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I always admire the dumpling pictures that Renee shows us on her Shiokadelicious! blog, but I’ve never actually dared to try any whilst out to dinner. So, when I spotted a really rather simple recipe for steamed dumplings in my new love (HomeBaking, Alford/Duguid) I decided to take the plunge and make some of my own….
The pre-recipe blurb tells us that these dumplings (known locally as momos) originate from Tibet and similar dumplings are also made in Nepal by the Sherpas there. (Of course the original recipes use yak meat.) The recipe is quite plain, but for my first foray into steamed dumplings (and indeed, steamed meat) I was quite happy to keep things plain.
As the recipe advocated using a food processor, it was very quick and easy to prepare. The dough was silky smooth and very pliable. Shockingly I managed to roll out perfect circles each time. I really liked this dough! The dough stuck together well once twisted and even looked like the picture in the book.
The dumplings turned out very well. The meat was succulent and generated plenty of juices which soaked into the bottom of the wrappers which made them extra tasty. I’m not sure how to describe the texture of the wrappers; I expected them to be a little slimey, but they were soft and somewhere between moist and dry. A bit like skin, I suppose. The simple dipping sauce of soy sauce slaked with some rice vinegar worked nicely. I tried sprinkling a couple of dumplings with sesame oil and this was too overpowering for their fairly delicate flavour.
I would definitely make these dumplings again. Next time I think I would add some chopped chilli for a spicy-hot flavour. Perhaps mixing the soy sauce with some chilli oil for dipping would also be nice?
Himalayan Steamed Dumplings, adapted from Home Baking (Alford, Duguid)
Makes 12, serves 2-3
Filling
225g beef mince (original recipe uses steak, I had mince so used that instead)
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1 large garlic clove, halved
A 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
Wrappers
280g plain flour
~250ml (1 cup) warm water
To make the filling: Place the onion, garlic and ginger in the food processor and blitz to a paste. Add the beef mince, soy and salt and pulse briefly until combined. Scrape into a bowl and chill.
To make the wrapper dough: Place the flour in the bowl of the food processor (thoroughly washed out!) and put the lid on. Turn on the processor and gradually pour in the warm water until a dough begins to form. Depending upon your flour, you may not need all the water. The dough should be quite stiff, and not too sticky. My dough had the consistency of window putty when done.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly. If your dough is too sticky knead in a little extra flour. Wrap tightly in clingfilm and leave for at least 30 minutes before using it. It can be left at room temperature for up to 8 hours; if longer, refridgerate for up to 2 days.
When ready to make the dumplings, lightly oil (using groundnut or sunflower) the base and sides of bamboo steamer baskets or the plastic baskets of an electric steamer. (I used our electric steamer which worked perfectly and the dumplings didn’t stick.) Assemble the steamer components if necessary.
Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. You will be working with one piece at a time, so cover the remainder with clingfilm. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough piece out to 4″ diameter round. Place a slightly heaped tablespoon of filling paste in the middle of the round, then pick up the edges of dough in several places, gather them together to cover the filling, then squeeze and twist to seal and make a kind of topknot. Place in the steamer basket and proceed in the same way with the remaining dough and filling.
Steam the dumplings for 10-12 minutes until cooked through. Serve with soy sauce (the same one you used in the filling) for dipping. I slaked the soy sauce with a little rice vinegar for extra flavour, which was lovely.
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hi Angela!
wow! the skin dough sounds wonderful!
I know I post about dumplings quite a lot, but I’ve never made them myself… now, I really want to try out this dough.
thanks for helping to nudge me into action ; )
oh, btw, I’ve been eyeing this Home Baking book on Amazon for a while, and been wondering if it is worth getting…
have you tried other recipes from it? what’s your opinion on the book?
(I’ve loved the books you’ve recommended so far : ))
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Wow, Renee! I pictured you making dumplings quite a lot!! I feel quite shocked now
HomeBaking is _definitely_ worth buying! I’ve made the Jamaican Coconut Pie, Almond Milk Bread (tastes very similar to brioche but with significantly less butter; the almonds just add richness rather than flavour; its also a really sexy dough to work with), and the Himalayan Dumplings. I can honestly say that I want to make every recipe from the book!!
My only issue with the book is that the authors recommend using all-purpose flour for everything. Perhaps American all-purpose has a higher percentage of protein than British? Anyway, for the bread recipes, I’d recommend using bread flour rather than all-purpose to ensure a good texture and crust.
The majority of the recipes (and there are about 200) are bread. I’m eying some Vietnamese breads at the moment which are filled with a coconut/sugar paste (very similar to the paste in the coconut pie)… I love that it is truely international - there are quite a lot of recipes from the former Soviet Union (I’m not even going to attempt to spell any country names!).
Oh yes, there are pretty pictures too
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: D
no, I have definitely only been doing the eating and none of the making. shocking really, isn’t it? ; )
oh, now I *really* want this book! I love the idea of having recipes from *exotic* places like the soviet union.
and that Vietnamese bread recipe sounds wonderful. will we be seeing a post soon? ; )
I’m going to see if the book is available at my local Borders. if not, I’ll just have to get it shipped out from Amazon.
heh. sounds like we have very similar “tastes” in cookbooks : )
thanks for another exciting recommendation :
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I’ll probably make the Vietnamese bread at the end of next week. Its our wedding anniversary on Monday so we’re going to dinner at Raymond Blanc’s hotel (7 courses of heaven!) and then to Venice for a couple of nights *sigh* Of course, I cannot find the dress I wanted to wear. I suppose I could wear my wedding dress, but that might be a tad excessive!
We should compare cookbook collections at some point
I’m currently trying to get a reasonably priced copy of Alice Mendich’s “Chocolate and the art of low-fat baking” after seeing the yummy things you’ve been baking from it. So far I’ve found that I can buy a _used_ copy for £154 *faints*
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oh Angela!
happy anniversary! my very best wishes to the both of you!
how absolutely fabulous! dinner at Raymond Blanc’s AND Venice!! sounds like a second honeymoon to me : )
oh, I wish you all the fun and romance in the world! have a great time!
let someone else do all the cooking and washing up for a change! and you just let yourself be pampered and indulged ; )
but of course, do come back and share with us little tidbits of your food adventures ; )
hmmm… I don’t know… a wedding dress in Venice… hey, why not? ; )
I think we really should… someday…
I’m so curious about your cookbook collection… almost every single one you have talked about I have wanted to go out and get! only the size of my bank account has kept me from doing that. lol.
*faints too* 154 for a CALFD??!! why on earth would it cost so much??
I think I got mine in Canada many years ago for less than C$40! hardcover too.
is it out of print or something?
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these tasty dumplings are called “sha pagleb” in tibetan which translates to “meat bread.” the shape of the ones that i have had (made by tibetan monks) have been flat and hamburger shaped with a lovely pleated pattern on top that reminds me of an origami box. tasty and lovley. the perfect culinary combination.