Susanna Foos Pork Dumplings With Soy Ginger Sauce Recipes

PORK DUMPLINGS WITH SOY DIPPING SAUCE

Steps:

• Trim away top of onion, then cut in half, leaving the root intact; peel away and discard the skin. Lay halves flat on a cutting board, then make vertical slices, stopping at the root so the onion half stays intact. Then slice crosswise to a small, uniform dice. Place in a bowl and set aside. Smash, peel, and finely mince garlic. Add to the bowl with the onions. Use a peeler or spoon to remove ginger skin. Slice into thin coins, then julienne as thinly as possible. Cut crosswise to mince. Add to bowl with onions and garlic.
• In a large sauté pan, heat 1 teaspoon of oil over medium heat. Sauté the onions, garlic, ginger, a pinch of salt, and a few cranks of black pepper until slightly caramelized, 4-5 minutes. Meanwhile, finely mince garlic chives. Stir aromatics, then cook 1-2 more minutes.Make the dipping sauce: In a bowl, combine soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and brown sugar. Whisk to combine. Add star anise and set aside. Add minced chives and another pinch of salt to the aromatics. Cook until chives begin to soften, about 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to a plate or bowl to cool completely, 30 minutes. (Alternatively, cool in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.)
• Once the aromatics have cooled, finish the dumpling filling: In a large bowl, add pork. Place tofu in a small strainer set over a second bowl; use a wooden spoon to gently press excess water out of the tofu. Add drained tofu to the pork, along with the aromatics, hoisin sauce, salt and pepper. Mix well. (Use your hands for quicker, more even mixing.) In a skillet, heat ½ teaspoon oil over medium heat. Cook a small patty of the dumpling filling; taste and adjust seasoning with hoisin sauce or salt as needed.
• Fill and fold dumplings: Fill a small bowl with water and place it nearby. Place a tablespoon of filling in a wrapper. Use your finger to "paint" a little water halfway around the edge of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper shut and pinch to close, making a half moon shape. (Optional: Make a pleat in the middle, or pleat all the way around.) Wrapper edges should be flush and completely sealed, and there should be no air bubbles in the dumpling. Place each finished dumpling on a sheet pan, and repeat until you've used all the filling. (Optional: Freeze any dumpling mixture you want to save for another time; defrost before using.) To store uncooked dumplings, place in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze completely; then pack them into plastic freezer bags. Frozen dumplings will last 2-3 weeks. (Note: They do not refrigerate well.)
• Cook dumplings: Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat; add just enough oil to coat the bottom, about 1 tablespoon. Add dumplings in an even layer, about 10. Brown the dumplings on one side, 2-3 minutes. Then carefully add about ¼ inch of water, and immediately place the lid on top of the pan; steam until nearly all the water evaporates, 3-5 minutes. Remove the cover and allow the dumplings to fry again, just long enough to fully brown. Once they are fully browned, flip to slightly crisp the other side, about a minute. Plate and serve the dumplings immediately with dipping sauce. (Note: To cook frozen dumplings, follow the same procedure, but with slightly more water so they steam a little longer and cook through.)

PORK DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the pork, ginger, garlic, green onion, soy sauce, sesame oil, egg and cabbage. Stir until well mixed.
• Place 1 heaping teaspoon of pork filling onto each wonton skin. Moisten edges with water and fold edges over to form a triangle shape. Roll edges slightly to seal in filling. Set dumplings aside on a lightly floured surface until ready to cook.
• To Cook: Steam dumplings in a covered bamboo or metal steamer for about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

DUMPLINGS WITH GINGER DIPPING SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. In a small bowl, mix the dipping sauce ingredients, stirring until the sugar dissolves; set aside. In a medium bowl, mix the pork, scallions, soy sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch, sherry, gingerroot and garlic.
• Place the wonton skins on a work surface and cover them with a damp towel. Remove the wonton skins 1 at a time and place about 1 teaspoon filling in the center; do no overstuff or the wontons won't seal securely. Moisten the edges of the wontons with water. Bring 2 opposite corners to the center, pinching the points to seal, then bring remaining 2 corners to center, pinching the points to seal. Repeat with the remaining wonton skins and filling.
• Add the wontons in batches (if you add too many at once they may stick together) to the boiling water. Stir gently with a wooden spoon and bring back to a boil; boil 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the wontons to a platter. Serve with a dipping sauce.

