Yields about 60 dumplings

Wrappers

• 200g + 200g       all-purpose flour
• ¼ + ¼  teaspoon    salt
• 110g                   water in room temperature
• 110g                   spinach juice (to make spinach juice, place 3 to 4 cups of baby spinach and ½ cup of water in a blender. Pour the ground spinach into a cheese cloth and squeeze the juice into a bowl.)

Filling

• 250g                    ground pork
• 125g                    ginger and spring onion water* (calls for 15g sliced ginger and 15g roughly chopped spring onions and 200g water)
• 1 teaspoon         salt
• 1 teaspoon         sugar
• 1 tablespoon      light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon        sesame oi
• 1 tablespoon        Chinese cooking wine (substitute it with Japanese mirin)
• 1 tablespoon       cooking oil (optional)
• 250g                    vegetables – you have the option of shredded zucchini, minced mushroom (either brown or button mushroom is fine) or minced Napa cabbage

Dipping sauce per person

• 1 tablespoon      Chinkiang vinegar 镇江香醋 (substitute it with Balsamic vinegar)
• ½ tablespoon       light soy sauce 生抽
• 1 teaspoon           any chili oil or minced chili, optional

Method

For wrappers and filling

1. Get a medium size mixing bowl. Place into 200g all-purpose flour and ¼ teaspoon of salt. Gradually add into 11g of water. Use your hand to mix them together. Tip the dough out on a lightly floured surface and, using your fingers and palms, knead for 5-6 minutes till the dough becomes smooth. Cover the dough/mixing bowl with clingy film. Leave to rest for 20-30 minutes.
2. Get another medium size of mixing bowl. Place into 200g all-purpose flour and ¼ teaspoon of salt. Gradually add into 11g of spinach juice. Use your hand to mix them together. Tip the dough out on a lightly floured surface and, using your fingers and palms, knead for 5-6 minutes till the dough becomes smooth. Cover the dough/mixing bowl with clingy film. Leave to rest for 20-30 minutes.
3. While dough is resting. Let’s season the filling. Add sliced ginger, spring onions and water in a bowl. squeeze ginger and spring onions in the water, rub them in the water then drain by discarding spring onions and ginger.
4. Use chopsticks or pork to stir in the water. Stir in one direction for about 1 minute. Add into 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 teaspoon of sesame oil,1 tablespoon of light soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine. Mix well. Prepare your preferred shredded vegetable. Combine them with seasoned ground pork. Set Aside.
5. Now, let’s make the wrapper and assemble the dumplings. Divide white dough into three equal pieces. Divide the green dough into three equal pieces. Pick one piece of white dough and roll it out into a rectangular shape. Do the same with 1 piece of green dough. Place the green piece on top of the white piece. Use a rolling pin to press the dough down for them to be stick together. Pick up the longer side of the rectangular dough then roll up the into a rod shape. Cut them into 18- 20 equal small pieces.

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6. Simply use your hand to pick up each piece and pound it into the floured surface to make a small circular disc. Then use a rolling pin to smooth out each disc till it’s about 9cm in diameter – edges are thinner than the center as this has to hold the filling. You can constantly dust the rolling pin with flour to keep the wrappers from sticking.

Assemble

1. Place a wrapper in the palm of your hand and spoon 1 to 1.5 tablespoon of filling into the center of the wrapper, form a taco shape and bring the front and back together in the middle.
2. Start pinching one end of the wrapper to seal, heading towards the middle. Then do the same with the other end.

Continue working on the rest of the dough and filling to make 40 more dumplings by repeating the process with the rest of the dough and filling.

How to cook  

1. The whole process takes about 12-15 minutes.
2. Make a big pot of water to a boil.
3. Add the dumplings into the boiling water and cover the pot. Fill into the pot with 1 cup of cold water every 2-3 minutes for three times whenever the water starts boiling. Use the slotted spoon to push around the dumplings in the water to keep them sticking to the bottom from time to time.

