This was a near disaster. The result ended up being edible, though, so we can't count it as a total failure. Yippee.
Dear Gordon warned me in the intro to this recipe that dumpling-making takes "patience, time, and practice." I understood this, but I was in a mood to keep my hands busy, so I thought I'd reach for the stars on my first recipe adventure. It was probably not a great idea, as I ended up in the kitchen for about three hours, with a pretty lame payoff. My idea was to make the dumplings as an appetizer, and then do the planned green-bean-and-mushroom dish as the main course. Ha! I am not quite there yet, shall we say, when it comes to Chinese chow.
It started simply enough with the dough. However, as I mixed the initial ingredients around, the dough seemed impossibly dry. It was not coming together at all, instead forming discrete lumps and bumps, with lots of loose flour. So I started adding water, thinking that the arid Colorado climate accounted for the dry dough.
I ended up adding about double the amount of water. This was not good -- I think I should have added more oil to counter the H2O, because the dough became totally sticky. Kneading the dough was almost futile, since it just stuck impossibly to my fingers and any part of the counter that wasn't heavily floured. Very frustrating.
The pork, cabbage and their seasonings came together nicely. (I didn't add shrimp, because my husband is allergic.) I was still feeling optimistic at this point, especially after I cooked a little ball of dumpling filling and it tasted pretty fantastic. It was interesting to see at last where those signature Chinese flavors come from. And so, I set about rolling the dough and cutting it into slices, to be turned into dumplings.
And this is where it got ugly. The gluey dough was almost impossible to straighten out and fill. I'd take a slice, squash it with my hand to make a fillable circle, and it'd immediately begin to retract, almost like it was reshaping itself. I couldn't make the circle thin, or it'd stick to the (heavily floured!) table and fall apart when trying to remove it. So I was left with these irritating, thick rounds of dough that were nearly impossible to fill and shape effectively.
I did my best, though, and boiled a couple batches of filled dumplings in light chicken broth. I got a fairly good technique going near the end: squashing and spreading the dough lumps on my right palm, then gently adding filling and folding the edges together. My body heat seemed to make the dough just a little more pliant, though I was still kinda screwed on the thickness, as my hands are small.
And thus, I was left with maybe 10-15 chunky dumplings. I used WAY too much dough per dumpling, so they looked pretty mutated, like boiled pig's ears or something. There was filling mix left over, too, a sure sign that I'd messed up, big time. It's a good thing Chef Ramsay didn't see this performance, or I would have ended up with burst eardrums and probably a knife wound or two.
Nonetheless, I was starving, and so we ate them standing in the kitchen. The dumplings tasted just fine -- quite good, even -- once you picked off the big, extraneous chunks of boiled dough and got to the tasty bits. Husband John whipped up Ramsay's suggested dipping sauce, too, substituting Sriracha sauce for chili oil, since we didn't have any.
It was a disappointing dinner, for sure, but I'm glad I tried it. Somehow, my dumpling-making mojo wasn't totally destroyed, so perhaps I'll give it another go at a later date (ie, when I'm not hungry and am feeling very patient with myself).
Recipe: 4/5
My performance: 2/5
Gordon Ramsay's pork and shrimp dumplings
Dough:
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp fine sea salt
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2-2/3 cup water
Filling:
7 oz. Chinese cabbage leaves (I used savoy cabbage)
sea salt and white pepper (I used cayenne)
9 oz. ground pork (I used more to account for the missing:)
7 oz. raw shrimp
1-1/4 inch piece of gingerroot, peeled and grated
1 tsp soft light brown sugar
2 Tbsp light soy sauce
1 Tbsp Chinese rice wine
2 tsp sesame oil
Sauce:
2 Tbsp red chili oil
1 Tbsp light soy sauce
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 green onion, green part only, finely sliced
Mix flour and salt in large bowl, making a well in the center. Add oil and water. Mix with round-bladed knife until mixture starts to come together as firm dough. Add more water if too dry. Knead the dough on lightly floured counter for 5-10 minutes until silky. Shape into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, let rest while making filling.
Cook cabbage leaves in pan of boiling salted water for 2-3 minutes, until just wilted. Drain well and pat dry on paper towels. Mince leaves and place in large bowl. Add remaining filling ingredients and mix well. Test the seasoning by cooking a small ball in a an oiled pan.
Roll out the dough and shape dumplings: Roll dough into a long, 1-in thick sausage, cut into 3/4-inch lengths. Flatten each piece with palm of hand into a thin circle approximately 3-1/2 inches in diameter. Add 1 to 1-1/2 tsp of filling to center of circle. Brush edges with a little water. Fold sides up to create a half-moon shape. Make small pleats with fingertips.
Steam in bamboo steamer lined with parchment for 7-10 minutes until just cooked through, or poach in light stock for 5 minutes.
No comments:
Post a Comment