To Make
In a big bowl, mix all the main ingredients together until well combined.
Scoop about 1½ tbsp of the mixture onto a wonton wrapper and place between your thumb and index finger to mould and crimp around the mixture.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/R03016-Thai-Pork-and-Shrimp-Dumplings-Khanom-Jeeb-2.jpg
Place completed dumplings on lined bamboo basket.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/R03016-Thai-Pork-and-Shrimp-Dumplings-Khanom-Jeeb-3.jpg
For the garlic oil, heat up oil in a small saucepan and fry garlic slices until golden brown. Once fried, separate the garlic slices and oil.
Brush garlic oil on top of each dumpling and steam for 8-10 mins or until cooked through.
To make the dipping sauce, combine all the dipping sauce ingredients and mix well.
Garnish dumplings with fried garlic slices and cilantro, and serve with dipping sauce.
Steam
Indonesian Sticky Rice with Savoury Coconut Flakes (Ketan Serundeng)
To Make
Drain off water from soaked glutinous rice and place onto a wide plate. Heat up steamer or wok with enough water and steam glutinous rice with a knotted pandan leaf for 20 mins.
In a small saucepan, heat up coconut milk with salt and bring to a slow boil constantly stirring. Pour onto steamed glutinous rice, mix it around to combine and steam a further 20 mins or until glutinous rice is soft but not mushy. Remove from steamer and let it cool.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Indonesian-Sticky-Rice-with-Savoury-Coconut-Flakes-Ketan-Serundeng-3.jpg
To prepare the Serundeng, blend all the ingredients for the spice mix together until you get a smooth texture. Then, mix blended spices into the grated coconut and stir to coat.
Heat up a frying pan on low heat without any oil and fry the grated coconut with bay leaves, galangal and kaffir lime leaf until completely dry, crispy, light and golden brown. Remove from frying pan and let it cool.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Indonesian-Sticky-Rice-with-Savoury-Coconut-Flakes-Ketan-Serundeng-4.jpg
To assemble, take about 50g of cooled glutinous rice and place it into some cling wrap. Mould into a ball and flatten it slightly into a thick disc. Scoop 2 tsp of the serundeng onto glutinous rice discs and serve.
Taiwanese Hakka Style Dough Dumplings (Zongzi)
To Prepare Filling
Heat frying pan or wok with 3 tbsp oil and fry shallot till fragrant. Dish up and set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka2-scaled.jpg
Put another 2 tbsp oil and fry the soaked dried shrimps till golden and fragrant.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka4-scaled.jpg
Push the dried shrimps to the side of the pan and toss in minced pork. Fry till minced pork is dry and add in the chopped shitake mushroom and toss in the radish. Continue to fry till fragrant.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka5-scaled.jpg
Add in all the seasonings and add in the cornstarch slurry. Fry the mixture till all the liquid is absorbed and toss in the fried shallots. Mix well.
https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka15-scaled.jpg
Dish up and let it cold down. Divide into 16 portions (40g) and roll into balls with the help of cling wrap and freeze for 2 hours or prepare the day before.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka26-scaled.jpg
To Prepare Dough
Put 300ml water in a sauce pan together with salt and sugar and let it boil.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka18-scaled.jpg
Place flours into a big mixing bowl and create a hole in the centre.
Pour in oil and boiling water and mix flours with a spatula by bringing flour into the centre. Pour more of boiling water and stir till combine.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka21-scaled.jpg
Slowly pour in the room temperature water and bring the mixture into a dough. Knead till dough is smooth and divide into 16 portions (83g).https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka27-scaled.jpg
Roll dough out with the sides thinner than the centre. Place a ball of the filling into the centre of the flatten dough and slowly bring the sides together and mould into a ball and shape it into an oval shape.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka30-scaled.jpg
To Assemble and Cook
Take one or two of bamboo leaf (depending on size) and fold into a cone. Oil the leaf with enough oil.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka35-scaled.jpg
Place filled dough ball into the cone and fold the top over with your thumb and the other fingers pressing the sides down. Fold along the corner and press together and fold down to seal.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka38-scaled.jpg
Use a twine or saltwater grass to make 2 round and tie the completed dumpling. Do not tie too tight as dough will expand during steaming.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka44-scaled.jpg
Heat wok or big stock pot with enough water with a trivet and steam wrapped dumplings for 30 mins. Open up at 15 mins mark to release some steam.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Zhang-Hakka46-scaled.jpg
Teochew Style Sticky Rice Dumplings (Zongzi)
To Prepare Filling and Rice
Roll red bean paste into balls and wrap with pork fat netting (netting will melt while cooking). Set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew5-scaled.jpg
Heat frying pan with 2tbsp oil and sauté half the shallots till golden brown. Dish up and set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew10-scaled.jpg
Add 3tbsp oil to the same pan and sauté the garlic and remaining shallot till fragrant.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew11-scaled.jpg
Toss in the dried shrimps and fry till fragrant and browning.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew13-scaled.jpg
Add in the pork belly and stir and toss in the shiitake mushrooms. https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew15-scaled.jpg
Add in the seasonings and stir till well coated.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew17-scaled.jpg
Pour in the soaking water and let it simmer for about 5 mins. Dish up and set aside to cool.
