Dumplings: Tips, Techniques, Recipes

[chengdude]

Hongyou shuijiao and hongyou chaoshou (抄手) are different: chaoshou are huntun/wonton (馄饨) while shuijiao are are boiled jiaozi. Those pictured are chaoshou, square wrappers with just a dab of pork filling....and of course, jiaozi are the much fatter "dumplings" stuffed with any number of things.

[percyn]

The sauce can include chili oil, chopped green onion, minced garlic, soya sauce, Sichuan Pepper powder, vinegar, sesame oil, some kind of preserved vegetable, and many more secret ingredients. I think MSG would be among the secret ingredients.

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Yuri, thanks for listing the ingredients.

Anyone have a recipe for this (sauce and dumplings)?

Thanks

Percy

[Dejah]

Yuri, thanks for listing the ingredients.

Anyone have a recipe for this (sauce and dumplings)?

Thanks

Percy

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Check out my recipe for wontons in the "Dejah's foodblogging this week" thread in this forum.

[saluki]

Yuri, thanks for listing the ingredients.

Anyone have a recipe for this (sauce and dumplings)?

Thanks

Percy

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This is from The People's Republic of China Cookbook by Nabuko Sakamoto. It's not in a broth but it sounds like what you are looking for

Red Oil Dumplings

Red oil Dip

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

Pinch of salt

Garlic Paste

5 large garlic cloves

Dash of white vinegar

2 Drops sesame oil

Salt

Red Soy dip

2 1-inch pieces cinnamon bark

3 star anise

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup thin soy sauce

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Chinese red vinger dip

1/4 cup Chinese red vinegar

1/2 teaspoon thin soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon sugar

4 drops sesame oil

2 cups finelysliced celery cabbage

Salt

3/4 cup minced pork butt

1/4 cup minced green onion, white part only

Seasoning mixture

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 tablespoon thin soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1/2 teaspoon crushed flower pepper

1teaspoon rice wine

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

Wrappings

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

3/4 cup warm water

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

To make the red oil dip, heat vegetable oil in a pan, add cayenne and salt and

mix until they are dissolved.

To make the garlic dip, peel and crush the garlic cloves, add vinegar and sesame oil to form a soft paste and add salt to taste.

To make the red soy dip, place in a pan all ingredients except the oil, simmer slowly for 5 minutes, stirring to prevent burning, and add the oil

To make the Chinese red vinegar dip, mix all ingredients together.

Sprinkle a little salt over the celery cabbage and let stand for 5 minutes.

Wrap in a dishtowel, press, and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.

Place the pork, celery cabbage and green onion in a bowl. Combine the ingredients for the seasoning mixture, add to the pork mixture and mix well.

This is the filling.

Put flour in a bowl and add to it a mixture of oil and warm water. Mix to form a dough; when it leaves the sides of the bowl, place it on a lightly floured board and gently knead until it becomes smooth and elastic. If the dough is too sticky to handle, add a little flour; if too dry, add a little water. Cover the dough with a moist towel and leave it on the board for 15 minute

Work the dough into a long roll about 1 inch in diameter and slice it into 20 pieces.

Lightly flour a board and roll out each piece into a disk about 3 inches in diameter. Put 1 rounded teaspoon filling in the center of each disk and lightly dampen the edges with water. Fold the disk over and pinch the edges together to make a half- circle.

Bring 3 quarts water to a boil in a large pot. Add1 tablespoon oil. Carefully add the dumplings, about 8 at a time. Lower the heat to maintain a constant gentle boil

so that the dumplings will remain in tact. After a few minutes, when the dumplings rise to the surface, add 1 cup of cold water. When the water comes to the boil again, the dumplings are done. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain well. Arrange on a platter lined with a few celery cabbage leaves and serve with the various dips. Makes 20 dumplings. -----From The Peoples Republic of China Cookbook by Nobuko Sakamoto

Is the restaurant in New Bruswick worth the trip from Philly?

I'm hungry.

Edited September 11, 2004 by saluki (log)

[herbacidal]

You are most likely to find it at restaurants that serve Sichuan food, which I am sure Philadelphia must have.

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Unfortunately, hell no we don't have one.

It's my biggest problem with Chinatown.

