Family gathering, how about a dumpling feast? Sounds wonderful!
As the saying goes, "Nothing tastes better than dumplings." Today, dumplings are no longer just a staple for people in the north; people in the south are also growing to love them. The ways to make dumplings are endlessly creative, with various shapes and designs that are almost too beautiful to eat. Here are a few stunning dumpling shapes to try out.
▎N Ways to Fold Dumplings
【Sunflower Dumplings】
1. Place a filling on a dumpling wrapper, then place another wrapper flat on top of the filling.
2. Pinch the edges of the two wrappers together, then pleat the edges from one corner.
【Purse Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and fold the wrapper in half, pinching the edges to seal.
2. From right to left, pleat the edges.
【Little Hand Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and fold the wrapper in half, pinching the middle to seal.
2. Pinch the left and right sides inward, then pinch the remaining edges together and pleat them.
【Four-Corner Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and pinch the middle to seal.
2. Take the middle part of the left and right sides and pinch them, then pinch the remaining edges.
【Triangle Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and fold the left side over, pinching it to seal.
2. Pinch the middle of the right side towards the center, then pinch the remaining two edges.
【Crescent Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and pinch the middle to seal.
2. With your left hand, make a small wave on the top edge of the right half and pinch it. Continue with two more small waves. Do the same for the left half.
【Gucci Handbag Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and pinch the middle to seal.
2. Make a small wave at the one-third and two-thirds marks.
【Nemo Fish Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling.
2. From right to left, pinch the top and bottom edges in small waves. After pinching the leftmost end, flatten it.
【Little Goldfish Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and pinch the left half to seal.
2. Pinch the middle of the right half towards the center. Leave a spot for the fish's eye and pinch the remaining edges.
【Spanish Dance Skirt Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and fold it in half. Pinch the middle third.
2. Pinch the middle of the left and right sides towards the center, then pinch the remaining edges. Every two to three millimeters, pinch and crimp the edges with your fingers.
【Yuanbao (Ingot) Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and fold it in half, pinching the edges to seal.
2. Flip it over and pinch the two corners firmly.
【Beauty Fan Dumplings】
1. Take a dumpling wrapper, add the filling, and pinch the middle to seal.
2. Hold the two ends of the dumpling with the "虎口" (web between thumb and index finger) of both hands, and pinch the edges firmly with your thumbs.
▎The Process of Making Dumplings
Mixing the Dough
The most common type is wheat flour, though some places use buckwheat flour (which doesn't taste as good). Use cold water. The ratio of flour to water is four bowls of flour to one bowl of water. After kneading the dough in a basin, let it rest for 20 minutes to allow it to "rest" (xing3) (for the water to fully penetrate the flour particles). If the water is too much, the dough will be soft, easy to wrap, but prone to breaking when boiled. Conversely, if the water is too little, the dough will be hard, making it difficult to roll out the wrappers and to wrap. For the best texture, the dough should be on the harder side, which is why there's a saying, "soft pancakes, hard dumplings."
Making the Wrappers
Rolling: Place the rested dough on a cutting board and roll it into a long cylinder, about 2-3 cm in diameter. Break (or cut) the cylinder into small segments about 1.5 cm long—these are called "剂子" (jizi). Flatten each jizi with your hand, then use a rolling pin to roll it out into a wrapper of suitable diameter (4-7 cm), about 0.5-1 mm thick, with the center slightly thicker. When rolling, sprinkle some dry flour on the cutting board to prevent sticking. Since rolling wrappers is quite time-consuming, many fresh noodle shops now sell machine-made ones. Machine-made wrappers usually require you to dip your fingers in water to seal them.
Shaping by Hand
Using a rolling pin to make dumpling wrappers seems to be part of urban culture. In rural areas, the hand-shaping method is more common. To shape by hand, first form the jizi into a flat circle. Then, while rotating it, pinch and press it with your fingers. The resulting wrapper is bowl-shaped (whereas a rolled wrapper is flat) and has less dry flour, making it easier to wrap. The disadvantage is that it takes more time than rolling.
Making the Filling
In principle, any kind of meat, egg, fish, shrimp, or vegetable can be used for the filling. Let's use a pork and cabbage filling as an example. Take some pork shoulder, mince it. Pure lean meat is not ideal, as it becomes too hard and has a poor texture after cooking. Take some Napa cabbage, chop it, squeeze out the excess water, and mix it with the pork. Add ginger, soy sauce, salt, oil, etc., and mix until it becomes sticky.
Regarding seasoning, it's better to be slightly underseasoned than oversalted. If it's too bland, you can add more soy sauce to fix it. If it's too salty, you can only add more vegetables or meat.
Hard vegetables should be pre-treated to soften them; otherwise, the dumpling wrappers can break easily. For example, blanch celery in hot water before chopping it. The vegetables should not be too watery, as this makes them hard to wrap and prone to bursting when boiled. Usually, the moisture needs to be squeezed out.
Wrapping
Place an appropriate amount of filling in the center of a dumpling wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half and pinch the edges to seal. A raw dumpling is now wrapped (special dumplings that don't require sealed edges, which seal naturally when cooked, are an exception). Generally speaking, the ideal is thin wrappers with large fillings, which are delicious but difficult to wrap.