Hello Medical student! So just because of upper limb, endocrinology and the metabolism of carbohydrates that you’ve got to jack, you’ve gone out to buy that unhealthy junk food due to its fast nature, shey? Well, maybe you thought there was no other alternative to keep up with your busy time schedule and you simply don’t have the privilege of wasting any minute on long cooking. I hereby present to you an exquisite recipe for a highly nutritious meal that contains all essential body nutrients, is cheaply available and takes less time to prepare. Yes, less time to prepare! All you need to get it ready is a one-time investment of say, 2 hours on a weekend to prepare a bunch load that would last throughout the week without spoilage if properly kept. Curious already? I present you honourable sirs and mas, Chinese dumplings!
A quick bit of history!
The pot-stickers variant of Chinese is different from other Chinese dumplings in that it is lightly browned in oil first before cooking in steam. According to legend, a chef intended to boil dumplings in a wok, but walked away for too long and the water boiled off. The dumplings stuck to the wok and the wrappers crisped up, but they were still delicious. This accidental cooking method became THE cooking method and the new kind of dumplings was called pot-stickers!
Note that there are several recipes for making these dumplings and this is just an adapted variant – from personal experience, that is budget-friendly and easy to make as a student.
What do you need?
- Baking flour
- Yeast
- Warm water
- Beef or pork – 500g, 1kg, 1.5kg
- Soy sauce – dark variant (sold in 250mL bottles, can be reused over time)
- Shredded fresh pepper and onions
- Vegetable oil
- Seasoning – salt and Maggi
- Aluminum foil
- Two clean pots
- A metal steamer
- Your cooker of whatever make.
How do you make it?
Dumplings can be essentially divided into two: the sauce and the dough! It is often recommended you make the dough first before the sauce.
- Making the dough
Add your baking flour to a bowl with little salt (optional). Mix the yeast with water and pour into the flour. Stir until consistent and cover aside.
- Making the sauce
- Boil the beef/pork, and cut into cubes or shred as desired.
- Fry the boiled cubed/shredded beef/pork lightly in little oil. The soy sauce contains oil so you should avoid using too much oil at this point.
- Add onions, shredded fresh pepper, seasoning and cook a while
- Now add some soy sauce to commensurate the amount of oil earlier added
- Add little flour to give a paste-like texture and salt to taste
- Making the dumplings
- Knead the dough and cut in thick (as desired) circles.
- Fill the circle with your sauce and wrap in the aluminium foil or alternatively, tie up the dough-filled sauce and place on a foil base.
- Add very little water to the pot and put it in your steamer.
- Place your dumplings in and steam for 3-5 minutes and you’re done!
Serving the dumplings
Now that your dumplings are ready, they can be served as a snack or a meal on its own as it contains all the needed classes of nutrients – carbohydrate (the dough), protein (the meat), fats and oil (the oil and soy sauce), vitamins, mineral salt etc. When accompanied with a hot cup of tea, it is a wonderful delight.
Storage
Dumplings can be stored for 3-5 days when appropriately made and fully steamed. Simply keep in a cool, dry and well-aerated place or a refrigerator.
Ayomide Oyekan
