Dumpling Wrappers Food

DUMPLING WRAPPERS

Steps:

• Mix a small pinch of salt with flour, dig a hole in center and then stir the water in. Mix the flour with water with chop-stickers during the process so you can adjust the water amount if necessary. Then knead the dough for 8-10 minutes with a stand mixer or by hand until the dough is almost smooth. Cover and rest for 15 minutes. Then re-knead the dough for 2-3 minutes so we can get a very smooth dough. Cover and continue resting for 1 hour.
• Dig a small hole in the center of the ball. Shape it to a large circle round. Cut so we will end up a long log.
• Shape the log around 3cm in diameter. Divide the long log into small dumpling dough pieces (each around 10g). Dust each of them so they will not stick together.
• Before rolling out your dumpling wrappers, dust your working surface again. Take one piece of dough and press it to a round disc. Rotate the wrapper when moving your rolling pin. Repeat the process, rotate the wrapper-roll and rotate the wrapper-roll. The wrappers will have thicker center and thinner edges naturally. You can refer to this video for the process.
• This process might be quite difficult at the very beginning. Just keep trying. You will end up with perfect homemade dumpling wrappers.

HOMEMADE DUMPLING WRAPPERS

Steps:

• Place the flour in a large bowl and set the bowl on a damp kitchen towel so it won't slip. Add the hot water in a steady stream while stirring with chopsticks or a fork. Stir until all the flour is hydrated and the mixture becomes shaggy. Let stand until cool enough to handle, 2 to 5 minutes.
• Use your hands to gather and knead the shaggy mass into a ball in the bowl. Turn out onto a work surface and knead until slightly elastic, 5 to 10 minutes. The dough should be tacky but not sticky, and it won't look completely smooth. If it sticks to the surface, flour the work surface lightly and continue kneading. Knead into a ball and cover loosely with a clean damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let stand for at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour.
• Divide the dough in half. Roll one piece to a 1/16-inch thickness. You shouldn't need to flour the surface while rolling, but do so if the dough is sticking. Once the dough is thin enough, lift it off the surface, flour the surface lightly, and place the dough back down. Cut out 3 1/2-inch rounds as close together as possible, then gather the scraps and cover the rounds with the damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Repeat with the remaining dough and knead those scraps with the first batch of scraps, then let rest for 5 minutes before rerolling and cutting. (See Note for a more traditional way to roll the wrappers.) Use the wrappers immediately for dumplings, such as chile crisp dumplings.

DUMPLING WRAPPERS

Steps:

• To make the dough in an electric mixer, place the flour in the work bowl of the mixer and slowly mix in the boiling water with a dough hook and then add the cold water to form a dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead for an additional 5 minutes by hand, or until it is soft and smooth. Divide the dough in half and then roll into 2 cylinders (about 1 inch in diameter). Cover the cylinders with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes. Alternatively, to make the dough by hand, place the flour in a large bowl and slowly stir in the boiling water. Then add the cold water and mix until well combined. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 minutes, or until the dough is soft and smooth. Divide the dough in half and then roll into 2 cylinders (about 1 inch in diameter). Cover the cylinders with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.
• Use a sharp knife to cut each of the cylinders into 26 rounds, and cover the rounds with plastic wrap when not working with them so that they don't dry out. Roll each round into a ball. Then on a lightly floured work surface, flatten each ball into a 3-inch-wide disk, first with the palm of your hand and then using a mini rolling pin and working in a circular motion. The wrappers will keep in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic wrap for up to 2 days.

BOILED OR PANFRIED DUMPLING DOUGH

Steps:

• Mix the Dough: Add the flour to a wide mixing bowl and stir in the salt. Stir in the water and egg white with your fingers. The flour will look shaggy, like biscuit dough; as the dough comes together, run an open palm around the edge of the bowl and fold the flour into the center, spinning the bowl with your other hand as you go, until it all forms a rough clump. It's fine if there are still pockets of dry flour.
• Knead the Dough: Coat your work surface with a fine dusting of flour and turn the dough out of the bowl. Dust your hands with flour and shape the dough into a fat log about the width of your hand. Knead the dough by pushing your hands and wrists into the log and rolling it forward. Then roll it back and push again. Repeat a few times until the log moves easily, adding more flour if it sticks, then spin the log 90 degrees, shape it into a horizontal log again, and knead a few more times, adding more flour if necessary. Use no more flour than you need to keep the dough from drying out. As you knead, the dough will get firmer and tougher with a texture reminiscent of a gummy bear. It's ready when it's smooth to the touch, like the surface of a pearl, not tacky, with no cracks or pockets of dry flour. There may be some lumps. Put the dough back in your work bowl and cover it with a sheet of plastic wrap. Let it sleep for 15 to 30 minutes. While it relaxes, you can prepare your filling.Knead Again: Dust your work surface with a little more flour, then knead it as before. Work out all those lumps; after kneading about ten times you should have satin-smooth dough that forms a clean ball you can easily push into, like the gel of a shoe insert.Portion the Dough: Form your dough into a log, dust a dough scraper with a little flour, and cut the dough into four equal sections. Roll each section into a log and chop it into six pieces for a total of twenty-four balls of dough, each about an inch in diameter. Toss the balls with a light coating of flour and cover with a lightly moistened towel.Roll the Dough Into Wrappers: Gently smash the balls of dough into flat disks, then lightly roll an Asian-style rolling pin across them to flatten them out a bit more. Hold one disk by its edge and firmly but gently roll your pin from the disk's edge to its center. Roll the same edge a few more times, using more pressure at the edge than at the center. Use your other hand to turn the dough disk and reveal a new edge of the disk; roll again. Continue until all edges are rolled out and the wrapper is about 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Hold your rolled-out wrapper up to a light. If you can see through it faintly, your wrapper is ready to go. Otherwise, keep rolling. Roll the edges to half the thickness of the center of the wrappers. As you get faster, you'll notice that all your active hand needs to do is roll the pin back and forth while your other hand just rotates the wrapper. As long as your hands stay in these fixed motions, you'll easily make even, round wrappers though they don't need to be perfectly uniform. Place freshly rolled wrappers under a lightly moistened towel to keep them from drying out.

CHINESE DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• For Dough:.
• Place flour in a bowl and make a well.
• Crack eggs in a separate bowl and lightly whisk.
• Add eggs, oil, and half the water and mix together to make a dough.
• Add more water as needed. The dough should not be sticky (similar to pasta dough).
• Knead dough on a floured surface for about 10 minutes.
• Cover and set dough aside to rest for 1/2 hour.
• For filling:.
• Mix the rest of the ingredients in a bowl to combine. Do not overwork the meat.
• Cover filling and put in the refrigerator for 1/2 hour for flavors to blend.
• To assemble:.
• Roll out dough into sheets, as thin as you can but won't break. I use a pasta roller, it makes it so much easier.
• Use a large round cookie cutter (about the size of a tuna can or a little larger) to cut out the rounds.
• Fill 1 round with 1 tablespoon of the meat mixture and dampen the edges of the round with water and then seal.
• Do the rest of the rounds.
• To cook:.
• Steam the dumplings for 12 minutes.
• You can serve them as is or you can then:.
• Stir-fry them in a little peanut oil just until they get a little crispy.
• Serve them with your favorite dipping sauces.
• Enjoy.
• If you're not going to eat them right away, after you steam them let them cool off and place them in a zip top bag and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

HOT WATER DOUGH (FOR HOMEMADE DUMPLING WRAPPERS)

Steps:

• In a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, combine the flour, salt and two-thirds of the boiling water. Mix on medium speed while slowly adding the remaining water until well mixed and a ball is formed and the dough is not too hot to handle, 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle with a little flour if it gets too wet.
• On a floured surface, knead the dough until it becomes a smooth, elastic ball. Place back in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rest for at least 1 hour.
• Working on a floured surface with floured hands, roll out the dough to form a long 'noodle', 1-inch in diameter. Cut 1/2-inch pieces and turn them over so the cut sides are facing up. Flatten with your palm and roll out thin using a rolling pin. The dumpling wrapper should end up about 3 inches in diameter.
• To make the dumplings: Place a small mound of your choice of filling in the middle of the wrapper. (Be very careful not to touch the edges with the filling as this will impede proper sealing of the dumplings. Nothing is worse than dumplings breaking during cooking.) Lightly brush the top half edge with water and fold the wrapper in half to form a half moon shape. Starting on one end fold/pinch the wrapper tightly together. Proceed with this fold/pinch method until the dumpling is completely sealed. There will be approximately 7 to 10 folds per dumpling. Rest the dumplings with the folded edges straight up, then cook as desired.

MANDU-PI/DUMPLING WRAPPERS

Steps:

• Combine 2 cups of flour, salt, and water in a large mixing bowl. Mix with a wooden spoon until it turns into a lump. Then knead it by hand for a few minutes until the dough gets a little softer. Put it in a plastic bag to keep it from the air and let it sit for 10 to 30 minutes on the kitchen counter.
• Take the dough out of the plastic bag. It will be a little softer and moist and easier to handle. Knead it for 5 to 7 minutes, until it's smooth and elastic.
• Place the dough on a cutting board dusted with a bit of flour and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Put one half into the plastic bag to keep it from getting dried out as your work on the other half.
• Cut the piece of dough into 8 equal sized pieces. Roll each piece out with a rolling pin into 5½ to 6 inch round circle disks. They should be a little thinner on the edges than in the middle, because we'll eventually be pinching the edges together when we make mandu, so you don't want them too thick and doughy.
• Take the second half out of the bag and make mandu wrappers out of it using the same method.
• Use them right away to make mandu, or freeze them for later.