PORK SOUP DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• Make the wrappers: Combine the flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a large bowl and create a well in the middle. Add 1/2 cup boiling water and mix it in with a spatula, then incorporate with your hands until you have a mealy, shaggy mixture. Mix in 1/2 cup cold water and bring everything together into a dough, then turn it out onto a work surface and knead, adding more flour if it gets too sticky to work with, until you have a smooth and slightly sticky dough, 7 to 10 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and set aside for 30 minutes while you make the filling.
• Make the soup gelatin: Heat the chicken stock in a saucepan until hot, then add the soy sauce and gelatin powder. Whisk to combine. Pour into a shallow dish and chill until set, about 1 hour. Break up the gelatin by fluffing it with a fork. Set aside.
• Make the filling: Put the pork in a large bowl and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add the soy sauce, ginger, sambal oelek, sesame oil, rice vinegar and scallions. Mix with your hands (don't overmix), then set up your dumpling folding station.
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and dust with flour. To assemble the dumplings, divide the dough into 32 balls (keep them covered when you're not working with them). Roll out the balls into 3 1/2- to 4-inch circles, flouring the surface as needed. Put a wrapper in your non-dominant hand and make a cup. Place 1/2 tablespoon pork filling in the center and top with 1/2 tablespoon soup gelatin. Begin gathering and pleating the dumpling wrapper using your thumb and pointer finger. Work your way around the edge of the wrapper until you've gathered all the dough; your thumb stays in the same place - it's the pointer finger doing all the work. Twist it at the end, pinching everything in the center. Repeat with the remaining wrappers, filling and soup gelatin and place the dumplings on the sheet pan. (You can freeze the dumplings at this point and steam them directly from the freezer.)
• To steam the dumplings, line a bamboo steamer with cabbage leaves or parchment paper with a few holes cut out. Place a single layer of dumplings in the steamer, leaving a bit of room between them, then set the steamer over a pot of boiling water. Steam in batches until cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. (Alternately, line a plate with cabbage or parchment. Place in a pot of boiling water, making sure the water doesn't cover the plate; cook 8 to 10 minutes.)
• Let the dumplings cool slightly, then enjoy with a sauce of equal parts vinegar and soy sauce with sambal oelek to taste.

PORK GYOZA WITH GINGER DIPPING SAUCE

Steps:

• For the ginger dipping sauce: Combine the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar and ginger in a small bowl and set aside.
• For the filling: Mix together the pork, egg, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, scallion, soy sauce, vermouth, cornstarch, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
• To make the gyoza: Place a small bowl of cool water by your work surface. Working with one wrapper at a time and keeping the rest tightly wrapped, put a wrapper on your work surface and brush the edges with water using your finger or a small pastry brush. Put a mounded teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper, spreading it out into a football shape. Bring the edges of the wrapper together, resting the dumpling base on your work surface. Seal the edges by making 4 to 6 pleats on the side facing you and pressing the edges together. (Only 1 side should be pleated.) Set aside, cover with a damp paper towel and repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.
• To cook the gyoza: Heat 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Quickly arrange half the gyoza, bottom-side down in the skillet, and cook until beginning to brown on the bottom, about 1 minute. Add 2/3 cup water to the skillet (it will spatter), cover tightly and let the gyoza cook until the skins are tender, about 6 minutes. Remove the lid and cook until the liquid has cooked off and the gyoza are crisp and brown on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Repeat with the remaining vegetable oil and dumplings. Serve hot with the ginger dipping sauce.

PORK AND CHIVE DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a large sauté pan, heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium heat and sauté the onion, garlic, and ginger until translucent and slightly caramelized. Add the chives and cook just to soften them, about 1 minute longer. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and let it cool.
• Once the onion has cooled, add the tofu, 1⁄3 cup (75 ml) of the hoisin sauce, the salt, and pepper and mix well. Add the pork to the bowl and mix it with the seasonings until you can see that the chives and tofu are evenly distributed throughout the meat.
• In a small frying pan, cook a small spoonful of the meat mixture in a little bit of oil. Taste and adjust the seasoning of the meat with more hoisin sauce and/or salt, if necessary.
• Prepare a small dish of water and line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Place about 1 tablespoon of filling in each dumpling wrapper. Using your finger, paint a little water around the edge of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half and simply pinch it closed, or crimp it. Place each finished dumpling on the baking sheet and repeat until you've used all the filling.
• You can freeze them directly on the baking sheet until they harden, then pack them into plastic freezer bags. (They do not refrigerate well.) They will last for 3 months.
• To cook fresh dumplings (see Cooks' Note for frozen), heat a nonstick frying pan or well- seasoned cast-iron skillet with just enough oil to coat the bottom. Add just enough dumplings so that they are not overcrowded and don't touch. Brown the dumplings on one side, then add about 1⁄4 inch (6 mm) of water, cover, and steam the dumplings until nearly all the water evaporates.
• Remove the cover and let the dumplings begin to fry again, just long enough to crisp them slightly, then serve them immediately with the dipping sauce.
• Cooks' Note
• To cook frozen dumplings, follow the same procedure above for fresh dumplings, but use 1⁄3 inch (8 mm) water so they steam a little longer and cook through.
• I learned how to fold dumplings at an early age with the help of my grandmother and mother, and before we opened The Good Fork, I used to have dumpling-making parties at home. That's how I know that making one hundred dumplings at a time sounds daunting but is the only way to do it. Gather a few friends, make the dumplings together, then you each get some to tuck away-packaged by the dozen-into the freezer for weeks to come.

SOY GINGER DIPPING SAUCE (FOR DUMPLINGS OR POT STICKERS)

Steps:

• Bring soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and 1/4 cup water to boil in small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
• Pour mixture into bowl and stir in scallion, ginger, oil, and hot red pepper flakes (Sauce can be refrigerated in air-tight container for several days).
• Makes about one cup.