Traditional Vietnamese Dumplings

Directions

For the Filling

1. Put Cloud-ear mushrooms in a bowl, pour boiling water over, let sit for 30’ and then chop finely and set side.

2. Clean & wash chives chop finely and set aside.

3. Loosely pack ground pork and add to mixing bowl.

4. Shell prawns, chop finely and add to ground pork.

5. Add seasoning (white pepper, sesame oil and salt) and mix by hand and squeeze through fingers. This is a crucial step in creating the important “bond”. Do this for about 2-3 min

6. Add Chives and Cloud-Ear for final hand mix to create a paste

For the Dough

1. Sift or stir the flours together on a floured surface. 

2. Create a well in the middle, add some of the water slowly start mixing to create a shaggy dough just like the start of a basic bread recipe.

3. The dough should feel about the same as the fleshiest part of your palm. Let rest for about 30’. 

4. Keep dough covered in a linen cloth sprayed with water

5. Knead for 4-5 minutes by hand or 2-3 minutes in a mixer with dough hook.

Making the Dumpling

1. Starting with piece about the size of longan, pinch the edges to make a disc. 

2. Hold the disc with your left hand and put the edge of the disc to the rolling pin in your right hand.  

3. Using your right hand roll from the edge to the centre. 

4. The dough should be thinner on the edge and thicker as it goes towards the center. This will make for a beautiful edge without breaking as the stuffing goes in.  

5. Add the stuffing to the middle and dust off any excess flour, there’s no need to moisten with water before pinching the sides together, if there’s not too much excess flour as the dough is still fresh. Otherwise just moisten with water and pinch the middle together. Then two folds on each side until the dumpling is completely closed. Set them on parchment paper and covered with piece of moisten linen in the fridge

For the dipping sauce

1. Mix all ingredients together

   
   

Cooking the Dumplings

1. Use 10” frying pan with airtight lid preferably a glass lid. 

2. Heat the pan on medium high for 2 minutes.  

3. Add just enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. (neutral oil will do, some prefer peanut oil for a higher smoke point to get that extra crisp) 

4. Place your dumpling in the pan and cook uncovered for 2 minutes.

5. With lid in hand, turn the heat to medium and pour in ⅛ C water, just enough to cover the bottom of the pan and immediately put on the lid to capture all the steam.

6. Let it steam for 4 minutes, until the dough becomes translucent. By now the bottom should be golden brown and the stuffing is also perfectly cooked.  

7. These dumplings can also be steamed in a bamboo steamer to deep fried like a samosa or empanada