Category Archives: Dumplings

Baked Dumplings with Black Pudding

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Black Pudding Potato Cakes recently posted by Mr. Three-Cookies (from Three Cookies blog) inspired me to try something new with my beloved black pudding. Looking through the content of my freezer I found a piece of black pudding (I always keep some in case of an urgent craving) and I also realised I still had wonton skins, leftover from my Baked Wonton Chips. Black pudding dumplings seemed an obvious solution.

I wanted to obtain a crunchy result, but since black pudding is already quite rich, instead of frying, I baked them in the oven (they were slightly tougher than deep-fried dumplings, but crunchy and excellent). I love my black pudding hot, so after removing the casing I mixed it with gochujang (Korean chili paste). In case you have never tested this mixture, black pudding and gochujang go perfectly together (I have been enjoying this combination for years). We had these dumplings with green salad for lunch, but they would make a perfect bowl of snacks for a party too. I was very happy with this improvised dish and strongly recommend these dumplings to all my fellow fans of black pudding. Thank you, Mr. Three-Cookies, for the inspiration!

TIPS: Many people are put off black pudding because their first experience involves a supermarket cheap product. It is not easy to make a good, well seasoned black pudding, so if you have never tasted it, I strongly advise getting it from a really good butcher. It’s also wise to ask a black pudding fan for recommendation because in some countries certain good quality brands can also sell good black pudding.

Black pudding or blood sausage exist all around the world, but they are slightly different in every country or even region. British, Polish or Hungarian are quite solid because they contain rice, buckwheat, barley or oatmeal as fillers. In most regions French boudin noir is quite soft and smooth (onions and breadcrumbs and/or cream are fillers, but the texture remains custardy). Personally I prefer the denser black puddings, so when I have only the French one, I mix it with cooked buckwheat or barley to fill the dumplings. If you prefer the delicate, smooth texture, you don’t need to add anything, of course.

You don’t have to add any hot spices if your black pudding is already hot or if you don’t like hot dishes. You can add any herbs or spices of your choice too.

Accidentally these dumplings tasted great with my recently posted Pineapple and Chili Jelly (any sweet & hot jelly or sauce is in my opinion perfect with black pudding).

Preparation: 20 minutes

Ingredients (serves two):

14 – 16 dumpling skins (I used wonton wrappers/skins)

200 g (7 oz) black pudding or, if you have soft, smooth French type of black pudding and wish to make the filling denser: 100 g black pudding + 6 – 7 slightly heaped tablespoons cooked buckwheat, rice or oatmeal…

2 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chili paste) or 1 tablespoon powdered chili (neither is obligatory, of course)

oil (I have used chili oil)

Remove the black pudding’s casing. Put the filling in a bowl and combine with gochujang or chili and additional filler if you wish.

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Prepare a small bowl or glass with cold water.

Put several dumpling skins on a chopping board (or any other clean surface).

Brush their edges with water (about 1 cm thick).

Place a well-heaped teaspoon of the black pudding filling in the middle.

Close the dumplings, pinching the edges and forming triangles or half-circles if you have round dumpling skins.

Repeat with the remaining wonton skins.

Place the dumplings on a sheet of baking paper.

Brush them with oil at least on the upper side (you can do it on both sides).

Bake for 10 – 15 minutes until they are golden. (Every oven i different, so watch your oven frequently after the first 5 minutes because they burn easily and quickly!).

Easy Shrimp Dumplings

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Ready-to-use, frozen dumpling skins were a huge revelation to me. As soon as I realised how quickly they thawed and how easy they were to handle, I started to treat dumplings as one of those quick staples I make when I am in a hurry and lack ideas. I used to stuff dumplings with ground meat or ground meat and tofu, but one day I decided to have shrimps instead. After a complete failure with ground raw thawed shrimp filling I opted for roughly chopped, cooked shrimps. The result was perfect and reminded me of the Chinese transparent shrimp dumplings I sometimes have in restaurants. These dumplings are light, slightly crunchy and really simple. Ginger, garlic and chives make them less plain or boring (the only thing I regretted about the restaurant ones). In my opinion they do not need to be fried and taste even better when simply cooked in stock or in salted water (the stock, even instant, gives however much better results). I suppose they can also be steamed. I love them sprinkled with chili oil (or Taberu rayu).

