Cilantro-Ginger Veggie Dumplings

I’ve been having a little too much fun catching up on foodie TV shows, and I have really enjoyed this season’s Top Chef Canada and The F Word (if you’re in Canada, you can watch them here). On one episode of The F Word, they featured Chinese dumplings, and I had to eat them immediately. So to work I went, whipping up a batch of homemade veggie dumplings, using two of my very favourite flavours: fresh cilantro and ginger!

I must admit to “cheating” and using pre-made wonton wrappers. They were really fun to use, and I still feel like I made these from scratch. But next time I will definitely be making my own wrappers based on Andrea Nguyen’s fabulously drool-worthy book: Asian Dumplings. That link goes to Andrea’s blog: Asian Dumpling Tips, which complements the book and I promise will make you want dumplings. You’ll also want to check out her other blog: Viet World Kitchen. YUM.

I had great fun assembling and folding the dumplings. It was a zen-like experience, and you know me – I’m always happy to play with delicious veggie food! I used this website for folding advice, and came up with these little pillows (there are other shapes there too, but this was really easy and impressive!):

And we had even more fun eating them! I served the dumplings alongside some Tom Yum soup with buckwheat soba (instead of brown rice vermicelli) and some sauteed broccoli and bok choy (similar to this Ginger Miso Eggplant & Bok Choy recipe)!

Cilantro-Ginger Veggie Dumplings
Inspired by Andrea Nguyen and Chef Jian Wang (Chop Chop Restaurant), Makes about 48 dumplings.

Cilantro-Ginger Veggie Filling

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2″ nub of fresh ginger
• 4 carrots, peeled
• 4 scallions (a.k.a. green onions), roots and tips removed
• 3 baby bok choy, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. tamari
• 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
• 1 large handful fresh cilantro
• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil

Dumplings:

• 1 package (about 48-50 pieces) pre-made wonton wrappers (I used square-shaped ones)
• all of the Cilantro-Ginger Veggie Filling (above)

Dipping Sauce:

• 1 tsp. chili garlic sauce
• 1 Tbsp. tamari
• 2 Tbsp. rice vinegar

Add all of the Cilantro-Ginger Veggie Filling ingredients (except the sesame oil) to your food processor and blitz until minced to create your filling. You can also do this by hand with a knife, if you have the time and patience.

In a large pan, heat the sesame oil, and add the filling. Saute over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, until cooked through.

Layout the wonton wrappers:

Place 1 teaspoon of filling on one corner of your wrapper:

Wet each edge with a finger dipped in water, and fold each wrapper over diagonally, to create triangles. Press down firmly to seal:

Turn your triangle so the hypotenuse is at the bottom (oh sorry, my inner nerd is showing — turn it so the long side is on the bottom):

Fold over one side:

Then fold over the other side – wet the points with your water-dipped fingers, and press to seal together:

At this point, repeat the process with all of your filling and wrappers. You can now boil them or freeze them to eat later.

Bring a pot of water to a boil on the stovetop. Add as many dumplings as will fit in a single layer, and boil for 2 minutes.

While the dumplings are boiling, make the dipping sauce by stirring all the ingredients together in a small dish.

Remove the dumplings from the pot with a slotted spoon, and serve along with the dipping sauce!

Yes, these are definitely Cilantro-Ginger Veggie Dumplings of Love and Great Deliciousness.