Pork and cabbage dumplings
MAKES AROUND 35 DUMPLINGS
1 pkt round wonton wrappers
filling
6-7 Chinese cabbage leaves
600g pork mince
150ml pork (or chicken) broth
1 tbsp light soy sauce
2 pinches salt
2 pinches caster sugar
1 pinch ground white pepper
1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
2 spring onions, finely sliced
100g peeled and deveined green prawns (optional)
vegetable oil
black vinegar, to serve
To prepare the filling: cut the Chinese cabbage into thin strips lengthways, then chop finely. Add some salt, mix and set aside in a colander for 20 minutes. Squeeze to extract excess water.
Mix the pork mince with the broth, soy sauce, salt, sugar and white pepper in a bowl. Add the chopped ginger and spring onion, then mix again. Lastly, add the chopped cabbage to the mixture (at this stage, you can add chopped prawns to the filling, if desired) and mix well (to check seasoning, you can cook a small amount of filling in a frying pan).
To assemble, put about 25g filling in the centre of each wonton wrapper. Wet the edges with water, and using both hands, fold over the wrapper and squeeze together to close and seal the dumpling.
Heat a frying pan (preferably non-stick) over medium to high heat and add enough vegetable oil to cover the surface. Add the dumplings one at a time next to each other until the pan is filled. Allow the underside of the dumplings to fry until lightly golden. Then pour in 60 ml (¼ cup) water, leave to cook covered over medium to low heat for 7 minutes. Remove the lid and continue cooking for 1 minute to get a crispy base. Transfer to a plate and serve with black vinegar.
Bao Family by Céline Chung. RRP $60. Published by Murdoch Books. 📷 Grégoire Kalt.