TIPS: I have no access to fresh raw shrimp, but if you do, you might experiment with raw shrimps instead of cooked ones. My experience with thawed raw shrimp wasn’t successful.

If I want to accelerate the thawing process, I put the dumpling skins (still in their package) in a bowl of lukewarm (not hot!) water.

Special equipment : brush (to moist the dumplings’ edges)

Preparation: 45 minutes

Ingredients (serves 3 as a main dish or 5 as a starter):

about 25 cooked shrimp, shelled and deveined (26/30 per pound size, mine are usually about 4 cm long without heads)

a package of 24 thawed dumpling skins (I use gyoza skins, but any round Asian thin dumpling skins will be perfect)

2 litres vegetable or chicken stock

1 egg

chives or green onion

1 cm grated fresh ginger

1 big grated garlic clove

salt, pepper

(chili oil)

Heat the stock in a big pan.

In the meantime chop the shrimp with a knife into 4-5 pieces each. (Do not mix them in a food processor).

In a bowl combine a slightly beaten egg, the shrimps, the chopped chives, the ginger, the garlic, the salt and the pepper.

Prepare a small bowl or glass with cold water.

Put several dumpling skins on a chopping board (or any other clean surface).

Brush their edges with water (about 1 cm from the border).

Place a heaped teaspoon of the shrimp filling, discarding the excess egg. Close dumplings, pinching the edges.

Repeat with the remaining dumpling skins.

Cook them in the boiling stock no more than 6 at a time (they shouldn’t be too crowded) for about 5 minutes.

(I usually make the first batch of 5-6 and then, while they cook, I make a second one, and so on.)

Take them out with a slotted spoon, drain them and serve immediately sprinkled with chili oil.

Dumplings can be refrigerated for two days in a container separated with plastic film (otherwise they will stick).

I reheat them in a microwave.

Chicken Stock and Stock Meat Dumplings

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Whenever I buy a whole chicken, everyone (including my butcher) thinks I am going to roast it, braise it or do something similar with the whole bird. In reality, I do this maybe with one chicken out of thirty. The rest of the time I buy it for its lower price, for the stock and for the stock meat dumplings. The whole bird yields at least three meals for two and the stock is a basis for at least one soup.

I am always surprised that so many people are afraid of cutting up a raw chicken, while it is so easy. My – very unprofessional – carving process takes ten minutes and I’m left with legs (which I use mainly in Shoyu Chicken), breasts (used often in stir-fries), wings (which I love grilled) and, last but not least, the carcass, which is the key to the home-made stock and Stock Meat Dumplings.

Instead of praising the obvious home-made chicken stock’s qualities, I would like to attract your attention to what is left once the stock has been cooked and strained. In my opinion the slowly cooked vegetables and the meat scraped from the carcass create an extraordinary dumpling stuffing. The chicken meat, simmered close to the bones ends up soft, juicy and the vegetables’ company makes it particularly flavoursome. These dumplings taste heavenly when cooked in the same stock afterwards. In fact, I often prepare chicken stock only to be able to prepare the dumplings and cook them in it. This is one of these situations where by-products prove more worthwhile than the main product.

TIPS: If you don’t want to bother with the whole bird, these dumplings can be made with one chicken leg; it will usually give a similar yield to the carcass. The stock will be quite good too, but of course not as good as the one made with the whole carcass.

This stock tastes best when made with parsley root, but if you don’t have it, substitute it adding more celeriac and several big sprigs of parsley (see below).

Preparation: stock: about 3 hours, dumplings: about 40 minutes (or more if you fry them)

Ingredients (yield: about 24 dumplings):

1 chicken carcass, without legs, breasts or wings (or 1 leg, skin on)

1 big carrot

1/4 celeriac

1 parsley root (or 1/4 celeriac or a small parsnip and 5 big sprigs of parsley greens)

1 small onion

green leaves from 1 medium leek

salt, pepper

1 egg

1 package (24) dumpling skins (Chinese, Japanese or Korean)

(5 tablespoons chopped raw leek, the white or the light green part)

First prepare the stock.

Put the carcass and the vegetables in a big pan.

