Transparent dough for Chinese dumplings. Cooking Chinese dumplings: secrets of a folk recipe

In fact, there are many types of Chinese dumplings, and there are even more fillings for them. I think everyone knows that when it comes to cuisine, the Chinese are very big dreamers. Therefore, it is simply not possible to cover all types. Today, I will first briefly talk about the main types of Chinese dumplings, since if you search for their recipes online by name, then on the first pages of the same Yandex there will be a lot of unreliable information. And then I’ll show you how you can independently prepare one of the most widespread types of dumplings at home, and in a variation that will be acceptable to you and me.

What are Chinese dumplings called?

To begin with, it should be noted that they can be divided into two categories: those that are boiled in water, and those that are steamed. True, some of them can be prepared either way. I wouldn’t single out fried ones separately, since this is a subspecies of the first two.

Jiaozi- these are dumplings with various fillings, the shape of which is identical to our dumplings. They are always boiled in water and then called shuijiao, and sometimes after boiling they are fried in oil in a frying pan and then renamed jianjiao. The list of fillings can be endless. It will be meat, vegetables, seafood (for example, small shrimp), and even a mixture of these three ingredients, translated as “three freshnesses.”

Baozi- These are steamed dumplings, the closest relatives of Buryat poses (or buuz). Their dough is thick and loose. They are steamed in wooden wicker baskets.

Xiaolongbao- a type of baozi. In appearance and sculpting method they are similar to Georgian khinkali, but are steamed. Unlike baozi, their dough is thin, like dumplings.

Shaomai The shape resembles a knot, slightly open at the top. Their dough is very thin, almost transparent, and they are also steamed.

Hongtun or as they are called in southern China wonton, - small dumplings, usually round in shape, usually served in broth or soup with the addition of vegetables and other ingredients.

Very often, a number of Chinese dumplings include dim sum(or dim sum). Although in fact this is the southern Chinese pronunciation of the word "dianxin", which translates as small sweets, small snacks. I’m not very familiar with the cuisine of southern China, so I can’t say for sure, but I assume that some of the small dumplings are considered such a snack there. However, it is not true to think that dim sum is only dumplings.

Today I will introduce you in detail, step by step, to the recipe for the most popular type - jiaozi.

Dumpling dough - recipe

Usually, in everyday life, the simplest dough is prepared: flour, water and salt. The secret is long kneading, after which it becomes very elastic and rolls out thin. But I want to suggest you make choux pastry (the Chinese don’t avoid it either). In my opinion, this is generally the most successful dumpling dough, easy to work with and manageable.

Ingredients:

flour – 350g;
salt – 0.5 tsp;
water – 200ml;
egg – 1 piece;
vegetable oil – 2 tbsp.

Cooking process

Filling for dumplings

As I already wrote at the beginning, we will not prepare such dumplings, which as a result will seem too exotic to you. Therefore, we will take ordinary minced pork, to which we will add only a few additional ingredients, which will refer us to Chinese cuisine.

Filling composition:

minced meat – 300g;
onion – 1 piece;
ginger root - a small piece;
celery - a small bunch of leaves or a piece of stem;
garlic – 1 clove;
soy sauce – 3 tbsp;
salt - to taste;
water – 3-4 tbsp.

How to prepare the filling

How to make Chinese dumplings

We will boil Jiaozi in water like regular dumplings. Those. Bring the water to a boil, add a little salt. Place the dumplings in boiling water and stir gently for a minute so that they do not stick to the bottom of the pan. Then we just make sure that the water doesn’t boil too much and doesn’t splash out.

When they float to the surface, cook for another 5 minutes and listen with a slotted spoon.

By the way, the Chinese cook jiaozi somewhat differently from us. They wait until it boils and pour a few tablespoons of cold water into the pan. When the water boils again, pour cold water again. Those. don't let it boil. Perhaps so that the actively boiling water does not damage the thin dumpling dough.

What to serve dumplings with

Traditionally, jiaozi is served with soy sauce and dark rice vinegar. It’s difficult to buy this vinegar here in Russia, so I recommend doing this:

Peel a couple of cloves of garlic.
Chop them finely.
Pour soy sauce into a small cup and add garlic to it.

When you eat and take a bite of the dumpling, pour a teaspoon of garlic sauce into it. It's very tasty!

According to one version of the origin of dumplings, the tradition of preparing this wonderful and very common dish originated in China. There are many other versions, however, one way or another, similar dishes have been present in the culinary cultures of many peoples since ancient times, when the preparation and eating of dumplings was associated with sacred ritual and everyday practices.

Authentic recipes for Chinese dumplings are varied, there are a great variety of them: jiaozi, shaomai, baozi, shui yao and other national and regional forms.

The dough for Chinese dumplings, as a rule, is made in the same way as in the versions known to us: from wheat flour and water, sometimes with the addition of eggs and some seasonings (sesame oil, etc.). There are also known recipes for dough with flour from other grains, for example, Chinese shaomai dumplings are made with dough made from rice flour.

We'll tell you how to cook dumplings in Chinese.

It should be understood that there is no single pan-Chinese cuisine. The general Chinese culinary culture is made up of regional and national traditions, so the recipes for Chinese dumplings are very diverse even within the same type. In this regard, we should rather talk about Chinese-style dumplings. We will use products characteristic of Chinese cooking, and everything will work out.

Chinese cabbage dumplings (jiaozi) - recipe

Ingredients:

minced meat (pork or mixed) – 400 g;
fresh white cabbage – 300 g;
young green onion - 8 feathers;
dill, parsley and cilantro - medium bunch;
onion – 1 pc.;
dry ground spices (black, red and allspice, cloves, coriander, ginger, etc.);
soy sauce;

For the test:

whole grain wheat flour - about 2 cups;
rice or corn starch - 3-4 tbsp. spoons;
chicken egg – 1-2 pcs.;
sesame oil – 1 tbsp. spoon;
water.

Preparation

First, let's prepare the dough. Mix flour with starch, add eggs, sesame oil and, adding a little water, knead the dough. Knead thoroughly, but not for long. The dough should not turn out too stiff or, on the contrary, watery, roll it into a ball and let it rise.

Mix finely shredded cabbage with minced meat (it’s a good idea to beat it lightly on a work surface first), add chopped herbs, spices, and lightly season the filling with soy sauce. You can add 1 chicken (or better yet, duck) egg to the filling.

Roll out the dough into a layer and use a round punch mold or glass to make the base. You can do it another way: roll the dough into a “sausage”, divide it into equal pieces and roll out the backing for each jiaozi separately.

Place a portion of the filling in the center of the base. Carefully lift the edges of the backing and fold, lightly pinching, in the shape of a flower. It is possible, of course, in another form.

Place the jiaozi one at a time into boiling salted water. Cook for 5-6 minutes after surfacing, then pour a cup of raw water into the boiler. Remove the jiaozi with a slotted spoon. Or you can steam them. Serve with sauces, or in broth or soup.

Chinese wonton dumplings (other names Hongtun, Yuntun) - adapted recipe

There are a variety of fillings for wontons. In addition to minced pork or chicken, the composition may include onions, carrots, other vegetables, bamboo shoots, ginger, peeled shrimp and mushrooms. Wontons are often served in soup or fried.

Ingredients:

Preparation

We make the dough for wontons the same as for jiaozi (see the previous recipe above).

For the filling. Lightly fry finely chopped onion in sesame oil in a frying pan, add finely chopped mushrooms (or mushroom flour) and minced meat, fry, stirring, until the meat changes color for 8 minutes. Cool slightly, add chopped herbs, soy sauce, spices, garlic and egg. Mix.

We roll out the dough for wontons a little thinner than usual, since they are usually made smaller in size than regular dumplings. Add the filling and seal the edges.

You can cook wontons in boiling water (see previous recipe), steam, or in soup. Or you can fry it in sesame oil or animal fat and serve with Chinese sauces.

There is a biga type of Chinese dumplings, among which the most common are:

wontons
baozi
jiaozi
dim sum

Let's consider what is the difference between them? How are they prepared and what are they eaten with?