[percyn]

Is the restaurant in New Bruswick worth the trip from Philly?

I'm hungry.

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Saluki,

First, thanks for the recipe...can't wait to try it out.

Of-course my biased answer to your question above is YES ! I used to go there at least once a week when I lived in NJ and now that I am 2 hrs away, I make the trip at least once a month or anytime I find myself in NJ. I also usually have a freezer full of the dumplings or other dishes, for when I can't make the trip.

However, here are a few other facts for you to consider:

1. Most clientel is ethnic, in a not so ethnic area (i.e. its not in Chinatown)

2. I have introduced many people to this restaurant over the past 10 yrs and not one of them has said they do not like it. Even people who don't like spicy food seem to make it through....people who love spicy food are adicted.

3. I don't claim to be a Sichuan expert, but I have never seen some of the dishes served here at any other restaurant.

4. The bill never seems to go over $50 or so, even if you order a table full of food.

5. Personal observation - The food seems to get even better when the restaurant receives a "conditionally satisfactory" certificate from the local health dept. (Maybe a topic for another thread to see if this is common with other small restaurants).

Let me know when you are planning to go and I will see if I can make the trip too

Cheers

Percy

Edited September 12, 2004 by percyn (log)

[percyn]

Unfortunately, hell no we don't have one.

It's my biggest problem with Chinatown.

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Hmm....I smell an opportunity here. Always wanted to be part owner of a restaurant...anyone interested?

[hzrt8w]

        4. The bill never seems to go over $50 or so, even if you order a table full of food.

percyn: is $50 for one person?

        5. Personal observation - The food seems to get even better when the restaurant receives a "conditionally satisfactory" certificate from the local health dept. (Maybe a topic for another thread to see if this is common with other small restaurants).

Would that be because a certificate makes the cooks happy, and happy cooks make better food?

[hzrt8w]

Hmm....I smell an opportunity here. Always wanted to be part owner of a restaurant...anyone interested?

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Perhaps we can start the "si fan jai" in the US. Unfortunately I live too far away... The commute is... 3000 thousand miles... one way

[saluki]

Hi,

I have been visiting this small, hole-in-the-wall, yet delicious Chinese place in New Brunswick, NJ, called Schezwan Ace for the past 10 yrs or so.

Okay now that our mouths are watering and craving them with no szechuan

restaurant in sight. Maybe you can put me out of my OCD mode by giving an

address. The name will not google. This may sound a bit odd but

do they have anything a vegetarian can eat ? They do eat fish. A phone number would be nice too.

Actually, none of my search engines are even recognizing the name.

Could they have some additioal word in the name?

Also I don't understand if I misunderstood. Did you mean that these dumplings freeze alright? That would be wonderful. I've never had any luck like that.

[percyn]

percyn:  is $50 for one person? 

Would that be because a certificate makes the cooks happy, and happy cooks make better food?

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hzrt8w, the $50 would be for 6-7 people or one very hungry person who takes a ton to go and freezes it

As for the certificate, there is a "Satisfactory" rating (white certificate) and "Conditionally Satisfactory" (yellow certificate), which is a lower rating. Thus I am not sure the cook would be happier, though maybe more motivated.

[percyn]

Okay now that our mouths are watering and craving them with no szechuan

restaurant in sight.  Maybe you can put me out of my OCD mode by giving an

address.  The name will not google.  This may sound a bit odd but

do they have anything a vegetarian can eat ?  They do eat fish.  A phone number would be nice too.

Actually, none of my search engines are even recognizing the name.

Could they have some additioal word in the name?

Yes, this place does not Google well. They do serve some vegetarian dishes, my recommendation being Eggplant in garlic sauce and string beans in garlic sauce. I have never ordered fish here, but have seen many others order whole (fried?) fish.

I don't have their card handy, I will post their address and phone # in a day or two.

Also I don't understand if I misunderstood. Did you mean that these dumplings freeze alright?  That would be wonderful. I've never had any luck like that.

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The dumplings seem to freeze OK for about a week or two, never needed to store beyond that, as they are usually gone by then

[saluki]

Yes, this place does not Google well. They do serve some vegetarian dishes, my recommendation being Eggplant in garlic sauce and string beans in garlic sauce. I have never ordered fish here, but have seen many others order whole (fried?) fish.

