All posts tagged: dumplings

Way of the Tao

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This is not a sponsored post; however, my dining companions and I dined as guests of First Table. Opinions are and will always be my own (I also gleaned thoughts from my fellow fork buddies). First Table is a booking website with 45 Auckland eateries listed and is available in locations across NZ. First Table bookings give the first table of diners a generous 50% off their food bill. Bookings are $10 and can be made up to 6 days prior. If you enjoy dining early and trying new restaurants, sign up using promo code BUNNYEATS to receive $5 off your first booking. I personally enjoy dining early, usually it means the food comes quickly and because it’s usually quieter than the dinner rush, I don’t bother other tables with my camera. It may suit you too for other reasons, say you grab dinner right after work and don’t have to go home or hang around in town before dinner. First table is also perfect for pre-theatre dining. Last week we enjoyed a visit to Tao. Tucked away …

Cocktails and dumplings

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This week I tried First Table, a booking website which gives users an early-bird special. Each booking gives the first table of diners (groups of two to four) a generous 50% off their food bill. Food includes dessert and there is no maximum spend. That’s right, no maximum spend. Whether you order $50 or $500 worth of food, you pay half price. While drinks are not included in the special, it’s good to note that your visit may happen to coincide with happy hour at some establishments. First Table currently have about 40 Auckland restaurants to choose from (including The Commons, Pilkingtons, Everybody’s) and covers 16 other regions in New Zealand. The website is easy to use and bookings cost $10 each and can be made up to 6 days prior. Spaces are very limited as there is only 1 first table per day, per restaurant. If you are flexible with dining times or like to eat early and love a great deal, then First Table is perfect for you. After browsing their list of Auckland restaurants, …

Dumpling wisdom from a retired dumpling professional

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I am a lucky girl who grew up eating home made dumplings. The dumplings we ate were stuffed with pork mince with different variations. I asked my Mum what ingredients were in the dumplings of my childhood and this post is based around her answer. 12 years ago, back when I was still a hungry design student, I worked in our family’s Chinese take-out. Since I loved dumplings so much, I helped myself to dumplings at the start of every shift. Free dumplings is a (self-proclaimed) perk of working in the family business. Dad made the filling and wrapped a hundred dumplings ahead of time and the dumplings were cooked during service. One of my duties was cooking dumplings fresh to order. So while I can’t proclaim I was a professional dumpling wrapper, I did get paid to cook dumplings. This makes me somewhat of a retired dumpling professional (see pro tips at the bottom of this post). Fast forward 12 years, my love of dumplings has grown. I don’t cook dumplings for money anymore and my …

Bloggers love dumplings

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Last month, on a glorious Sunday morning, down near La Cigale French Markets in Parnell, a group of bloggers gathered. This was to be my second #brunchclub event and we were here at Sachie’s Kitchen to make and eat dumplings. Sachie Nomura is well known in the NZ foodie circuit for her TV appearances, books and her cooking demonstrations at various events around NZ. She makes Japanese cooking at home easy and accessible. Sachie’s Kitchen offers Asian cuisines including Japanese, Malaysia, Vietnamese, Thai and Indian classes. We were guests of Contiki, a travel company founded in the ’60s by an intrepid and enterprising New Zealander. Contiki focuses on tours for ages 18-35 and their latest itinerary is a 13 day exploration of Japan. What better way to celebrate than with dumplings? Sachie and her team were friendly and put us at ease (while allowing us to get strangely competitive). I loved the team building competitiveness of the class, it was a good way to get to know some new faces. Contiki staff were there to represent …

Autumn is the best.

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Autumn is the best. I relish the crisp air, warm scarves and feijoa laden trees. Green leaves turn to red. Red wine replaces cold beer. Comfort food replaces chilled food. I’ve been feeling a little run down this week and my clothes have been feeling a little taut. You know, when your skinny jeans feel a tad too skinny and you worry what might happen to the shape of your middle when you attempt to sit down. I’m sure it is just the change of season and I’ll accuse daylight savings of lighting trickery. Before we dive into comfort food territory, I think it’s a good opportunity to revisit some of my favourite blog recipes. Light and bright food porn to tickle your fancy. For those heading into spring, this should be good inspirational fodder for you too. All thumbnails jump to relevant posts.

