Dumpling Recipes

Every culture has it's own version of the dumpling and these dumpling recipes will help you bring a taste of exotic lands to your table.

You can be a Wrap Artist

From ravioli to piroges to pot stickers, the dumpling shows up in many forms. It's hard to think of a cuisine that hasn't taken some dough and stuffed it with meat or cheese. Although dumpling recipes may seem daunting, all you need is a steamer and a little patience to enjoy homemade dumplings. Whether you are making bread-based dumplings or dough-filled treats, it's the sauce that will complete your meal.

When making filled-dough dumplings, you may be tempted to over-fill the wrapper. This isn't a good idea because the filling will usually expand when the dumpling is cooked and over-stuffed dumplings tend to split.

Another thing to bear in mind when preparing dumplings is that the wrappers are sometimes very sticky. To keep the dough workable, you might want to keep it cold. I have found that when making the Momo recipe below, using small amounts of the dough while keeping the rest in the refrigerator help it stay workable.

Dumpling Recipes

These dumpling recipes explore the different ways to cook dumplings. For the steamed dumplings, I suggest that you oil your steamer well because the dough is very sticky. If you don't have a bamboo steamer basket, you can use a rice steamer or a vegetable steamer insert.

Shish Barak

This Lebanese dumpling dish, served with a yogurt sauce, is a delicious way to serve lamb. This recipe serves four.

Ingredients

Filling

• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• ¼ cup pine nuts
• 1 pound of minced lamb
• 1 tablespoon of fresh mint, chopped
• Salt and fresh ground pepper

Dough

• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• Water

Yogurt Sauce

• 8 cups of plain yogurt
• 1 beaten egg
• 1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon of cold water
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed

Instructions

For the dough

1. Mix the flour and salt for the dough in a medium-sized bowl.
2. Add water slowly while stirring the flour with a fork until a dough is formed.
3. Knead the dough lightly until it is soft and smooth.
4. Cover and let stand for one hour.

For the Filling

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium-low heat.
2. Add the onion and slowly cook until it starts to become translucent.
3. Add the pine nuts and fry them until they are golden brown.
4. Add the meat and stir it until it is browned.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
7. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 1/8th inch thickness.
8. Using a 2 ½ inch-round cutter, cut out rounds of the dough.
9. Place one teaspoon of filling in the center of the dough round.
10. Fold the dough over the filling and press the edges together.
11. Bring the ends together and press them together.

For the Sauce

1. Pour the yogurt into a saucepan.
2. Beat the egg with the cornstarch mixture.
3. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
4. Slowly bring the mixture to a boil stirring constantly.
5. Lower the heat and simmer until the sauce thickens.
6. Carefully drop the dumplings into the sauce.
7. Simmer for 20 minutes.
8. While the dumplings are simmering, warm the garlic and butter in a small saucepan until the garlic is golden.
9. Stir in the mint.
10. Spoon the dumplings onto a plate.
11. Pour the mint/garlic butter over the dumplings.
12. Serve with basmati rice and salad.

Momo

Pronounced like So-so, these Tibetan dumplings are as much fun to make as they are to eat. Traditionally, Momo are made with yak meat but if you want to substitute lamb or beef, feel free. Tibet may have an abundance of yak but they are rather hard to track down here in the States.

Ingredients

Filling

• 8 ounces of ground lamb or beef
• ½ onion, chopped fine
• 1 cup chopped kale or cabbage, raw
• ½ cup of cilantro, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 tablespoon of fresh ginger
• 1 ½ teaspoons curry powder
• 1 tablespoon of sherry
• 2 teaspoons of flour
• 2 teaspoons of soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Dough

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup of hot water

Sauce

• ¼ cup of soy sauce
• ¼ cup of vinegar
• ¼ cup of chili oil
• 1 piece of fresh ginger, about 2 inches long (more if you like ginger), grated

Instructions

1. Prepare the dough as for Shish Barak.
2. Mix the lamb, onion, kale, cilantro, garlic, ginger, curry powder, sherry, flour, soy sauce, and cayenne pepper in a bowl.
3. Place one tablespoon of filling in the center of the dough round.
4. Fold the dough over the filling and seal.
5. Be sure to leave a small hole at the top of the dumpling so the steam can escape or the Momo will pop.
6. Line the bottom of the steamer with kale leaves or coat the steamer with oil.
7. Place enough Momo in the steamer to fill it, do not over fill the steamer.
8. Steam the Momo for 15-20 minutes.
9. Mix the sauce ingredients together.
10. Dip the Momo in the sauce and eat.