Chinese dumplings served for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

If there is a festive dinner coming up, it is advisable to serve several varieties of dumplings to the table at once.

It is also considered good form if there are dumplings on the table prepared in different ways: fried, boiled and steamed.

And, of course, just like Russian dumplings, they can be prepared for use.

Also, just place them in the freezer, and then take them out if necessary and cook them to your liking.

Wontons or Hongtun

Wontons餛飩 are semi-circular shaped dumplings that are most often added to noodle soup.

Wonton soup is especially popular on New Year's Day, as the noodles in it are believed to symbolize longevity..

Wontons come in round or triangular shape.

Cooking methods: steamed, boiled or fried in vegetable oil.

In China, they sell ready-made dough for wontons, which is already cut into squares or circles, but you can also make it yourself.

Wontons are made in several ways: either tightly connect the edges of the sheet of dough, or leave it open, giving the wonton a jug shape.

Filling for wontons: chicken or pork meat, as well as shrimp, Chinese cabbage and mushrooms (shiitaki or xianggu).

Popular in some provinces sweet wontons, in this case the filling is fruits, for example bananas.

Distinctive features of wontons

Wontons in Cantonese cuisine most often served with thin rice or fried soy noodles as a main course, or put directly into soup.

Wontons in Sichuan cuisine most often they are molded in the shape of a triangle, Sichuan pepper is added to the minced meat, and chili pickles or whole pickled peppers are served with the dumplings themselves.

In Shanghai cuisine prefer to separate the two types of wontons.

Small dumplings stuffed with pork are placed in the soup.

And large ones, almost the size of a palm, are fried and served as a separate dish.

Pictured: wonton dumplings

Jiaozi

Filling. The filling for jiaozi is usually vegetables, most often Chinese cabbage, and pork is also used as a filling.

Preparation form: may have a round or triangular shape.

Cooking method: Jiaozi are rarely fried - usually they are simply boiled in boiling water.

Zaozi itself is not spicy or salty, so it is most often served with chili pickles mixed with soy sauce.

Chinese dumplings steamed.

They are usually made from yeast dough that is denser than wontons.

Filling. Vegetables (carrots, peppers, Chinese cabbage), shiitake mushrooms, tofu cheese, meat and chicken can be used as filling for baozi.

Baozi is often made sweet(Doushabaotzi) - then the filling for them is paste and boiled red beans with sugar.

The Chinese prefer to eat baozi for breakfast..

This dish is especially popular in Shahi cuisine.

In Cantonese cuisine, baozi prepared with smoked pork as a filling (here this dish is called Cha sui baau).

In Northern China, baozi There are dozens of variations, but the most popular is with beef (Goubuli baozi).

Dim sum

In the general understanding, dim sum is any type of Chinese dumplings (jiaozi, baozi, wontons and even spring rolls are sometimes called dim sum).

Dim Sami is another type of Chinese dumpling made from “starch” or regular non-yeast dough without eggs.

Filling. Dim sum can be filled with meat, chicken, seafood, and vegetables.

Cooking method: steamed dim sum.

In the photo: dim sum dumplings

As I already said, the recipe was given to me by a Chinese woman. Therefore, it could not be done without soy sauce. The only thing is that I took my own dough recipe, from which I usually make dumplings. If you know any other good recipe for dough, write in the comments, I will be glad!

It's all very simple to do, although it does take a little time. But like I said, it's worth it. So here we go...

With dough everything is very simple: mix flour, milk, water, salt and vegetable matter. oil. The only thing I can advise is to dissolve the salt in water, then there will certainly be no lumps of salt (otherwise you never know). You need to knead well and efficiently so that there are no lumps of flour. The dough turns out elastic.

Leave the finished dough to rest for a while (it’s better to cover it so it doesn’t dry out on top). And we are still doing stuffing. The most difficult thing at this stage is to chop the Chinese cabbage very finely. It is better to cut off parts of the sheet that are too thick at the bottom and not use them. Chop the rest finely (with devices like a blender it turns out to be a mess, which is not desirable).

Place everything in a bowl and sprinkle with salt (don’t overdo it! Salt is only needed so that the cabbage releases its juice). The cabbage will release juice, you will need to squeeze it out thoroughly, but what is left (without juice should be about 200 grams) is mixed with minced meat. Sprinkle with pepper (the Chinese added special Shehuan pepper - it is more fragrant, and I also found it; if not, regular one will do).

Add soy sauce to taste instead of salt. I had 2 types of soy sauce: light and dark. Dark, accordingly, is darker than what we are used to seeing in supermarkets, and thicker. Therefore, you only need a little of it, about a teaspoon. It will give the minced meat color and aroma. Well, at the end, add finely chopped green onions. The minced meat is ready!

Next in the scenario we have the making of dumplings. And here’s the most interesting thing, because their shape is different from ours. You can either roll out the dough and then cut out circles with a glass (a little larger than for regular dumplings), or make a “sausage”, cut off pieces from it and roll each one out. Here whoever likes it.

The shape of the dumplings will be like dumplings, only “assembled” like curtains
To make it clearer, I am attaching a photo:

With this amount of dough and minced meat I can make... I don’t know how many pieces, I didn’t count, honestly, but it’s enough for two meals for two people. You can also freeze them, and if guests come, you can quickly cook them.

You need to cook them like regular dumplings, that is, throw them into boiling water and cook for about 10 minutes. They eat them without broth, we dipped them in soy sauce, it was very tasty!

Advice: To prevent the dumplings from losing their shape and becoming mushy during cooking, take a larger pan and spare no water. If they lie on top of each other during cooking, do not expect good dumplings. It’s better that they all float freely. If you don’t have a large saucepan, and you need to cook a lot of dumplings, it’s better to divide them into 2 batches.

Here's what I got:

Bon appetit!

Jiaozi dumplings are a common dish in Chinese cuisine. It has many design options, and the filling is also quite variable. Jiaozi is eaten both boiled and fried.

However, jiaozi are not wontons or gyoza. They differ from these two types of dough products in the thickness of the dough: for wontons and gyoza, the dough should be rolled out very thin, almost until transparent, while for jiaozi the dough is thick. There is also a difference in serving. While wontons are served in liquid, jiaozi dumplings are served without it. They are traditionally eaten dipped in specific sauces. For this reason, the filling of jiaozi can be quite neutral in taste - the spiciness is achieved through those same sauces.

The composition of jiaozi, in my opinion, is best described by one of the many legends about their origin.

There was once an emperor, a famous lover of life and a glutton. And so one of his nobles advised the emperor that if you eat a hundred different and non-repeating dishes, then this will have a particularly good effect on life expectancy and health.

I don’t know why such a strange thought came into the nobleman’s head - either he hoped that the ruler would overcome pancreatitis from incompatible foods, or he really wanted to please his ruler and came up with a tempting entertainment for him. Well, they invited the best cook to the palace, he prepared 99 different dishes, but he couldn’t come up with the hundredth!

However, as you know, nothing develops brain activity more than the thought of parting with one’s own head - and the cook, out of fright, simply finely chopped and mixed the remains of the products that he had used for other dishes, and rolled them into the stale dough. And it was the hundredth dish that the emperor liked the most. This is how Jiaozi appeared.

Nowadays, there are fewer liberties in the composition of products, but, nevertheless, there is no strict canon either. The most traditional meat for jiaozi dumplings is pork (one cannot say that it is the only meat - theoretically, there are, say, jiaozi with shrimp). But their composition can include almost any kind of greens: cabbage, white cabbage, Chinese cabbage, chard, spinach... Herbal seasonings include neera (which is difficult to buy in Europe), green onions and wild garlic.

For 4 servings of 6 jiaozi we will need:

For dough - 250 gr. flour and about 125 ml of water. Calculation rule: milliliters are half as many as grams.
For filling - 150 gr. pork, 150 gr. cabbage (or Chinese cabbage, or chard, or spinach, or a mixture of all this in any proportions), 1-2 green onions, 1-2 tbsp. soy sauce and 1-2 cloves of garlic.
Well, and, of course, you will need water for cooking, the amount of which depends on the volume of the pan. However, the dumplings should not be crowded!
For sauce for one serving: 1 tbsp. brown rice vinegar and 1 tbsp. soy sauce, plus ANYTHING. Something could be a clove of garlic, a similar amount of ginger, or even chili pepper. For a group meal, there are usually several different sauces made, and eaters simply dip their jiaozi into bowls of different flavors.

Preparation of the dough should begin at least 4 hours before serving. I use an electric dough mixer to knead the dough; it must be very strenuous work with your hands - it’s extremely tight! Pour water into the flour, knead the dough until it forms into a single lump (if it does not want to form into a lump, add water a teaspoon at a time), and then knead for 10 minutes.

Keep the dough in a bowl under a damp cloth for 2 hours at room temperature.

Knead the dough for another five minutes and place in a bowl under a cloth for another half hour.

During this half hour we need to prepare the minced meat. I’ll be honest: for me it’s a matter of five minutes. For this you need a very powerful electric meat grinder. I simply run cabbage, green onions, and pork through the coarsest cutting mode, and squeeze the garlic through a garlic press. This method can only be used under jiaozi for cooking.

If you are going to fry them, then the cabbage must either be cut into very thin noodles, or finely chopped, salted, pressed with your hands and left to drain for at least 10 minutes to remove excess liquid. Those. The filling for frying jiaozi should be drier than for boiled ones, otherwise they will not turn out properly crispy.

Mix 1-2 tablespoons of soy sauce into the minced meat. If you are going to eat jiaozi without hot and salty sauces, add salt and even pepper.

Knead the dough a third time, now for a short time with your hands. The consistency should be absolutely rubbery, the dent made with your finger begins to straighten out right before your eyes. This dough can be rolled either without flour at all, or with a very small amount of it.

Divide the dough into 3 parts. We keep the two we don’t work with in a bowl under a cloth.

Divide the dough into two halves, each of those halves into more halves, and each of those halves into more halves. In short, we should have 8 approximately identical pieces of dough.

Roll each piece into a ball.

Flatten each ball with the palm of your hand into a flat cake.

Lightly roll out the cakes with a rolling pin - literally a couple of movements in one direction and a couple of movements in the other. No need to roll thin! Tonko is gyoza and wontons. The circles should be smaller than the round part of your palm without the fingers.

Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of each circle. There should be free zones of 1-1.5 cm along the edges.

We make the first 2-3 folds on one side. We pinch very tightly; under no circumstances should jiaozi dumplings have holes or come apart during cooking.

In general, there are many different sculpting options, and many different shapes. But in this case, the braid goes from one side to the other, gradually narrowing.

The result is something like a leaf or petal in shape.

Ready-made jiaozi is convenient to lay on fabric. An alternative is to flour a surface.

When you make the last portion, you can put the water to boil for cooking. Jiaozi are lowered into boiling water, then with a careful movement of a large spoon or wooden spatula they are separated from the bottom, to which they are often stuck.

Cooking - in boiling water. The criterion for readiness is floating to the surface and swelling (more clearly visible when cooking under a lid). Cooking time until done is 5-8 minutes. An alternative option is to add 100 ml of cold water to the boiling jiaozi at the moment of floating, wait until it boils again, pour in another 100 ml of cold water, and when it boils again, then it’s ready. There is, however, a version that this is a ritual action that has nothing to do with cooking, because jiaozi is one of the dishes traditionally served on the Chinese New Year.

While cooking the dumplings, you can actually prepare sauces. They are very easy to make. Mix soy sauce and brown rice vinegar in equal proportions. If it is not there, use a smaller amount of some other sweeter vinegar (not essence). Normally, garlic and ginger are supposed to be finely chopped, but I can safely press them through a garlic press. They drown very quickly in the sauce, literally after a minute only brown liquid is visible.

Jiaozi dumplings are served without liquid. When eaten, they are dipped individually into sauce or sauces.