Chinese Steamed Dumplings

For our Chinese New Year dinner, I made these dumplings and added them to some chicken broth for quick and easy wonton soup. It was wonderful start to our meal and perfect for the cold weather!

Dumpling dough:
2 cups flour
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
water (enough for a thick, bread-like dough)

Filling
1/2 lb ground pork
2 scallions, finely chopped
1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger, finely-chopped
1/4 cup peas (thawed if frozen)
1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes (optional)

Sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)
1/2 teaspoon sesame seed (optional)

Mix ingredients for dipping sauce and set aside. Lightly oil a large bowl. Put the flour and salt in another large bowl, piled up.

Make a dent in the top of the pile, and crack the egg into it. Mix the egg into the flour. Add enough water to the mixture to make a thick dough. The consistency should be like bread dough.

In any case, don’t add too much water–it shouldn’t be like batter at all! Turn the dough out onto the flour-dusted counter, and form into a ball. (It helps to flour your hands first).

Place the dough into the oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let stand 1 hour.

Meanwhile mix all ingredients for filling and place in the fridge.

Next, remove dough and place on flour-dusted counter (or work surface). Knead a bit and flatten until very thin (but not see-through or falling apart).

Using a large, round cookie-cutter (or bottom of coffee can or top of glass) cut three-inch rounds.
Don’t place them on top of each other, as they could stick together!

Knead the leftover pieces together again and cut more rounds until there’s no dough left. Spoon a bit of the filling into the center of each round and fold in half (to make a semi-circle shape). Seal edges with a bit of water, and use tongs of a fork to decorate the edge.

To prepare, either steam the dumplings (if you have a steamer) for 15 mins, or boil for 10 mins. If you boil, add some oil to the water and don’t overcrowd the pan–make them in batches.

If you like, you can fry the dumplings in a skillet or wok to brown them before serving.