Okay, so yesterday I decided to try my hand at making dim sum. You know, like real deal Hong Kong style. It’s been on my list forever, and I finally just jumped in.
First thing’s first, I hit the Asian market. I needed all sorts of stuff I usually don’t buy. Things like Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, and a bunch of different kinds of flour. Honestly, just walking around and grabbing ingredients felt like half the battle.
Then came the prep. Oh man, the chopping. I started with the filling. I was making shrimp dumplings, so lots of shrimp to peel and devein. Plus, I minced up some ginger, scallions, and bamboo shoots. It was a whole lot of chopping, let me tell you.
After that, I mixed everything together. The shrimp, the veggies, a little soy sauce, some sesame oil, and a pinch of white pepper. I let it sit in the fridge for about an hour so the flavors could meld. This part’s crucial, don’t skip it!
Now, the tricky part: the dough. I went with a hot water dough for the dumpling wrappers. I poured boiling water over the flour and mixed it super fast with chopsticks. It was hot, sticky, and a little scary, but I managed to get it into a shaggy dough.
I kneaded it for like, ten minutes until it was smooth and elastic. This step is a workout, seriously. Then I let it rest for another 30 minutes under a damp towel.
Rolling out the wrappers was probably the hardest part. I divided the dough into small pieces and tried to roll them into thin, even circles. Some were perfect, some were… not so perfect. But hey, practice makes perfect, right?
Next, I filled each wrapper with a spoonful of the shrimp mixture. Then, I folded and pleated them. My first few looked like mangled messes, but I slowly got the hang of it. YouTube tutorials are your best friend here, folks.
Finally, time to cook! I steamed them in a bamboo steamer for about 8 minutes. You gotta make sure the water’s boiling like crazy before you put the steamer on top.
And the result? Honestly, not bad for a first try! They weren’t restaurant quality, but they tasted pretty darn good. The shrimp was juicy, the filling was flavorful, and the wrappers were chewy. I even made a dipping sauce with soy sauce, rice vinegar, and a little chili oil.
- Peel and devein shrimp.
- Mince ginger, scallions, and bamboo shoots.
- Mix filling ingredients and refrigerate.
- Make hot water dough.
- Roll out dumpling wrappers.
- Fill and pleat dumplings.
- Steam for 8 minutes.
I’m definitely going to try this again. Next time, I’m thinking of making some char siu bao. Wish me luck!
Key takeaways: Don’t be afraid to mess up, watch lots of videos, and have fun with it!