Take Out Fake Out: Pork and Shrimp Dumplings
Oh my goodness. I don’t know about you guys, but I am a sucker for some good dumplings. I am seriously considering hiring an authentic Dim Sum chef to come cater my Sunday mornings… and Saturday mornings. Maybe even Wednesday nights. Heck, I might as well just hire him on full time, in case I get an insatiable craving.
I have made homemade dumplings before, but not for a while. So when I went to make these, I was gearing up for half a day in the kitchen. To my surprise, I was in and out in well less than an hour. Which made me realize that I should be making these on the daily.
Hey, maybe I could just hire me on full time. Actually, on second thought, I don’t think I could work with myself.
But in all seriousness, you need to make these. Like.Right.Now. Your taste buds and tummy will thank you and you will make all your friends bow down to your prowess in the kitchen.
The recipe below actually makes 40 of these bad boys – which, as long as you aren’t having a crowd over for dinner, means you will have lots leftover. You can freeze the extras on a cookie sheet and then once fully frozen, just pop them into a freezer bag. They will keep for a month or two with no problems. Then when you get a hankering for them, just pull them out and cook them as per the directions below, straight from frozen. You just need to add a couple extra minutes to the cooking time. Couldn’t be any easier!
As usual, if you have an idea for something you would like to see on an upcoming edition of Take Out Fake out, please comment below!
Pork and Shrimp Dumplings:
Makes 40 dumplings
What you need:
For the dumplings:
- 1 cup chopped baby bok choy
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 2 tbsp freshly minced chives
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 egg
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 8 large shrimp, chopped finely
- 40 round flour dumpling wrappers (defrosted) you can find these in Asian markets and they are typically frozen.
- 1 tbsp canola oil
For the sauce:
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- Fresh chives, minced
To make the dumplings:
Boil the bok choy, just until tender, about 3-4 minutes, drain and allow to cool. When cooled, place in a cheese cloth (or even paper towel works) and squeeze out the extra water. Add to a large bowl, followed by the garlic, ginger, chives, soy sauce, pepper, sesame oil, fish sauce, egg and cornstarch. Mix around thoroughly to combine. Now add the pork and shrimp and mix again until totally combined. Grab your dumpling wrappers and a small bowl of cold water. With a spoon, pickup about 1 teaspoon of the filling and place it in the middle of a dumpling wrapper, dip your finger in the bowl of water and graze your finger along the edge of the wrapper, just on on half of the wrapper. now fold the wrapper over the dough and press along the edges to seal it. Press and crimp the edges about 3 or four times to make it purdy. Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, you will probably need two of these. Now repeat until you run out of wrappers, filling or both.
Once finished, you can either stick the pans of dumplings straight into the freezer, let them freeze completely and then transfer them to a freezer bag (they will last at least a month or two like this.) Or you can cook them up right away! If you opt for eating some, just set a large pan (one that has a lid) over medium high heat. Add the tbsp of oil followed by how many dumplings you want to cook. Allow them to brown slightly about 2 minutes or so, then add about 1/4 cup water to the pan and put the lid on. This will steam and cook the dumplings through. After about 5-6 minutes, remove the lid and if there is excess water in the pan, allow it to cook off.
Sauce
Mix together the sauce ingredients and drizzle some sauce over the dumplings (or you can leave it on the side if you prefer to dip) and sprinkle with some freshly chopped chives.
Enjoy!