Cover with cold water, season with salt and pepper and let it simmer for about 3 hours, adding water if necessary (if it evaporates too much).

Strain the liquid. Let it cool down. (The stock can be refrigerated for about a week and frozen for several months).

In the meantime chop very finely the carrot and the parsley root (substitute with 5 tablespoons chopped cooked celeriac or parsnip).

Add the chopped raw leek.

Using your fingers and a fork scrape the meat from the carcass and chop it very finely with a knife.

Combine the meat, the vegetables, one raw egg, season with salt and pepper.

Place several dumpling skins on the counter.

Brush the edges with water and put a heaped teaspoon of stuffing on each skin. Seal the edges, pinching them, or use a dumpling sealer.

Bring 1 liter of the stock to boil (or 1 liter of salted water if you are saving the whole stock for a soup) and cook the dumplings for about 5 minutes.

Do not cook more than 5 – 6 dumplings at a time.

Serve them immediately or fry them.

Chicken and Shiso Dumplings

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Shiso (紫蘇), or perilla, a herb I discovered only a couple of months ago, has become a staple in my kitchen. Its elegant, slightly bitter taste and grassy aroma make it exceptional and absolutely impossible to compare to any other plant. Even though it can be used both raw and cooked, it is not as versatile as parsley, coriander or chives. On the other hand, once you find a good company for shiso, it will become an obligatory ingredient, enhancing basic and bland flavours and creating interesting, original dishes. Two main varieties – red shiso (akajiso in Japanese) and green shiso – have the same shape, but vary slightly in colour and intensity (red one is more pungent). Apart from the Japanese cuisine, perilla is also used for example in China, Vietnam or Korea.

Some time ago a Japanese friend told me how she makes beef and shiso gyoza dumplings. I promised myself I would try her recipe one day. A couple of days ago, finding a package of gyoza skins in my freezer I have decided to try shiso in dumplings. I have chosen ground chicken for two reasons. First, I only had chicken breasts in my fridge and secondly, both Ume- Shiso Chicken Skewers and Chicken and Shiso Balls have convinced me that shiso and chicken combination was foolproof. I was right: instead of dominating the delicate chicken breast flavours, shiso enhanced and sophisticated them. The dumplings were so good, I had them for dinner two days in a row. Thank you, R., for this excellent idea!

If you cannot find shiso in your Japanese shop or if it’s horribly expensive, try other Asian grocers. I find cheap shiso all year round in a Vietnamese shop. I don’t dare calling my dumplings “gyoza” since they were simply cooked and then some of them reheated by pan frying. If you want to prepare them like real gyoza, see Nami’s “Just One Cookbook” blog for detailed instructions.

In case you have a big bunch of shiso and wonder how to use it, here are previously posted dishes, all calling for shiso:

-Aubergine with Ponzu, Miso and Sesame Sauce

-Chicken and Shiso Balls

-Tomato and Shiso Salad

-Ume-Shiso Chicken Skewers

Before I pass to the recipe details, I would like to express my gratitude to Mr. Three-Cookies (from Three Cookies blog) for making and posting my Layered Herring and Beetroot Salad. His presentation is absolutely gorgeous and I’m very proud that, as the ultimate herring specialist, Mr. Three-Cookies enjoyed my favourite herring dish (click here to see his wonderful version).

Preparation: 1 hour

Ingredients (makes 24 gyoza skin dumplings):

24 gyoza skins (or other thin dumpling skins)

2 chicken breasts (minced or whole)

4 tablespoons chopped shiso

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 medium onion

salt and pepper to taste

2-3 litres chicken stock

If using minced chicken breasts, combine them in a bowl with finely chopped onion, shiso and the remaining ingredients.

If using whole chicken breasts, cut them into chunks and mix, with onion, in a food processor.

Afterwards combine with the remaining ingredients.

Prepare a big pan of boiling chicken stock (may be prepared with granulated chicken stock).

Brush the dumpling skins’ edges with water.

Place a heaped teaspoon of the filling on each skin and seal them.

To make sure the dumplings are well sealed, I always prick the sealed edges with a fork (on both sides).

Cook in boiling stock for about 10 minutes. (Put only a couple of dumplings at a time, so that they can “swim” easily).

Serve boiled or fried.

