Lunar Chinese Dumplings - Family Recipe!

It’s Lunar New Year Fam! Based on the lunar calendar it is the year of the tiger, this resembles courage, adventure, and taking risks. This is the biggest holiday in Asia, many countries celebrate with fireworks, decorating in red, passing out red envelopes, going to the temple, and of course having a big feast at the dinner table. Lunar new year is all about reunion, coming together, setting the intention for the new year. My family and I used to sit around the dinner table to make these yummy dumplings! There was a myth that a golden coin would be put into one of the dumplings, and whoever would bite into them would have abundance for the year to come. Try these babies out, and let me know what you think, you can either cook them with water or pan fry these. I like to top them off with chili oil and green onions.

INGREDIENTS

CHINESE DUMPLING WRAPPERS

• 3 cups all purpose flour (plain flour)

• 1 cup room temperature water

• Or order pre-made dumpling wrappers

CHINESE DUMPLING FILLING

• 1 lb ground pork or beyond meat ( if vegetarian)

• ½ cup green onion, finely chopped

• 1 tsp finely chopped ginger

• 1 tsp sesame oil

• 1 tsp salt

• ¼ cup soy sauce

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

• 1 large egg

• 1 lb Napa (Chinese) cabbage

• 1 tsp salt extra

• chili oil ( optional)

TO COOK ( You can Pan Fry, Steam, or Cook in Water)

• Vegetable oil

• Water

INSTRUCTIONS:

TO MAKE THE FILLING

1. In a large bowl, mix the pork, green onion, ginger, sesame oil, salt, soy sauce, vegetable oil and egg. (I use my hands for this but you could also use a stand mixture if you prefer). Make sure it is well mixed. Set aside to marinate for 1-2 hours.

2. Meanwhile, cut the cabbage across into thin strips. Now chop the strips into very small pieces.

3. Place the cabbage in a bowl and sprinkle with the extra teaspoon of salt. Set aside for 30 minutes.

4. Now squeeze out any excess water from the cabbage before you add it to the pork mixture.

5. Mix the cabbage into the marinated pork.

TO MAKE THE DOUGH

1. In a large bowl, mix the flour and water until a soft dough forms. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for around 10 minutes until the smooth.

2. Divide the dough in half. Shape each half into a 12-inch long roll and cut the roll into ½ inch pieces.

3. Take a piece of dough and roll it into a ball then press the ball flat with the heel of your hand.

TO BOIL DUMPLINGS

1. Half fill a large saucepan with water and bring to the boil.

2. Add 20-25 dumplings (depending on the size of your pan) to the water and stir them to ensure they don't stick to the bottom.

3. Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil to the water to help prevent sticking and put the lid on the pan.

4. As the dumplings start to float, add 1 cup of water to the pan and replace the lid. Repeat this one more time (two times if you are cooking the dumplings from frozen).

5. Use a slotted spoon to remove the dumplings from the pan and transfer to a serving dish,

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Give this recipe a try, and let me know what you think. If you like it spicy add some extra chili oil, you can also pan fry these babies if you want a little more crispiness 🙂 Happy Chinese New Year, check out my dumpling recipe & shopping cart in link. Cheers