A DUMPLING A DAY: VEGETARIAN & VEGAN SOUP DUMPLINGS

May 30, 2013 in a dumpling a day

when molly first asked me to write about my favorite vegetarian dumplings, i immediately thought of the steamed vegetable dumplings at house of vegetarian on mott st. i hadn’t been there in years, but I remembered them being fantastic. i thought this guest post would be a good opportunity to revisit them and see if they were as good as i remembered.

most chinese restaurants have vegetable dumpling on the menu; what you usually get are dumplings with overly thick skins and dry, bland fillings; they require a dunk in soy sauce and vinegar to taste like anything.

not so at house of vegetarian. the translucent dumpling skins are so thin they don’t so much encase the filling as gently cradle them from the steam basket into your mouth. the filling is incredibly moist; the bits of mushroom and vegetables encased in a flavorful, thickened broth. this is about as close as i’ve found to a vegetarian soup dumpling in nyc.

speaking of vegetarian soup dumplings, dumpling man on st mark’s has something they call a “veggie surprise dumpling,” which is not just vegetarian but vegan. it’s supposed to be a soup dumpling, but when i bit into i couldn’t find any soup at all. that being said the dumplings are absolutely delicious. they’re filled with bits of noodles, mushrooms, and vegetables (still a little crunchy) and there’s something a little spicy in there as well. as long as you don’t go in expecting any soup inside, i highly recommend them.

-HOWARD WALFISH

this post is part of the dumpling a day while i'm away guest blogger series. i'm in hong kong right now so i've gotten some awesome bloggers, photographers, and writers, to showcase delicious dumplings. if you're interested in being a dumpling guest blogger, send me a note at yeh.molly@gmail.com. yay!

A DUMPLING A DAY: BANANA LUMPIA

May 29, 2013 in a dumpling a day

by joy of frock files

Banana lumpia is one of those foods that instantly transports me back home to Hawaii, where people bring huge aluminum trays of the stuff to parties and there’s never any left over at the end. Once, when I was working at Borders in high school, someone brought several dozen in, left to get napkins, and came back to find it all gone. We stood around, guiltily licking our fingers and acting busy.

Lumpia is typically fried, but since deep frying both scares me and makes me feel guilty, I modified the recipe by baking it in a very hot oven. The result is crispy on the outside, sweet and soft on the inside, and deeply satisfying.

Ingredients

Lumpia Wrappers:

1 cup flour

2 eggs

1 cup water

Filling:

2 regular bananas or 4 apple bananas (these are available in Hawaii, but I’m not sure if they grow anywhere else)

½ cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

Clues

Heat an 8-inch skillet on medium. Combine lumpia wrapper ingredients, and whisk until smooth.

Once the pan is hot, pour two tablespoons of the batter onto the pan and quickly lift it off the heat and swirl the batter to help it spread. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it should make a 5 to 6-inch circle.

When the edges begin to lift off the pan, slide the wrapper onto a plate. You do not need to flip it. Continue until all the batter is used.

Peel the bananas and cut off the ends. Slice in thirds the short way, then in half lengthwise.

Mix the brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll each piece of banana in the sugar mixture, then place in the center of the lumpia wrapper. Fold the ends and the sides over like a burrito. Brush with egg. Continue until all the wrappers are filled.

Bake at 450-degrees for 15 minutes. Turn and bake 10 minutes.

Devour immediately.

-JOY UYENO

A DUMPLING A DAY: MOMOS

May 28, 2013 in a dumpling a day

by photographer and food blogger donny tsang

Momos, a type of Tibetan, Nepali, and Himalayan dumpling, don't get as much love as other meaty balls wrapped in dough. While Chinese fried dumplings rule Manhattan Chinatown ($1 for four or five), it is the momo that reigns supreme in Jackson Heights, Queens. Just from looking at momos, one might mistake them for soup dumplings. Momos, based on the ones I ate, are much denser than the Chinese dumpling. The meat is really jam packed into the dough and the dough is much thicker.

Right outside the Jackson Heights - Roosevelt Ave. stop on the 7, E, F, M, and R train, you will find two momo carts, the Potala Fresh Momo cart and the A & G Himalayan Fresh Food cart. Both carts serve momos and both carts sell eight delicious momos for $5, but that's where the similarities end.

The momos from Potala Fresh Momo have a real strong beefy taste. There were squirt bottles of red chili sauce and soy sauce.

As for the momos from A & G Himalayan Fresh Food, they had a nice hint of floral in the meat and a bit of juice came out. The guy in the cart made sure I used some of the chili sauce, but be careful with the chili sauce. This was about 10 times spicier than your regular Sriracha but it was mighty good.

-DONNY TSANG

A DUMPLING A DAY: YUCCA GNOCCHI

May 27, 2013 in a dumpling a day, recipe

by becca of pleasant pheasant