I don't have their card handy, I will post their address and phone # in a day or two.

The dumplings seem to freeze OK for about a week or two, never needed to store beyond that, as they are usually gone  by then

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Thanks Percy!

[Gary Soup]

The name will not google. 

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It will Google if you spell it "szechuan ace"

[percyn]

OK,

Here is the address and number:

Szechuan Chinese Restaurant

1721 Route 27

Somerset, NJ 08873

Tel: (732) 937-9330

Hope to see you there...

[durian]

For anyone interested in correct pronounciation and literal meaning:

HONG YOU CHAO SHOU

hoong yo chow show

RED OIL CLENCHED FIST (HAND)

CHAO SHOW rhymes with "how so?" in English. YOU rhymes with the first syllable of yo-yo.

The clenched fist business refers to the way the dumpling is folded.

Thought this info might help people spot new sources of these dumplings. If you can come close to the pronounciation, any restaurant claiming to serve Szechuan/Sichuan food should know what you are talking about.

[Yuki]

I just made a batch of dumplings tonight, but realized that I made a huge mistake. I forgot to taste test the fillings before wrapping them. When I pan fried some of them, the taste is good but seems to be missing something. Forgot to add the ginger juice which is needed to get rid of the porky smell/taste of pork.

I am so mad.... because the pork took me forever to chop by hand.

[hzrt8w]

I am so mad.... because the pork took me forever to chop by hand.

When I make dumplings (wonton or siu mei or pot stickers) I use a food processor to grind the pork. The result seems pretty good. Save a lot of time.

[yimay]

Is guotie the same as pot stickers?

.

Yes.

Guo = pot / Tie = iron / potsticker.

I wish my characters would transpose!

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actually it's guo1 tie1 not guo1 tie3

tie1 = stick

tie3 = iron

so guotie literally means "pot stick"

Edited December 9, 2004 by yimay (log)

[jo-mel]

Is guotie the same as pot stickers?

.

Yes.

Guo = pot / Tie = iron / potsticker.

I wish my characters would transpose!

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actually it's guo1 tie1 not guo1 tie3

tie1 = stick

tie3 = iron

so guotie literally means "pot stick"

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Lets see if this comes out--

鍋 貼

[Yuki]

I made some dumplings yesterday with unusal fillings. It had kabocha(Japanese pumpkin), onion, pork, curry powder, and oyster sauce. Before anyone think I am totally weird, it is actually not that bad of a combination. It was good pan fried and would not recommend steaming/boiling them. I imagine that it would be better if it was deep fried and served with some sour cream. It was kind of like samosa...........

I think for my Christmas project, it would be baking more cookies and think of weird fillings for dumplings and other interest items. How does rice ball filled with banana and chocolate sound?

[Transparent]

Tomorrow night, many Chinese are going to prepare tong yuan in celebration of the winter solstice(I think). For those who celebrate, how do you usually prepare them?

[Ben Hong]

I don't make them and I don't have any female relatives close at hand to invite me . But I can remember my mother's version. The glutinous rice balls (yuan) were in a broth with bits of pork, dried shrimp and julienned lobok. Sprinkle a few bits of coriander or scallions on top and you're good to go.

[Dejah]

I don't make them and I don't have any female relatives close at hand to invite me . But I can remember my mother's version. The glutinous rice balls (yuan) were in a broth with bits of pork, dried shrimp and julienned lobok. Sprinkle a few bits of coriander or scallions on top and you're good to go.

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That's exactly the way my Mom and I make it. I like lots of lobak. Sometimes we also add slices of lapcheung.

I like to top my bowl with lots of cilantro, sprinkle of sesame oil and black/white pepper.

I also like a little bowl of light soya with chili oil to dip my yuan in.

Ben! I'm surprised at you. I know you can make this yourself!

[Yuki]

My grandma makes the sweet version with lots of ginger in the soup and the rice balls are filled with black sesame, red bean, and brown sugar.

I never tried savoury version with the rice balls. The rest of the dishes are just like normal celebration with whole chicken, whole fishes, bbq meat, stewed mushroom, shrimp and other dishes.