Mushroom & Cabbage Dumplings Recipe

Ingredients

150g Chinese leaf
150g shiitake mushrooms
150g chestnut button mushrooms
20g chives
4 spring onions
25g ginger
1½ tbsp dark soy sauce
½ tbsp brown rice vinegar
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
½ tbsp cornflour, plus extra for dusting
35-40 round dumpling wrappers
Dipping Sauce:
125ml light soy sauce
2 tbsp black rice vinegar
1 chilli

Prep: 60 mins | Cook: 40 mins
Makes 35-40 dumplings

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Method

1. Finely chop the Chinese leaf and pop into a bowl. Add 2 tsp salt and toss it through the cabbage to coat it. Set aside for 30 mins.

2. Meanwhile, finely chop the shiitake and chestnut button mushrooms. Set a frying pan on a medium heat. Add the mushrooms (no need to add oil) and fry, stirring often, for 8 mins till the mushrooms are browned and any liquid has evaporated. Scoop the mushrooms into a clean mixing bowl.

3. Finely chop the chives. Trim the spring onions. Slice off the greens and set aside. Finly chop the white parts. Peel and finely chop the ginger. Add the chives, spring onion whites and ginger to the mushrooms. Stir to mix.

4. Tip the chopped Chinese leaf into a sieve and press as much water out as possible – use your hands to squeeze out all the liquid. Add to the mushrooms and stir well to mix. Pour in the dark soy sauce, rice vinegar and sesame oil, and add the cornflour. Stir well to mix together.

5. Fill a small bowl with water. Dust a baking tray with a little cornflour. Take a dumpling wrapper and place 1 tsp of the mix in the middle. Dampen the edges of the wrapper with a little water, then fold it over to make a half-moon shape. Use your thumb and index finger to pinch the edges together and make pleats. Pop onto the baking tray and then repeat with the rest of the wrappers and filling. You should be able to make around 35-40 dumplings.

6. Fill your kettle and boil it. Make the dipping sauce by combining the light soy sauce and black rice vinegar in a bowl. Finely chop the chilli and add to the bowl. Set aside. Fill a large pan with hot water from the kettle and bring back to the boil.

7. When the water is boiling, add around 6-8 dumplings to the pan. Don't cook too many dumplings at the same time – if the pan is too crowded, they may stick together. Simmer the dumplings for 5 mins till tender. Use a slotted spoon to transfer them to a warm serving dish. Repeat with the remaining dumplings.

8. Serve the dumplings with small dishes of the dipping sauce for dunking.

9. Into The Frying Pan
You can also steam-fry your dumplings. Coat a heavy-based pan (a shallow casserole dish is perfect) with a thin layer of oil and set on a medium-high heat. When it's hot, add enough dumplings to fill the pan without being too packed in and fry for 2-3 mins till they're golden brown underneath. Turn the heat down to low. Pour 100ml water into the pan, clamp on a lid and cook for a further 2 mins. Take off the lid and cook for 2-3 mins till the water has evaporated and the dumplings are cooked through. Transfer to a serving dish and serve. If you freeze your dumplings (see tip below) you cna cook them from frozen like this – it will just take an extra 1-2 mins.

10. Into The Freezer
The raw dumplings can be frozen for up to 6 months. Slide the baking tray of dumplings into the freeze and freeze overnight. Transfer them to a tub or freezerproof bag, seal and freeze until needed. If cooking from frozen, use the steam-fry method.