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1993-01-20
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Newsgroups: rec.food.recipes
Distribution: world
From: Barbara Sinkule <jasper@dolores.Stanford.EDU>
Date: Wed, 4 Dec 91 11:51:42 pst
Subject: MISC: Chinese Dumplings (Jiaozi)
Summary: orig. subject: REQUEST: Chinese Dumplings
Archive-Name: recipes/misc/jiaozi
Keywords: recipe misc jiaozi
Followup-To: rec.food.cooking
Organization: ?
Approved: aem@mthvax.cs.miami.edu
Here is the recipe. I learned by watching and estimating (no one
measures in China...) but I wrote this out for a friend a few years
ago. There are lots of variations on fillings, and depending on what
you like, feel free to experiment. I like mine with a lot of
vegetables, though I have noticed most restaurants are fairly heavy on
the meat.
CHINESE DUMPLINGS (jiaozi)
Filling:
1 to 1 1/2 lb ground pork (get the regular, not the extra lean)
1 - 2 Tbs minced ginger root
3 Tbs sesame oil
3 or more Tbs soy sauce
Stir these ingredients together with chopsticks or a wooden spoon until
they become sticky. (This takes a few minutes -- if you stir with a
circular motion around the bowl the pork fat gets stickier. This is
important to hold it together and makes it easier to fill the
dumplings).
Add:
one egg (optional)
Add:
3 - 4 cups of finely chopped Napa cabbage*, bok choy*, or
shredded/finely chopped carrots.
6 - 10 green onions, finely chopped
1 - 2 tsp salt
Mix well.
*For cabbage or bok choy, sprinkle with salt while you chop it; this
makes some of the water come out of it. Then wring with your hands in
small amounts before adding to the filling. No need to overdue this --
the idea is to reduce the water in the filling, but wringing with a
cheescloth or other wise too vigorously makes it dry. (An alternative
is to blanch the cabbage before chopping it, but I don't have much
experience with this.) This isn't necessary if you choose to use carrots.
Filling the jiaozi:
Buy the round kind of skins at your grocery store or Chinese market.
If you want to fry them, be sure to get the thicker ones that usually
say for "pot stickers". These or the thinner ones work fine for
boiling.
Get a small bowl of water.
Moisten the edge of one of the skins about 2/3 the way around on one
side, in to about 1/4 inch from the edge. (I dip my pinky in the water
bowl to do this, while laying the skin flat in the palm of the other
hand. I use my pinky for water to keep other fingers dry for the
following step...) Put about a rounded teaspoon of filling in the
middle of the skin. Now the tricky part to explain in writing...Pinch
the center of the cry and the center of the wet sides together with
thumb and index finger. Seal the rest of the edge together by
pinching. Now, the important thing is that the filling stay inside,
but there are many ways to make them prettier. Here is one: after
pinching the center, start at one folded edge, and create a little
pleat each time you pinch the back (wet side, works best if this away
from you) to the front. Visualize the front (toward you) as taking up a
little over a third of the circumference, and the back, with the pleats
taking up the rest. This makes them fat and stand up a bit, which is a
very nice effect, especially for frying.
Set each one aside on a floured board or plain wax paper.
Cooking:
Boiling:
Bring a large pot of water to boil, like for pasta. After it boils
drop in one dumpling at a time -- about enough to cover the bottom of
th epan in one layer. Keep your burner on high or medium high, and
wait for it to boil again (stir after you drop them in just to keep
them from sticking to the bottom of the pot). After it boils again,
add enough cold water to stop the boiling, then let it come to a boil
again. Again, add cold water to stop the boiling and let it come to a
boil again. Now try one to make sure the skin is tender and the
filling is cooled. Usually 2 or 3 cold water additions (it is only a
little -- maybe 1/4 to 1/3 cup) is enough.
Frying:
You will need a heavy bottom fry pan or flat bottom wok with a lid
that fits well. Pour a generous amount of cooking oil in the bottom,
enough to cover the bottom evenly (peanut, soybean, cannola, safflower
oil... not corn). Heat until hot (sizzles when you put a potsticker
in it) but not smoking. Add potstickers to cover the bottom (line
them up next to each other, and leave empty space around the edge if
your burner doesn't heat that area of the pan very well). By the time
you have added them, they will probably already have started to brown
(check one of your first ones). Now add water (this is the tricky
part!), about 1/4 to 1/2 cup (really depends on how many you have in
the pan -- I think about 1/4 cup for 8 - 10 potstickers -- you will
have to experiment) VERY QUICKLY and PUT THE LID ON IMMEDIATELY. I
like to put the water in the lid and just flip it over and slam it
down. (The main reason for speed is to avoid splattering grease all
over your kitchen when the water hits the hot oil.) Now reduce heat
to medium, and cook for about 8 minutes. Don't lift the lid. After 8
minutes, take one out and see if it is done. If the skins are tough,
you probably needed more water, if there is still water in the bottom
of the pan, then use less next time (it makes them a bit soggy).
Dipping sauce:
3 parts vinegar -- black sorghum vinegar is best, or malt vinegar
(English style is a good substitute)
1 part soy sauce
a little sesame oil
minced/crushed garlic (optional)
hot sauce, or hot garlic sauce
(Vinegar dip sauce is a regional thing. It is fine to have no dip
sauce at all, or just some Chinese hot sauce.)
Dip them in the sauce and eat while hot.
Filling variations:
substitute lamb for pork (this is good with carrots,and add some 5
spice powder to the filling -- 1/2 tsp??)
vegetarian - substitute 4 dry scrambled eggs for the meat, omit the
raw egg. Crumbled firm tofu and Chinese or regular mushrooms, chopped
fine, are good too -- either with the egg or on their own.
other vegetables - chopped green beans are one of my favorites --
substitute for the cabbage/carrots, or combine with carrots.
(I forgot-- mushrooms are best sauteed first to reduce water content.)
Well, hope this is clear enough for you. Feel free to send questions.
I haven't posted to the net, but you can if you want -- just please
indicate me as the source.
I don't know where you live, but if you can't buy skins, I can tell
you how to make them. Homemade ones are better, but a fair amount of
work.
Good luck!!
Barbara Sinkule