This dumpling is filled primarily with shrimp and bamboo shoots. The skin of the dumpling, made from a combination of wheat and tapioca starches, is translucent and slightly chewy. A staple of any dim sum. Sometimes, these may be listed in menus as "har gow" in reference to their Cantonese name and origins. Note that the "R" in the popular English spelling of "har gow" is a silent "R" and is never pronounced. The "R" only even exists because of historical complexities with the rominization used by the British during their early encounters with the Cantonese language.

虾饺

Method: stovetop

Difficulty: low

Estimated Time: 1 hour

Servings: 8-10 dumplings

Ingredients

• Shrimp Dumpling Filling
  • 6.3 ounces (180 grams) of shrimp without shells or tails
  • 1 ounce (30 grams) of finely diced bamboo shoot
  • 1 ounce (30 grams) of finely diced lard
  • 0.75 teaspoon of salt
  • 0.25 teaspoon of white sugar
  • 0.25 teaspoon of white pepper
  • 0.5 teaspoon of rice cooking wine
  • 1 tablespoon of egg white
  • 1 teaspoon of canola oil
  • 0.5 teaspoon of sesame oil
  • 1.5 teaspoon of potato starch
• Dumpling Wrapper
  • 2.8 ounces (80 grams) of low gluten wheat starch
  • 2.8 ounces (80 grams) of potato starch
  • 0.7 cup (170 ml) of hot boiling water
  • 1 teaspoon of canola oil

Instructions

• We'll start with making the shrimp dumpling filling. Wash the shrimp, pat dry with paper towels, and then dice into small cubes.
• Add shrimp and salt to a bowl and mix together for a couple minutes.
• Now add the rest of the ingredients one at a time while making sure to thoroughly mix well in between each addition. So white sugar, white pepper, rice cooking wine, egg white, bamboo shoot, lard, potato starch, sesame oil, and then canola oil.
• Cover the bowl with food wrap and let cool inside a refrigerator for 30 minutes.
• While waiting for the filling to cool, let's move onto the dumpling wrapper. Add all of the wheat starch and half of the potato starch into a bowl. Mix well, then add the boiling water while continuing to mix until all the flour starts to stick together into a blob of dough. Cover the bowl and wait for 2 minutes.
• After 2 minutes, take the dough out of the bowl and place onto a flat surface. Add the rest of the potato starch, then knead the dough until almost all of the additional starch is absorbed. Now add canola oil and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and consistent in texture. Place dough back into bowl, cover, and wait for 10 minutes.
• Cut the dough into roughly 1/3 ounce (10 gram) pieces. Roll each piece into a ball then flatten into a roughly 3 to 4 inch diameter circle. They should end up being pretty thin, but not too thin that they will tear.
• Take the shrimp dumpling filling from step 3 out of the refrigerator and fill each dumpling wrapper with the filling. There are many styles and techniques to closing and folding the wrapper around the filling, so feel free to close it however you want. To get the traditional look of a shirmp dumpling, start closing the wrapper around the filling by pinching and folding along the edge of the wrapper bit by bit. We aim for around 10 folds using one half of the wrapper. Your dumpling should be partially closed now. With the other half of the wrapper, simply push it in so that it meets with the folded half. Your dumpling should be fully closed now. Pinch all edges to make sure they are in tight contact. Additionally, you should not need to stretch the wrapper in order to close it around the filling. If you find you're stretching the wrapper, reduce the amount of filling.
• Place your shrimp dumplings into a steamer and steam on high heat for at least 5 minutes. We recommend lining your steamer with hole punched baking paper so that the dumplings do not stick to your steamer and are easier to pick up afterwards. Traditionally, a bamboo steamer placed over a pot of boiling water would be used. However, if you don't have one, you can also just use any kind of metal rack as a tray to hold the dumplings above some boiling water. Make sure to cover the pot or steamer so that the dumplings really bake in the steam.
• Assuming the dumpling wrappers were the right thickness, the dumplings should now be slightly translucent with the filling somewhat visible. Serve piping hot and enjoy!

Bon Appétit!

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