Beef dumplings in hot & sour soup (酸汤水饺)
Beef dumpling soup is warm, comforting and addictive. This recipe provides a step by step guide on how to make it at home.
- Prep time
- 40 min
- Cook time
- 20 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
- 300 g all-purpose flour (plus extra for dusting)
- 1 pinch salt
- 160 ml water (see note 1)
- 300 g minced beef (see note 2)
- 1 stalk scallions (finely chopped)
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground Sichuan pepper (or Chinese five-spice powder)
- 1 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 150 ml water (or stock)
- 150 g Chinese chives (finely chopped)
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 80 ml black rice vinegar
- 80 ml water
- 2 tsp brown sugar or regular sugar
- 1 pc Chinese cinnamon(cassia cinnamon)
- 1 star-anise
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 pinch fennel seeds
- 1 pinch Sichuan peppercorn
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp Chinese chilli oil (or to taste)
- 1 pinch salt
- Spring onion (chopped)
- Coriander (chopped)
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Papery dried shrimp (Optional)
Instructions
- 1
In a mixing bowl, add flour, salt and water. Knead with your hands (or a stand mixer with a fitted dough hook) to form a medium-firm dough (See note 1).
- 2
Leave to rest for 30-60 minutes. Then knead again until smooth.
- 3
Mix beef, spring onion, ginger, ground Sichuan pepper (or five-spice powder), rice wine and salt.
- 4
Swirl constantly in the same direction while gradually adding water/stock into the mixture until all the liquid is completely absorbed.
- 5
Add Chinese chive and sesame oil then mix well.
- 6
Simmer all the ingredients for the spiced vinegar for 5 mins (cover with a lid) then drain through a sieve. Discard the spices. Set aside.
- 7
Make a loop with the dough (about 2.5 cm / 1 inch in diameter). Cut it into about 40 equal sections.
- 8
Press each piece into a small disc with the palm of your hand.
- 9
Use a rolling pin to flatten it into a thin disc (please refer to the video). Always remember to dust with flour if the dough sticks.
- 10
Place a spoonful of filling in the middle of a wrapper. Fold the wrapper, then seal it. You may do it any way you like as long as you make sure there is no leakage (See note 3).
- 11
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over a high heat. Gently slide in half of the dumplings (see note 3). Cover with a lid.
- 12
When the water returns to a boil, pour in about 120 ml of cold water then cover. Repeat the same procedure another two times (see note 4).
- 13
While waiting for the dumplings to cook, prepare the serving bowls. Pour 1-2 tablespoons of spiced vinegar into each bowl. Add all the remaining ingredients. Spoon in cooked dumplings along with some water from the pot.
- 14
Freeze raw dumplings right after they are assembled. Lay them on a tray (dust with flour or line with parchment paper). When totally frozen, transfer them into an air-tight bag.
- 15
No need to defrost before cooking. Follow the same cooking procedure described above.