Tips

You can always make large quantity of the dumplings and keep them in the freezer. Just allow 2-3 more minutes of cooking time when cooking the frozen dumplings.

This colourful one-pot dinner dish is warm and comforting. You may have all the ingredients in your pantry already!

Serves 4

• 1.2 kg (about 2.5lb) chicken or 900gram chicken thigh, cut into serving pieces
• salt and black pepper
• 4 tablespoons        olive oil
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 120ml or (1/2 cup)   white wine
• 2 large bell peppers, red, yellow or green, sliced into small strips
• 2 big tomatoes, fresh or canned, chopped
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, roughly chopped

Method

1. Clean the chicken under running water. Pat dry with kitchen towel. Cut the chicken/chicken thigh into serving pieces. Season the chicken with salt ground black pepper. Heat the oil in a large heavy pan or casserole. Add the onions and cook over low heat until soft. Transfer to a side dish.

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2. Increase the heat to medium. Add the chicken and cook for 6-8 minutes to brown both sides. Return the onions to the pot. Pour in the wine and cook until it has reduced by half. Stir in chopped tomatoes. Add chopped garlic. Lower the heat. Cover the pot. Cook for about 30 minutes.

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3. Add the pepper strips and stir well to coat. Cook for another 4 – 5 minutes until the peppers have softened and chicken is cooked. Taste and add more salt if needed. Stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

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This is a classic dish of Hubei food, one of the eight major China regional cuisines. Though pink lotus blossoms reach peak bloom in high summer. The rhizomes (the Lotus Root) hidden underneath the plant and in the pond are harvested much later. The most prized rhizomes are the fat, long, juicy specimens that are almost meaty, which is best served in late autumn or early winter.

Serve 3-4

• 500g (a little over 1LB) pork ribs, cut into bite size
• 1 tablespoon              cooking oil
• 2 inches, fresh ginger, sliced生姜
• 2 spring onions, trimmed
• 3 tablespoons    Chinese cooking wine
• Boling water, as needed
• 2 lotus roots
• Salt to taste
• White peppercorn powder白胡椒粉, optional
• 1 spring onion, minced
• 1 sprig, cilantro, coarsely chopped

Method

1. Soak the pork ribs in cold water for a half hour. Rinse thoroughly and drain. The soaking process helps to get rid of any impurities or blood, to keep the soup clear.

2. In a large stock pot, heat the cooking oil over medium high heat. Place into the pork ribs, and then brown the meat on all sides. Tie the 2 spring onions into knots. Add into the pot the spring onions and sliced ginger. Cook for about 3 minutes. Add into the cooking wine. Cook for another 2 minutes.

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3. Cover the ribs with water. Bring the pot to a boil. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Cover the pot with lid. Cook for about 1 hour until the meat is very tender.

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4. While the meat is cooking and almost done, peel and clean the lotus roots. Trim the ends and roll cut them into pieces in inch wide. If you notice any mud at all inside the roots, wash it off carefully.

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5. Discard the ginger and spring onions from the pot. Add the salt to taste. Add into the lotus roots. Bring the pot a boil again before lowering the heat to a simmer. Cook the lotus roots until tender, about 30 minutes.

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6. Portion out the soup into large individual bowls, sprinkle with white peppercorn powder, chopped green onions and cilantro. Serve hot.

Many root vegetables are really good for us. They are known for their concentrations of Vitamin C, B and A as well as their level of health-promoting antioxidants which help enhance the body’s immune system. These lightly sweet potato chips can be either a good snack choice or served as a side dish for dinner.

Serves 3-4 (as side dish)

• 900g                                                      various sweet potatoes of your choice
• 3 tablespoons                                    olive oil
• 3 tablespoons                                    honey
• 60ml                                                      orange juice
• 2/3 teaspoon                                     salt
• A pinch                                                 black peppercorn            

Method

• Preheat the oven to 200C°/400F°.
• Peel the sweet potatoes. Cut them into the pieces (a little thicker than French Fries). Place the potato pieces in a bowl. Add into the rest of the ingredients. Mix well.