These dumplings can be made in advance and frozen or refrigerated. If you want to refrigerate them, separate them with cling film. Otherwise they might stick to each other.

Potatoes and Curd Cheese Dumplings, or Pierogi ruskie

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Ravioli, empanadas, gyoza, mandu… Dumplings – or pastry packages with various fillings – appear in most of the traditional cookery books in the world. Pierogi (pronounced “p-ye-ro-ghee”), or Polish dumplings, have dozens of different traditional fillings, and their variations are infinite. They can be both sweet and savoury, bigger or smaller, with or without meat, but the pastry gives them the typical Polish touch. A bit thicker than the Asian one, it should be firm, a bit elastic, but never tough. Pierogi are also usually bigger than the Asian dumplings (not to mention the Italian ravioli), attaining sometimes a big fist size.

Even though I’m a declared carnivore, strangely, my favourite are the vegetarian pierogi (“pierogi ruskie”), filled with potatoes, curd cheese and fried onion. These ingredients make a very unusual and complex combination, impossible to compare to anything else and surprising when tasted for the first time. These dumplings’ name is erroneously translated as “Russian”, but they have got nothing to do with Russia. In fact, apart from a slightly offensive adjective meaning “Russian”, “ruskie” also refers to the region nowadays partly in Ukraine and partly in the Eastern Poland, and previously called “Red Ruthenia” (belonging to Poland before the 2nd World War). This is the region where this type of dumplings originated from. Consequently, they should be translated rather as “Ruthanian dumplings”. To make matters more complicated, the Ukrainians apparently call them “Polish dumplings”…

The Polish dumpling pastry is very easy to prepare, provided one has a kneading food processor. It is a bit longer and needs a bit of exercise when hand kneaded. A fork is the traditional tool to seal the edges and a very efficient one too. The dumplings are first quickly cooked, and then can be served straight away or fried. Some serve them with sour cream, others with chopped and fried cracklings or bacon or fried chopped onion. This pastry recipe comes from my mother and of course is the best! The filling is more or less the same in every “Ruthanian” pierogi recipe. Normally the dumplings are served as the main course, but if you make them smaller they can become original finger food.

Special equipment:

a kneading food processor (or strong hands and a bit of patience)

Preparation: 1 hour – 1 1/2 hour (depends on your experience and kneading-rolling velocity)

Ingredients:

Pastry:

250 g white flour

100 ml hot (not boiling) water

1 egg yolk

1/2 tablespoon neutral tasting oil (not olive oil)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Filling:

150g curd cheese (or 150g drained off cottage cheese, e.i. about 300g before draining)

150g cooked and peeled potatoes

1 medium onion

salt, pepper

1 tablespoon oil

Prepare the filling. Chop the onion and fry it in 1 tablespoon oil until slightly browned.

Mash the potatoes and combine with the cheese, the onions, the salt and the pepper. Mix well with a fork (not with a mixer!). Adjust the taste if necessary (the pepper should be very present in the overall taste).

Combine the pastry ingredients and knead them until the pastry is smooth and doesn’t stick to your hands, or combine them in a food processor. Mix them quickly with a kneading function.

Add more flour if necessary.

Cover the pastry with plastic film, since it dries very quickly.

Roll out half of the pastry to a 1/2 cm sheet (some people prefer 1 cm thick). Take a round pastry cutter or a glass and cut out 7 – 10 cm diameter circles. Fill them with a tablespoon of the cheese mixture, seal with your fingers, put on the table and press down the rims on one or both sides with fork’s teeth.

Layer the filled dumplings on a plate, separating the layers with plastic film, otherwise they’ll stick to each other.

Bring two litres of salted water to a boil.

Cook 4-5 dumplings at a time, counting 3 minutes from the moment they appear at the surface.

(After the second or third batch they’ll start sticking to the bottom of the pan, so you should push them a bit after 30 seconds, otherwise they’ll never go up to the surface).

Serve them immediately with sour cream or sprinkled with fried cracklings, or fried bacon cubes.

They can also be slightly fried and served crunchy. Personally I prefer them just cooked and served either with fried bacon or with fried onion.

If you want to serve them the following day, place them in a plastic box, putting cling film after each layer and closing the box tightly before putting them into the fridge.

Mandu 만두, or Korean Dumplings