Ingredients Print

Check off ingredients as you go

Makes 30 steamed dumplings

For the filling

• 30 wonton wrappers (bought frozen, or see below to make them at home)
• 400 g (14 oz) chicken cutlets
• 6-8 stems fresh cilantro (coriander)
• 2 cm (3/4 inch) piece fresh ginger
• 1 small carrot, grated (optional, but it’s even better with it)
• 2 scallions (or 2 shallots)
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil (optional)
• 1-2 Tbsp mirin
• Salt, pepper

If you change the number of serving, consider adjusting cooking times!

Making the filling

1. Put all the ingredients (except the wonton wrappers, of course…) in a food processor and blend to a fairly smooth, even paste. Transfer to a bowl and keep in the refrigerator.

Shaping the dumplings

2. Take the wonton wrappers and lay them out on a clean surface. Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each wrapper, moisten the edges of the wrapper well with water and fold as shown in the photo. You can drop them into a broth, steam them or even deep-fry them in oil. This time, I steamed them in a bamboo steamer basket, arranging them side by side on a sheet of parchment paper in which I poked little holes (you can also set them on lettuce leaves) so the steam can get through. When the water in the pot comes to a boil, set the closed bamboo basket on top and cook for 4-6 minutes. Don’t cook them any longer or the filling will dry out; it cooks very quickly.

Serve with Sriracha sauce or my famous dipping sauce for egg rolls.

Making homemade wonton dough

If you can’t find wonton wrappers, here is the recipe to make them yourself. It’s very easy, and you can even make gyoza and fried wontons with this dough.

Ingredients:

• 250 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour (plain flour)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp neutral oil (optional)
• 140 ml (½ cup + 1 Tbsp) water
• 1 egg (optional, personally I leave it out)

Mix well until you have a smooth dough, then let it rest for 5-10 minutes. Dust your work surface with cornstarch, roll the dough out thinly and cut it into 8-10 cm (3-4 inch) squares. You can use them right away or freeze them, separating each wonton wrapper with a sheet of parchment paper.

With this same dough you can make Chinese fried wontons:

Tips and variations

• For a vegetarian version, replace the chicken with grated zucchini (courgette) that has been sautéed in a pan.

• The ingredient list may look complicated if you’re not used to cooking Asian food. But these are pantry staples if you enjoy this kind of cuisine.

• In fact, all the ingredients used in this recipe are easy to find in most supermarkets, in the Asian foods aisle.