How to Cook Dumplings

Dumplings

It is said that the dumpling was invented by the Chinese medical sage Zhang Zhongjing of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220). Whether this is true or not, it is a popular food with a long history. It is the staple food and snack of northern Chinese people and it is also indispensable during the Spring Festival in northern China. There are many ways to cook dumplings, with different fillings. Here we introduce dumplings with pork and pumpkin filling. If you do not like them, replace them with another food.

Ingredients:

600g wheat flour, 400g ground pork, 100g pumpkin, 2 eggs, some ginger, green onion and some garlic

Seasoning: some salt, soy sauce, sugar, cooking wine, sesame oil and chicken powder

Note: The amount of the seasonings listed above can be adjusted according to personal taste.

Preparation and Cooking Instructions:

• Make the dumpling wrapper: Put the wheat flour in a basin. Add some salt and mix evenly. Pour water in the center of the flour. Knead and stir the flour into dough. Cover the dough with a wet cloth to rise for about half an hour. Sprinkle some flour onto a board and place the dough on the board. Knead the dough into a long strip and cut into small pieces. Roll the small piece flat with a rolling pin to make the dumpling wrapper. Put the wrappers aside. Sprinkle some flour on them to prevent them from sticking together.
• Make the dumpling filling: While the dough is fermenting, make the filling. Clean and mince the pork into ground pork. Clean and mince the pumpkin. Mix the ground pork with the minced pumpkin, salt, cooking wine, chicken powder, sugar, eggs and some water and stir them evenly.
• Make the dumpling: Put a spoon of filling into the center of each wrapper. Fold and pinch the wrapper edge together hard. Make sure the wrapper edge is tight.
• Make the dipping sauce (depends on your taste): Clean and mince some green onion and garlic. Put them in a small dish. Add some white sugar, vinegar and paprika. Heat some cooking oil and soy sauce, and when they boil, pour them in the dish.
• Cook the dumplings: Boil some water. When the water boils, add the dumplings one by one. When the water boils again, add about a small cup of water. Cover and repeat twice more. While boiling the dumplings, stir them to prevent them from sticking together or to the pot.
• The dumplings are ready. Drain them into a dish.