Drain glutinous rice and place into a large bowl. Add in seasonings and stir well. https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew21-scaled.jpg
To Assemble and Cook
Take one or two of bamboo leaf (depending on size) and fold into a
Place a tsp of rice, one red bean ball, fill 1 tbsp of rice, pushing them around the red bean ball. Place one piece of pork belly, a chestnut, a mushroom, some of the dried shrimp and some lotus seeds.cone. https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew26-scaled.jpg
Fill more rice on top and flatten with a spoon.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew27-scaled.jpg
Fold the leaf over with your thumb and the other fingers pressing the sides down to cover the rice surface. Fold along the corner and press together and fold down to seal. Use a twine or saltwater grass going 2 rounds and tie the completed dumpling. Do not tie too tight as dough will expand during boiling.
Heat a big stock pot with enough water and boil dumplings for 2-3 hours or if you use a pressure cooker, pressure cook for 1 hour.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Zhang-Teochew35-scaled.jpg
Vegan Mongolian Beef
To Prepare Seitan
Heat up a frying pan on low heat with oil and sauté the diced onion with salt until the onion softens and is translucent (about 5-7 mins).
Add in the garlic and increase the fire to medium heat, frying for another 2 mins. Add in the paprika and stir for 1 min. Remove from stove and leave it cool for 10 mins.
Once cooled, pour the fried onion into a food processor together with the tomato paste, broth, soy sauce, chickpea flour and nutritional yeast. Blitz until all the ingredients are smooth.
Place vital gluten flour in a medium mixing bowl and pour the blended mixture in. Stir with a spatula so the mixture is firm and continue to knead with your hands. When the dough turns firmer and springy (about 2 mins later), transfer onto plastic cling wrap and roll it up. Wrap in a layer of foil.
Prepare steamer with enough water to steam the seitan log for 1 hour, turning over to the other side mid-way.
Once cooked, remove from steamer and let it cool down to room temperature before unwrapping.
Slice the required amount as needed and keep the balance in airtight container in the fridge.
To Make Vegan Mongolian Beef
Mix soy sauce, coconut sugar, black soy sauce (if using) and water together, set aside.
Mix water and cornflour for slurry, set aside.
Cut the seitan into strips and coat in cornflour.
Heat up a frying pan with oil and pan-fry the seitan strips until slightly brown. Set aside.
In the same frying pan, heat up some oil and sauté the garlic, ginger and dried chillies until fragrant. Toss in the fried seitan and stir for 1 min. Then, pour in the prepared sauce and continue to fry for 1 min. Toss in the spring onion and fry for a few seconds. Pour in the cornflour slurry and fry for 30 seconds, then switch off the fire.
Serve Vegan Mongolian beef with rice and some blanched broccoli.
Szechuan Dumpling Soup
To Make Stock
Roast pork bones, and leek until brown (this will help give the stock a deeper flavour).
Place the bones in a large pot and cover with water, bring to boil and strain water (this helps to remove impurities from the stock).
Wash the bones and add them to a pressure cooker (or a large pot)
Add the rest of the stock ingredients to the pressure cooker and pressure cook for 1½ hours (or cook for 3 hrs if suing a pot).
To Make Tare
Mix together all tare ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
To Make Dumplings
Mix all dumpling filling ingredients together. Place 2 tsp in each dumpling wrapper. Wet your finger and wet one edge of the wrapper. Press both sides together to seal the dumplings.
Steam dumplings in a bamboo steamer over boiling water.
Cook ramen noodles until cooked.
To Serve
Place 3 tbsp of tare into the bottom of a bowl. Pour over some of the ramen broth and stir to combine.
Place drained noodles in the bowl, along with beansprouts, bokchoy, and dumplings. Garnish with coriander, spring onion, and peanuts. Top with extra chilli oil (optional).
Serve with a pickled chilli and cucumber salad for a refreshing finish.
Lantern Delight
To Cook
Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Cut and discard the top and bottom parts of the eggplant.
Place 2 chopsticks on either side of the eggplant and slice the eggplant to 5-7 mm thickness. Then remove the chopsticks and cut the eggplant all the way through every 6th slice. Set aside.
To make the filling, put all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix evenly.
Put the filling inside each slice of the eggplant. It will look like half size of a ball. Place the balls on a heat-proof dish and steam for 20 mins on medium heat.
