CNY Part 2: Dumplings v. Dumplings

Can I just say something? Since high school, I have been both haunted and mesmerized by Rachel Ray. There are so many things about her that I cannot stand. I find her "quarks" --YUM-O, and EVOO, and not knowing how to cook -- nauseating. But, I can't. Stop. Watching. Her show. So often, at night after work, I find myself watching back to back 30 Minute Meals and basically hating myself for the hour.

This happened again the other night. Rachel was cooking "asian noodles" and decided that "asian pancakes" would just tie the whole "asian theme" together. Sure, I don't usually mind when cooks find it okay to call whatever they're making "asian" the second they throw in ginger root (so exotic) and a dash of soy sauce (it's like liquid salt. omg).

Let's talk about these scallion and egg pancakes. They are toasted tortillas folded with scrambled eggs inside. Rachel then goes all out and claims: "they're like instant dumplings, really!".

No, Rachel. What you made was a breakfast burrito. THESES are dumplings....

Here's how I made them: Finely dice one napa cabbage and one celery stalk. Place in a large bowl and sprinkle 2-4 tablespoons of salt to render the liquid. Set aside when done.



For the meat mixture:
1 lb lean ground pork
2 tbs miso
4 scallions 1 tbs ginger (to make sure it's asian enough)
3 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tbs light soy
1/2 tbs salt
1 tsp five spice
1 1/2 cups Swanson's chicken stock

Mix everything except chicken stock. Once mixed, incorporate 1/2 cups of chicken stock at a time, into the meat mixture and stirring in one direction.

Squeeze liquid out of cabbage and celery and add into meat mixture.

Set a small dish of water and dumpling wrappers. Dip your finger into the water and wet the outer edge of the wrapper. Use a small teaspoon or chopsticks to scoop the filling. Here's how you wrap them on one side...

NOTE: make sure not to get any of the filling onto the sealed edge, the oil will cause it to open while boiling.

Drew and Karly hard at work

Boil water in a large pot. Once boiling, drop 5-6 dumplings in at a time. Stir with a ladle to prevent sticking. Dumplings are done once they float and the wrapper sticks to the meat.


-Bo

CNY Part 1: Hot Pot in Harbin

A couple weeks ago, my mother called and asked if my surprise came in the mail. I said yes! because Danny and I had just received Chinese New Year's red envelopes filled with cash. But I looked around the living room and realized that the two computer boxes that I had been ignoring, were, in fact, addressed to me. As I unflapped the lids, I peeped inside and saw that the whole box was filled with GROCERIES!

Tangerines, cabbages, bok choy, cilantro, Asian pears, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots...all from mother's weekend farmer's market. New Year, a time for food and family, was approaching. So my mother, after hearing about the horrors of DC produce, sent me fresh Californian goods to celebrate.

Unfortunately...the boxes were inside our toasty house for a couple of days...You get the picture.
One other item that was stuffed in a box was a table top electric pot, which spells HOT POT. I'm not going to go into the origins and how-to because I think Maureen Pao from Kitchen Window on NPR.org does a great job.

I found a great Korean market in Fairfax called H Mart where I purchased all the vegetables, meat, and sauces. I also got ingredients for dumplings, but I will save that for the next post. Greatest find in the store: Harbin Beer! Harbin, my birth place, is a rustic city in northeast China, so cold it's known for annual Ice Festivals. Breaking the Tsing Tao monopoly, Harbin beer is now available in the US. It's a fairly light, easy to drink, not bitter, and a little nutty. I have many great memories of my family in Harbin and most them involve bottles of this beer.



After much work and preparation, our bellies were satisfied and dinner ended with red bean and melon popsicles. Here's a picture of Josh, Danny, and Andrew dipping in.