the middle of a wrapper.

Fold the wrapper in half and pinch the mid-point of the semi-circle together.

Pleat the jiaozi on one side only, so it gets its traditional concave ingot shape.

Make sure the edges are pinched tightly if you are boiling them, otherwise you may get a pasta soup.

Fillings:

Long beans and pork

Substitute cabbage with long beans (snake beans) or French beans. Top and tail the beans and blanch to soften. Finely slice and add to meat filling.

Celery and pork

Blanch tender celery stalks and finely dice before adding to the meat mixture.

Seafood dumplings

Substitute half the minced pork for an equal amount of minced prawns, or shredded dried scallops.

1. Place raw dumplings neatly in a lightly oiled non-stick pan. Place them slightly apart so there is room to swell as they cook.

2. Heat up the pan and let the bottoms of the dumplings crisp. When you shake the pan, they should sound "hollow".

3. Add half a cup of stock or water to the pan and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer.

4. When the water dries up, lower the heat and allow the dumplings to crisp up.

5. Carefully turn the cooked dumplings over a plate so the crisp bottoms face up. Serve with the usual dips.

Previous 1 2 Next Page