SEAT OF MY SOUL

Dumplings are a bit of a time commitment to make, but if you can manage,  it’ll go by in a flash, and you’ll all be rewarded with more homemade dumplings than you can eat in one sitting.  It’s fun and you can stock the freezer, ready to boil for any given easy weeknight dinner.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground pork
½ pound shrimp, peeled, cleaned, tails removed
8 dried Chinese mushrooms (1/2 cup after finely chopped)
1 onion (1/2 cup after diced and browned)
½  cabbage (1 cup after finely shredded)
2 eggs
3 tablespoons mushroom-flavored soy sauce
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 ½ teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 packages round wonton wrappers (1 pound each)

Preparation:
1. Soak the dried mushrooms in hot water for about 15 minutes until softened. Squeeze the excess water out, remove stems, and chop into a fine dice.
2. Dice the onion and brown in a frying pan.
3. Finely shred the cabbage until you have 1 cup.
4. Place the shrimp in a food processor and pulse until it is a chunky mixture. Be careful not to over-process, you don’t want to create a paste.
5. Combine the pork, shrimp, mushrooms, onion, cabbage, 1 beaten egg (reserve the other one to make an egg wash), and all the remaining seasonings.
6. Knead the mixture with your hands until just combined. Cover and chill for 10 minutes.
7. While mixture chills, line a few large baking sheets with paper towels and dust lightly with flour.
8. Take one of the wonton wrappers and place a small mound of filling in the center (don’t over-fill or it will be hard to seal). Dip a finger in the egg wash and dab a little on the bottom half of the wrapper. Fold the top edge over and press to seal, creating a half-moon shape.
9. Moisten the curved edge again, and using the thumb and forefinger of one hand, form pleats. Place the dumplings on the lined baking sheets as you complete them, arranging them in 1 layer so they don’t stick to one another.
10. Cook the dumplings in a pot of boiling water (they’re done when they float), or in a hot pan. If pan-searing, heat vegetable oil in a skillet until hot, but not smoking. Fry the dumplings until the bottoms are lightly golden, about 2-3 minutes, then add ½ cup water, cover with a lid, and cook until the liquid is evaporated and the bottoms of the dumplings are crisp, 8-10 minutes.
11. Serve dumplings immediately with dipping sauce.

Dipping Sauce
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 tablespoons minced green onion
4 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon spice vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar