Chinese New Year is almost here, and to celebrate I wanted to share a tradition that comes from my Chinese side of the family: dumpling making! To be specific, Chinese dumplings or jiaozi. One of the fun things I used to do with my grandma was to play with the jiaozi shapes to make them look like different animals. (The shapes hold a lot better if you steam them.)
My grandma usually prepares steamed jiaozi with garlicky pork filling but I decided to try something completely different but still traditional at the same time: boiled vegetarian dumplings with spinach, tempeh and fresh ginger folded the way Grandma does it. Happy Chinese New Year!
P.S. Dumpling skins can be found at Asian grocery stores in the refrigerated section.
Spinach and Tempeh Dumplings (Jiaozi)
Ingredients
1 package (9 ounces) Green Giant frozen chopped spinach
1 tablespoon pure sesame oil
6 ounces tempeh, chopped (1 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
2 teaspoons soy sauce
30 dumpling skins (about 3 1/2-inch rounds)
Sliced green onions, to serve
Additional soy sauce, to serve
Directions
Cook spinach as directed on box and drain well, pressing spinach with paper towels to remove excess liquid.
In 10-inch nonstick skillet, heat the sesame oil over medium heat. Add tempeh; cook 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until light golden brown. Add garlic and cook an additional minute or until garlic is fragrant. Remove pan from heat; stir in spinach, ginger and 2 teaspoons soy sauce.
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| Place 1 dumpling skin on work surface. (Cover remaining skins with damp paper towel to prevent drying out.) Spoon 2 level measuring teaspoons filling just below center of skin. Brush water around the outer edges of dumpling skin. | Fold dumpling skin over filling to form a half moon; press the top center edges to seal. Remember to leave the sides unsealed! | |
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| Time to seal the sides! Tuck one open side in towards the filling. Press edges together to seal. | Repeat tucking and sealing on the other side. Brush edges with more water if they aren’t sticking. | |
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| Make small folds at the top of the dumpling to form 4 or 5 pleats. Pinch the pleats to seal the dumplings. | Repeat with remaining dumpling skins and filling. Cover filled dumplings with damp paper towel to prevent drying out. |
In a 5-quart pot, heat 3 quarts water to boiling. Add a third of dumplings. Boil 5 to 7 minutes or until edges of dumpling skins are tender. Using slotted spoon, remove dumplings from water. Repeat with remaining dumplings.
Serve warm with additional soy sauce and sliced green onions.
Prep Time: 40 min | Total Time: 1 hour 20 min | Makes: 30 Dumplings
Tip: Tempeh is a fermented soy product. You can find it in most grocery stores sold in cake-like or block form because the soy beans are compressed together tightly.
