Cook With Us Week #14- Vegan Dim Sum

When I read that the final theme for @cookwithus was anything wrap, I immediately thought of dim sum. I have fond memories of frequently going out for dim sum with my family and seeing all the push carts stacked high with bamboo steamers filled with all sorts of delicious dumplings. I always looked forward to one particular dumpling which was Chiu chao fun gor. The skin of the dumpling is translucent and when you bite into the slightly chewy dough, encased inside is a savory filling of pork, garlic chives, mushrooms, cilantro, preserved pickled vegetables and peanuts. The cilantro adds a touch of freshness to this dumpling and ties in all the flavors. As much as I enjoyed going for dim sum, I found that most of the dumplings are filled with meat and there are not many vegan options. So I thought I would a make a vegan version of my favorite dumpling.

Filling

• 125g baked tofu
• 1 large carrot, diced
• small bunch garlic chives, diced
• handful cilantro, chopped
• 8 large fresh shitake mushrooms or button mushrooms, diced
• 2 tbsp preserved pickled vegetable, chopped small
• soy sauce to taste
• splash of roasted sesame oil
• pinch of five spice powder
• 20g peanuts, coarsely chopped

Heat some oil in a sauté pan and add in the carrots, mushrooms, tofu and garlic chives. Cook until tender. Garlic chives are used in many asian dishes and has a pungent smell but when added to food, it has a mellow taste of a garlic and chives combined. It adds a distinctive flavor to dishes. If you can't find them you can use scallions and a clove of garlic in place. Add in the cilantro, pickled vegetable, and peanuts. Season with soy sauce, five spice powder and sesame oil. Five spice is a powder that is a blend of cinnamon, cloves, fennel, star anise and Szechwan peppercorns. It is quite strong and you only need a tiny bit to flavor your dish. Too much and your food will taste bitter.

Once the filling is done, set aside to cool and now it's time to start on the wrapper. You can use store bought dumpling wrappers in place of making this crystal style dough.

Beet Crystal Wrapper

adapted from Woks of Life

• 46g potato starch
• 32g wheat starch
• 1/4 cup beet juice
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 55g wheat starch for kneading

For a detailed description and step by step illustration, on how to make the wrapper, refer to the the original recipe. The dough has to cool completely or it will feel tacky and stick to your fingers while you try to fold the dumplings. Pinch 1.5" sized balls and place between two pieces of saran wrap. Using the bottom of a small frying pan, gently press down until you have a circle that is roughly 1/8" thickness.

Gently peel the dumpling skin off the plastic wrap and fill with a heaping 1.5 teaspoons of filling. Fold the edges to meet in the middle. Pinch the edges, forming a square. The first few will probably rip like mine, but there is plenty of dough and filling for practice.

Place the dumplings on a lined bamboo steamer. You can use parchment paper or even cabbage leaves.

Steam the dumplings for 10-15 minutes or until the dough turns from being opaque to translucent. I like to eat my dumplings with a side of chili sauce but these dumplings are so flavorful they are delicious on their own.

Happy weekend and thank you @offoddandart, @pandamama and @chefsteve for creating this contest and creating a fun cooking community.