Adventures in Dumplings (part 1)

Asian dumplings or gyoza in Japan are completely wonderful things. They are part of yum cha which translates as ‘drink tea’. It is a mid morning/lunch meal with tea and dim sum to eat. I bought some dumplings from a charming lady in a food market in London to take home and eat and I thought I could try making them myself.

I’ve made two types of dumpling one more successful than the other! I’ll detail them over two posts. First pork pot stickers!

You can make your own dumpling skins – you need very few ingredients, but managing to get them the same size and thickness is challenging. There is a recipe here if you fancy having a go. Shop bought dumpling skins, however, are inexpensive and convenient. You can buy them online here or your local Asian supermarket will definitely have them.

Pork Pot Stickers

So named because the first cooking step is to fry the pot stickers until they’re golden on the bottom before steaming them. The original blog where the recipe came from that details the author’s family history and connection with dumplings is here. She also provides a great tutorial on how to pleat dumplings in their distinctive crescent shape.

Pork Filling
1 lb ground pork
4 large napa cabbage leaves, minced
3 stalks green onions, minced
7 shitake mushrooms, minced (if dried – rehydrated and rinsed carefully)
1/2 cup bamboo shoots, minced

1/4 cup ginger root, minced

3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp corn starch

                       dipping sauce (you can also buy 

                       very tasty dumpling dipping sauce)
                       2 parts soy sauce
                       1 part vinegar (red wine or black)
                       a few drops of sesame oil
                       chili garlic paste (optional)
                       minced ginger (optional)
                       minced garlic (optional)
                       minced green onion (optional)
                       sugar (optional)
1/4 cup ginger root, minced
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp corn starch

Combine all filling ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

To pan fry (potstickers): Place dumplings in a frying pan with 2-3 tbsp of vegetable oil. Heat on high and fry for a few minutes until bottoms are golden. Add 1/2 cup water and cover. Cook until the water has boiled away and then uncover and reduce heat to medium or medium low. Let the dumplings cook for another 2 minutes then remove from heat and serve.

Although I'm sure it's very naughty but you can also buy these dumpling moulds, instead of pleating them by hand!

recipe - copyright jennifer yu ©

(I'm also keen to try these vegetarian, whole wheat dumplings! Let the adventures continue!)

Shopping for Specialist Ingredients - Exeter

I have a real weakness for Asian food. Getting hold of the right ingredients in small cities and towns can be somewhat challenging, that said, all you really need is one good shop. So after a recent visit to Exeter, I thought I'd do a quick list of the main ones. Exeter has quite a few as it happens!

Yonk Foods -

 This is a great Chinese supermarket with very long opening hours, till 10pm most days, it has a bewildering selection of noodles, sauces, pastes, dried and tinned ingredients, as well as cookware and sweets. It has a very small fresh section where you can find large bags of beansprouts, pak choi etc and a small frozen section with dim sum, wonton wrappers and veg.

Continental Food Store - 

established In 1983, CONTINENTAL FOOD STORES of Exeter is the South West’s largest authentic international food & drink specialist, stocking a huge variety of Indian, Bengaladeshi, Chinese, Thai, Filipino, Korean, Malay, Japanese, Iranian, Arabic, Turkish, African, Nigerian and Jamaican brands and ingredients.

The range of spices, rice, pulses, pastes is really impressive and the store also contains a wide variety of imported vegetables and fruits. The only problem is these tend to be past their best, so make sure to root around to find good ones. Although most of the stock is reasonably priced, some items can be very expensive.

R. L. Hira -

Famed as Will Young’s favourite shop in Exeter when he was a student at the University , this shop contains a good range of dried ingredients, particularly for Indian and Thai cooking. They also carry their own baked goods such as samosas.

Seasons -

This little shop sells organic fruit and veg, whole foods and local produce. It specialises in vegetarian, vegan and gluten free foods but also carries a large range of Clearspring Japanese products