Pork Potsticker Dumplings

 

MUNCH RATING: 5/5

 

A while ago I tried to make potstickers completely from scratch using my Gran’s recipe for the dough. I added too much water and it was a bit of a disaster, so this time I cheated and used ready-made gyoza wrappers that I bought from a Chinese supermarket. So these dumplings were actually very quick and easy to make, especially when I had Steve to help me.

 

For the filling I adapted a Ken Hom recipe and I made the mistake of substituting Chinese leaves for bamboo shoots as they contributed a funny smell which wasn’t too pleasant! But other than that they tasted really good!

 

I have another recipe for the filling which uses beef mince, so I’ll try that next time. I will also have another try at making the dough from scratch!

 

• Makes: 22-25 dumplings

 

Ingredients:

• 22-25 gyoza wrappers
• a little water for sealing the dumplings
• 1 Tablespoon oil for cooking the dumplings
• 60ml water for cooking the dumplings

FOR THE FILLING:

• 250g minced pork
• 1 teaspoon ginger, finely grated
• 1 clove garlic, finely grated
• ½ Tablespoon Shaoshing rice wine
• ½ Tablespoon dark soy sauce
• ½ Tablespoon light soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon sugar

 

Directions:

Preparation:

1. Put all the filling ingredients into a bowl and mix together well. Allow to marinate in the fridge for 1 hour.

To make the dumplings:

1. Place a large teaspoon of the filling in the centre of each gyoza wrapper and moisten the edges with water.
2. Fold over the dough to create a semi-circle and pinch together with your fingers to seal. You can add pleats if you like. Place your completed dumplings onto a lightly floured tray and keep covered whilst you make the rest.

To cook the dumplings (in batches):

1. Heat a large lidded frying pan until it is very hot. Add half the oil so that the base of the pan is covered. Place half the dumplings in the pan flat side down, reduce the heat and cook for about 2 minutes or until they are lightly browned.
2. Add 30ml of water, cover the pan tightly and simmer gently for 5-7 minutes until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
3. Uncover the pan and continue to cook the dumplings for 2 more minutes – the dumplings should look wrinkled. Remove from the pan and keep warm whilst you repeat with the other half of the dumplings.

 

COOK’S NOTES:

• The dumplings will keep in the fridge overnight as long as they are tightly covered.

Chelsea Buns

 

MUNCH RATING: 3/5

 

CHANGES TO THE RECIPE:

I made these using the dough from James Martin’s Hot Cross Buns recipe (April issue of BBC Good Food magazine), but I used a different filling as I didn’t fancy the apricots and almonds that he used. These were better than my last attempt as they were big and soft, but they did taste a tiny bit too yeasty. This recipe used twice as much yeast as most other dough recipes, which would explain the yeasty flavour and also why the dough rose at an accelerated rate and resembled a B-movie blob monster!

 

I had a hard time fitting all the buns into the tin and after the second proving they were even more squashed and attempting to make a break for space and freedom.

 

After the 10 minutes baking at Gas 6 they were very golden brown and on the verge of burning and I was afraid they would become rock hard like my last attempt. So I kept a careful eye on them for the 10 minutes baking at Gas 4. I’ll admit that I did open the oven door a few too many times to keep checking and therefore I did need to bake them for another 5 or so minutes as they weren’t cooked properly. Even though I’d checked with a skewer to see if it came out clean, the middle bun was a bit underdone but the others were fine.

 

TASTE TEST:

The buns were incredibly large, so I would make them smaller if I used this recipe again. I think there was too much yeast which gave them a slightly funny taste, so we weren’t that keen on the flavour. They were also quite a lot of hard work and the reward wasn’t really justified! So I’m still on the hunt for the perfect Chelsea Bun recipe.

 

• Makes: 8 very large buns
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C then reduced to Gas mark 4/350°F/180°C
• Oven shelf: middle
• You will need: a deep 21 or 23cm cake tin, greased

 

Ingredients for the dough:

• 450g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
• 2 x 7g sachets easy-blend yeast
• 50g caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 150ml warm milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 50g unsalted butter, melted
• 50ml warm water

FOR THE FILLING:

• 50g light brown sugar
• 100g mixed dried fruit (I used currants and sultanas)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 25g butter, melted

GLAZE:

• 1 Tablespoon apricot jam
• ½ Tablespoon water
• caster sugar for sprinkling

 

Directions:

1. Put the flour, yeast, caster sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl and mix well. Make a well in the centre and pour in the warm milk, warm water, beaten egg and melted butter. Mix everything together to form a dough – start with a wooden spoon and finish with your hands.
2. Knead the dough on a floured surface for about 10 minutes until it becomes smooth and springy. Transfer to a clean, lightly greased bowl and cover. Leave in a warm place to rise until roughly doubled in size – this will take about 1 hour depending on how warm the room is.
3. Meanwhile make the filling by mixing all the filling ingredients together.
4. Top the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a few seconds. Roll out the dough to a rough 20 x 30cm rectangle. Spread the filling evenly over the dough, then roll it up firmly like a Swiss roll from one of the long sides – dampening the open edge to help it stick if necessary. Cut into 8 even slices with a sharp knife, shape into 8 round pinwheels, then arrange in the tin, cut-side up. Cover and leave to prove in a warm place for 20 minutes until roughly doubled in size.
5. Preheat the oven to Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C. Bake the buns for 10 minutes, then lower the oven to Gas mark 4/350°F/180°C and cook for another 10-15 minutes.
6. Melt the jam with the water and brush all over the buns, then sprinkle with a little more caster sugar.

Chicken Cacciatore

MUNCH RATING: 3/5

I was talking to Steve’s sister about this dish as I was disappointed with the Giada De Laurentiis recipe I’d tried. She said she uses a Nigella Lawson recipe which uses pancetta and cannellini beans. I doubt these are traditional ingredients for this Italian dish, but they add good flavour and texture.

CHANGES TO THE RECIPE:
I did adapt Nigella’s recipe by adding more herbs and I just used normal garlic as a substitute for the garlic oil. I also omitted the celery salt as I didn’t have any. I also added some spinach at the last minute for colour and because it needed to be used up!

TASTE TEST:
It’s a nice one-pot dish for an everyday meal, but it’s nothing really special so I will tweak it until I think “Wow!”. I think I will add some chilli next time as I think it would benefit from some heat.

• Serves: 4 (or 2 very greedy people!)

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 75g pancetta cubes
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 6 spring onions, finely sliced
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 bay leaves
• 450g (approx. 4-5) chicken thighs, skinned, deboned and cut into bite size pieces
• salt and pepper
• ½ cup white wine
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• ½ - 1 teaspoon sugar (depends on your tomatoes)
• 400g can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Directions:

1. Put the oil into a pan with the pancetta, garlic, spring onions and the herbs and fry for a couple of minutes.
2. Add the chicken pieces, stirring well, and season with salt and pepper.
3. Pour in the wine and let it come to a bubble before adding the tomatoes and sugar.
4. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the sauce has thickened.
5. Add the cannellini beans and when they have warmed through serve immediately.