Dumpling Wrapper Prawn Ravioli

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I have an open relationship with dumplings. I adore them, but sometimes I get busy and we see less of each other but when we’re together it’s phenomenal. My maternal grandmother made dumplings for us and my parents also made them us. For most of my life, my dad owned various eateries and wontons or dumplings were always on the menu. Dumplings travel well too. No, I don’t mean fill your pockets and go for a run, but that dumplings in one form or another appear in many cuisines. The concept travels well and has wide appeal. Naturally, as an adult, I’m more curious and experimental when it comes to my dumplings. If it tastes good, authenticity is nothing. Because I never ate ravioli until much later, ravioli will always be just an Italian dumpling to me and I make ravioli using dumpling wrappers. Sure, you can make pasta from scratch, but taking this shortcut will save some time and it’s not like you’re going full lazy. There’s still at least half an hour to …

60 Beef Dumplings

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I love dumplings but you never really get enough when you order them at a restaurant. I learned how to make dumplings from my Dad when I was in my first year of uni, working at our family business. I didn’t really have any interest in cooking back then, but dumplings I could do. This time, I wrapped 60 beef dumplings. We ate 45 of them in 1 sitting. There were 2 of us. How many dumplings can you eat? I use chiffonade (ribbon cut) Chinese (napa) cabbage, grated carrot, sesame oil and soy sauce and a whole pack of store bought dumpling wrappers. You can see a recipe for a pork and onion variation of these dumplings here. This post has been submitted as part of Black and White Wednesday, a culinary photo event hosted by The Well-Seasoned Cook. More info here.

Pork dumplings with prawns and pasta

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I always make enough dumplings to feed a gang of rowdy cats, so there is always plenty to freeze. When faced with no fresh food in the house, at least I’ll have a bag of frozen prawns, frozen home made dumplings and some dried pasta to work with. Pinch a few basil and spring onion leaves from the pots on the deck you got yourself an easy dinner.

Onion Weed Dumplings

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Maybe you have a ton of onion weed in your backyard like we do. It’s chive smell can be experienced every time we or a neighbour mows the lawn. Onion weed is actually quite pretty with it’s fairyland looking flowers. It’s hard to imagine that it is so offensive to some people (being a noxious weed and all). If you are unsure, don’t eat it. Otherwise, happy foraging! Tofu the bunny doesn’t pay onion weed any attention. Since our neighbour mentioned they eat onion weed in dumplings, I’ve been dying to try it out. So here’s a recipe I fudged together. Enjoy! Onion Weed Dumplings Makes about 50 dumplings Ingredients 500 grams (1 pound) pork mince 10 leaves onion weed 7 onion weed flower tops (about 5 flowers each) 12 dried shitaake mushrooms 1 tablespoon black vinegar Salt 2 tablespoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon chili seasoning 1 teaspoon minced ginger 1 teaspoon sesame oil 1 cup of water 1 packet of dumpling wrappers Preparation Soak the mushrooms in 1 cup of hot water for a 5 minutes. …

Naked Little Dumplings

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I had all the ingredients for dumplings but I didn’t really feel like wrapping them. So I made these naked dumplings instead. What makes these different to meatballs? Well, they have pork, prawns, ginger and shitakke mushrooms in them, so they’re dumplings! Naked Little Dumplings Ingredients 200grams pork mince 100grams raw, frozen, shelled prawns 4 dried shitakke mushrooms 1 spring onion 1 teaspoon salt Ground black pepper 1 tablespoon applesauce 1 teaspoon minced ginger 1 egg, beaten 2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce oil Serve with rice, vegetables and coconut cream. Preparation of naked dumplings Thaw prawns in water and chop each prawn into 3 pieces. Boil mushrooms for a minute and drain. Cut off the hard stem and chop the mushrooms finely. Add all the ingredients except for the oil to a mixing bowl and mix, mix, mix. Add a little oil to a non stick frying pan. Using wet hands, measure out a tablespoon of mixture and roll into a ball. Add to the frying pan. Repeat until the mixture is all used up (about …

The Face of Siu Mai

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Siu Mai are my favourite dim sums at yum cha. So it was only a matter of time until I’d give these pork and prawn dumplings a whirl in the kitchen. Siu Mai are open face dumplings with an orange garnish of roe or carrot. I’ve used grated carrot. Seasonings include shitakke mushrooms, coriander, ginger and spring onions. Today I bought a large bamboo steamer and Siu Mai ingredients from my local Chinese supermarket. I loosely followed a recipe from this month’s Taste Magazine and served these Siu Mai with udon noodles, broccoli and broth. Here are the results: