Steamed Dumplings (Pow)

Serves 6-8

This is another of my mom - Sheila, delightful recipes with a few twists on my part.

Growing up in Guyana, my mom would make these dumplings for snacking or when we were making trips to the beach or having picnics. They make a great and healthy snack. We called them POW (I still don’t know why ! I’m guessing it’s perhaps the pronunciation -“Bao” is a bread or dumpling used in various Chinese cuisines. Rather than saying Bao, I think we said Pow :-) And, it does have a POWerful burst of flavors!

Ingredients:

For the dough:

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 ounces butter (1/2 stick), softened

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon yeast

1/2 cup milk – room temperature

1/2 cup water – room temperature

For the Filling:

¼ cup finely chopped peeled carrots

¼ cup shredded cabbage

¼ cup finely chopped green beans

1/4 cup sweet green peas

¼ sweet Vidalia onion – finely chopped

1/4 cup red bell peppers, finely chopped

2 green onions (scallion) finely chopped, extra for garnish if desired

1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger root ( or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger)

1 pound ground chicken, (see note for other meat)

1 clove garlic, finely chopped or ½ teaspoon granulated garlic

1 teaspoon ground Chinese five spice (can be found in the international aisle of your grocery store)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons oil

Directions:

Making the dough:

In a medium sized bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together.

Add the milk and water to form a dough. The dough should be soft but not sticky.

Mix well and let rest for 5 minutes then knead to form a smooth texture - about 10 minutes.

Cover and set aside.

Leave to rise (about 45 minutes)

While the dough is proofing, make the filling.

Making the filling:

Add the 2 tablespoons oil to a skillet and heat. Add the vegetables, Chinese spice, soy sauce, salt, black pepper and chopped or granulated garlic and sauté for 3 minutes then add the ground chicken and stir to combine.

Cook for about 5-6 minutes until the meat is cooked through, the filling needs to be moist but not watery.

Set aside to cool.

Separate and shape the proofed dough into 2 oblong logs.

Cut each log into 1-inch slices (bigger or smaller depending on if for appetizers or not).

Form each piece into a ball then flatten, leaving the middle thicker than the edges.

Stuff with the filling (about 2 tablespoons) and bring the edges up and pinch to close, forming a tip.

Place each ball on individual squares of wax paper and add to a basket steamer. Do not overcrowd the steamer. Do this in batches if needed.

Leave to rise for 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, fill about 6 cups water to a wok or pot that will fit a basket steamer. Bring the water to a boil. Cover the steamer and place over the pot and steam the dumplings for 15 minutes.

Carefully remove from steamer and serve with drizzles of soy sauce and extra fresh chopped scallions if desired.

Cook’s Tips:

If using pork: 2 pounds of raw pork finely chopped. To make vegetarian style, omit the meat. Follow instructions as above.

Meat should not have a lot of liquid after cooked since it would seep out of the dumplings when steaming. Do not over stuff the dumplings. Leave space between dumplings when steaming and make sure wax paper is placed between to avoid them from touching.

Dumplings can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Reheat in the microwave when ready to use. Be sure to wrap them in wax paper before storing to avoid sticking to each other.

Here’s my step by step photos on making these delicious dumplings that gives a POW of flavor! Enjoy.