Introduction: As a food that contains grains, meat, and vegetables, dumplings are relatively nutritious. Dumplings can cleverly hide the filling, allowing people to consume it unknowingly. At the same time, multiple ingredients can be added to a single filling, easily achieving a combination of various food ingredients, which is much more convenient than stir-frying with multiple ingredients. There are several common types of dumpling fillings. 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 combining them is even more beneficial for nutritional balance. In daily life, to make the filling fragrant and delicious, people tend to use more meat and less vegetables to avoid a "dry" texture. Meanwhile, when preparing vegetable ingredients, the juice is usually squeezed out, which causes a significant loss of soluble vitamins and nutrients like potassium. How to make a dumpling filling that is both nutritious and delicious requires following the following principles:
Loofah and Shrimp Dumplings
Vegetable Dumplings are Healthy and Nutritious
In contrast, vegetarian fillings with eggs and vegetables as the main ingredients are healthier, with fat coming from vegetable oil and a higher proportion of vegetables. Since eggs are rich in phosphorus, such fillings should be paired 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 the filling.
Fungi and algae make good fillings
For meat fillings, try to pair them with vegetables rich in dietary fiber and minerals, and add some foods rich in soluble fiber, such as shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, tremella, and various mushrooms, as well as algae like kelp and wakame. They can improve texture, help reduce cholesterol and fat absorption, and control the rise in blood lipids 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 helps reduce fat content. When eating dumplings, you can also pair them with various refreshing cold-dressed vegetables.
Use less fatty meat and more vegetables
Following 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 vegetable ingredients. The meat used should be 90% lean, 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.
Three-Fresh Shrimp Dumplings
Cooking Methods
Dumplings with a lot of vegetables and very little meat have a high water content and are prone to "falling apart." Boiling them results in significant nutrient loss and poorer texture. Methods like pan-frying or steaming can be considered. Dumplings with a higher meat content are suitable for boiling. Try to use less oil for frying and other cooking methods to avoid adding extra fat.