While waiting for the lantern to cook, prepare one large carrot. Use a citrus zester to create between 8 to 10 long trenches down the side of the carrot. Then starting from the bottom of the carrot, cut 8 pieces of the carrot about 1 cm thick to make the connectors for the tassels. Cut the bottom of the connectors to sit flat on the plate. Make long thin strips from the rest of the carrot to use it as tassels for the lanterns. (Tip: Microwave the carrot to make it easier to carve and cut).
Once the lanterns are cooked, arrange them on a big plate, position the carrot as pictured to make them look like lanterns.
To make the sauce, put all the sauce ingredients in a bowl. Mix well and cook on a saucepan on medium heat and stir until thickened.
Pour the sauce on the lanterns. Garnish with cucumber if desired.
Nasu Dengaku Bao (Miso-glazed Eggplant Bao)
To Make Dough
Mix the yeast with warm water and let it rest for 5 mins.
In the meantime, in a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and sugar. Once well combined, create a well in the middle to add in the wet ingredients.
In the well, add in the oil followed by warm water and active yeast mixture.
Mix everything slowly in the bowl until the dough starts to form, then place it on a flat surface to knead.
Knead the dough for about 5 mins (it should end up soft and only slightly sticky). Once done, cover the dough and let rest in a warm place until it doubles in size (approx. 1 hr).
After the dough has doubled in size, place it on a flat surface and knead again for about 5 mins to remove air bubbles. Then use a rolling pin to flatten the dough until it’s approx. 1 cm thick.
Next, use a round cookie cutter (approx. 10 cm diameter) or a big glass to cut circles into the dough. Take out any leftover dough, roll it flat again and cut more circles out of it.
Brush the circular dough with oil and fold it in half with the oily side inwards (this will allow the bao to open easily once cooked).
Once all the bao dough are folded, place each onto a square baking sheet, cover and let rest for 15 mins.
After resting, cook the bao by steaming them for 12 mins.
To Make Miso-glazed Eggplant
In a small pot, mix the miso paste, sake, mirin, sugar and water together on low heat for about 5 mins. Set the sauce aside.
Cut the eggplants in thick round slices and grill for 2 mins on each side. Brush the sauce on the eggplant and grill for another 20 secs on each side, then set aside to serve with the bao.
To Serve
In a bao, drizzle some Kewpie mayonnaise, add in some shredded cabbage and miso-glazed eggplant, topped with red ginger pickle, coriander, spring onions and fresh chillies.
Delicious Beer Baby Potatoes
To Cook
Steam the baby potato for about 20 mins until almost cooked.
Place the potatoes on the chopping board. Using the side of the knife, lightly press the potato one by one (just lightly press slightly flat, do not press too hard).
Heat the pan on medium high with 2 tbsp oil, then add the potato into the pan and fry each side until golden brown, then place on the plate.
In the same pan, add garlic, chilli and onion, and stir fry until fragrant for about 2 mins. Then add the potatoes, beer, ground cumin, sugar, salt and soy sauce, stir well. Let it cook for about 10 mins until the sauce thickens then turn off the heat.
Sprinkle chopped coriander, sesame seeds and chilli oil to serve.
Vegetarian Wontons with Chilli Oil
To Cook
Finely chop mushrooms and onion into a bowl, then add grated carrot.
Mix in soy sauce, fish sauce and oyster sauce.
Fill wonton wrappers with 1 tsp of mixture into the middle. Seal edges with water into a triangle, then seal triangle into a diamond shape
Boil wontons for 3 mins.
Serve with chilli oil and spring onion.
Beetroot, Walnut and Smoked Tofu Potstickers
To Cook
Blitz walnuts into a fine crumb and finely shred the cooked beetroot using a food processor.
Finely dice the tofu, and combine with the beetroot, walnuts, garlic, ginger, and chives. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, sweet soy sauce, and mix well. Season with white pepper.
Use a clean finger to wet the edge of the dumpling wrapper with water. Scoop approximately two heaped teaspoons of dumpling mixture into the centre of the wrapper, and fold the wrapper in half, pinching in the middle. Pleat each side of the dumpling wrapper, forming a complete seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
Pour 1 tbsp of oil in a small frying pan. Once the oil is hot, place as many dumplings as can fit on one layer in the pan. Fry for a couple of minutes until the bottom of the dumplings are golden, then pour 100ml of water and cover the pan with a lid. Steam for approximately 6 mins, until the water has evaporated.
Place dumpling on a serving plate. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and the remaining chives, and serve with the dipping sauce.
Steamed Tofu Egg Pudding
To Cook
Put 2L of water into the steam pot, heat the water until boiled.
Use some paper towels to dry the tofu, then cut them in approx 2 cm cubes, put into the centre of the bowl and stack some high.
Put the egg, salt, soy sauce and 180ml of water into the another bowl, whip the all ingredients combined, and then pour the egg around the tofu.
Add the chopped okra onto the egg, then cover with cling wrap, then steam for about 10 minutes or until the egg is set.
Sprinkle some spring onion, serve with some soy sauce and sesame oil.