"Dumplings for leaving the house, noodles for coming home," dumplings are one of the most common foods on our dining table, and in the eyes of foreigners, dumplings are one of the symbols of China.
As a food that contains both grains, meat, and vegetables, dumplings have relatively comprehensive nutrients. Carrots that children don't like to eat, and various green vegetables that the elderly find difficult to chew, can be cleverly hidden in the filling, allowing people to eat them unknowingly. At the same time, multiple ingredients can be added to one type of filling, easily achieving a combination of various food ingredients, which is much more convenient than stir-frying with multiple ingredients. There are several common fillings for dumplings. Animal-based fillings include pork, beef, mutton, eggs, and shrimp; plant-based fillings include chives, cabbage, celery, fennel, and carrots. These ingredients themselves are highly nutritious, and their combination is more beneficial for nutritional balance. In daily life, to make the filling fragrant, rich, and delicious, people tend to use more meat and less vegetables to avoid a too "dry" texture. At the same time, when preparing vegetable ingredients, the juice is usually squeezed out, which causes a serious loss of soluble vitamins and nutrients like potassium.
To make dumpling fillings that are both nutritious and delicious, the following principles should be followed:
1. Use less fatty meat and more vegetables
According to the principle of dietary acid-base balance, "acidic" meat, eggs, and refined white flour should be balanced with "alkaline" vegetable ingredients. It is best to use one part meat to three parts unsqueezed vegetables. The meat used should be 90% lean meat, and no additional animal or vegetable oil should be added. Increasing the amount of vegetables can reduce the intake of saturated fat and calories, achieving true nutritional balance.
2. Fillings with fungi and algae are better
Meat fillings should be paired with vegetables rich in dietary fiber and minerals, and some foods rich in soluble fiber, such as shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, tremella, various mushrooms, and seaweeds like kelp and wakame. They can improve the texture, help reduce the absorption of cholesterol and fat, and control the rise in blood lipid levels after eating meat fillings. Bamboo shoots and dried vegetables also have the effect of absorbing fat. Various bean products and fish can also be used as fillings to replace part of the meat, which is beneficial for reducing fat content. When eating dumplings, they can be paired with various refreshing cold vegetable dishes.
3. Vegetable-based dumplings are healthy and nutritious
In comparison, vegetable-based fillings with eggs and vegetables as the main ingredients are healthier. The fat comes from vegetable oil, and the proportion of vegetables is relatively large. Because eggs are rich in phosphorus, this type of filling should be combined with green leafy vegetables rich in calcium, potassium, and magnesium, as well as ingredients like dried shrimp and seaweed to promote acid-base balance. Pure starch materials like vermicelli have low nutritional value and should not be used as the main ingredient for fillings.
4. Cooking methods
Dumplings with more vegetables and very little meat have a high water content and are prone to "falling apart." Boiling them results in significant nutrient loss and a poorer texture. Methods like pan-frying with a little water or steaming can be considered. Filled foods with more meat are suitable for boiling. Try to use cooking methods like deep-frying as little as possible to avoid adding extra fat to the diet.