Mandu, a Korean Dumpling

Even I usually like to keep things simple while cooking at home, sometimes it’s great to start a real food project that takes requires a bit more time and effort. One example could be sushi. I love doing sushi, and doing sushi together with someone is even better. My pasta machine is still waiting to be used on top of the kitchen cupboard. Some raviolis, yum!

Dumplings are kind of the Asian version of raviolis. I guess different Far Eastern countries have their own ways of doing dumplings, but this time I decided to make mine Korean style. I got the idea of preparing them after watching a Korean horror film about dumplings that provided the eater an infinite youth. These ones didn’t have this magic power though, but instead, they were truly delicious.

I found the recipe from Anna’s Korean Kitchen Diary and modified the measurements a bit. Below you can find a recipe of a great dipping sauce for these. You can prepare your dumplings fried or boiled/steamed. I decided to fry mine.

Korean Dumplings

250g ground turkey (leave this out and add more tofu if you want a vegetarian version)

150g firm tofu, crumbled

1 pack (30-40) dumpling wraps

1 egg

1/4 cabbage

1 big carrot or 2 small ones, grated

1 small zucchini, grated

1/2 onion, finely chopped

3 scallions, finely sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 tablespoon soy sauce

salt and black pepper to taste

canola oil for frying

First prepare the filling. Slice the cabbage very finely into 2cm strips. Steam lightly in a boiling water, squeeze out the excess water and sautée in a frying pan in a little bit of canola oil and a pinch of salt until soft and dry of any water.

Add a pinch of salt in the grated zucchini, let stand for a few minutes and squeeze out the excess water. When preparing the filling it’s very important that all the ingredients are dry. Fry the zucchinis and the grated carrots in a small splash of canola oil.

Fry the ground turkey until dry of liquids. Squeeze any excess water out of the tofu.

In a big bowl, mix together the fried cabbage, carrots, zucchini and turkey, finely chopped onions, garlic, scallions, crumbled tofu and egg. Spice up with sesame oil, sesame seeds, soy sauce, salt and black pepper.

Filling the dumplings is easy and nicest when done together with someone. Place the dumpling wrap on the palm of your hand and spoon a heaping tablespoon of the filling on the middle of it. Don’t fill too much, otherwise your dumplings won’t stay closed when you cook them.

Still holding the wrap in your hand, wipe the outer edges of the wrap with lukewarm water. Press the sides together firmly, so that your dumpling forms a shape of a half moon. Repeat until you have used all the wraps.

Cover the bottom of a frying pan with canola oil and heat up. Add a few dumplings at the time on the pan and fry on medium heat from both sides, until golden and crispy. Serve with dipping sauce.

Dipping sauce for Dumplings

4 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons vinegar

2 teaspoons red onion, chopped

1 green chili, sliced

Mix all the ingredients together and serve aside of dumplings.