By Sophie May
Dumplings are the best! They’re not only my go-to appetizer, but my favorite snack at the supermarket. The flavor profile of a dumpling, with the soft sticky exterior and the warm flavorful filling accompanied with a tangy equally flavorful sauce, is what makes them so great. With some wild pork still left in the freezer I had to make my own version.
We have been working through a wild boar we got a couple of months ago and decided to grind up some of the meat. It was a fat boar and the “smelliness” or “off-taste” that is normally associated with a big boar hasn’t been in any of the meat. Even if it had been a little smelly, I think this recipe has enough aromatics to cover any off scent and still taste great! I have a couple more wild pork recipes in mind and look forward to experimenting with it.
Ingredients:
- 1 lb ground pork (wild hog works well, or you could even use venison!)
- 40 dumpling or wonton wrappers
- 1.5 cups green cabbage, finely chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 stalks green onions, finely chopped
- 1.5 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 ¼ tsp ginger, minced
- 1 tbsp plus 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 oz dried mushrooms, rehydrated and finely chopped
- ½ tsp white pepper
- Water (to dip fingers in and for steaming)
- Oil for frying (I use a combination of sesame and vegetable)
Dipping Sauce
- ¼ C soy sauce
- 1.5 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp rice wine
- ¼ tsp-1tsp Siracha (depends on how spicy you like it.)
- 1 stalk scallion whites
- Dash of sesame seeds
Directions
In a bowl, combine pork, green cabbage, garlic, green onions, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, ginger, soy sauce, mushrooms, and white pepper until fully combined.
Place mixture in a Ziplock and refrigerate overnight. This is not necessary if you are in a time crunch, but it will enhance the flavors.
Fill wonton/dumpling wrappers with a heaping tsp to fill.
Wet finger and trace outside edge of wrapper. This will make the wrapper sticky and allow you to close it.
Make your dumpling shape. I brought all the edges to the middle to create the shape I did. However, a simple YouTube will show you all the possibilities you can create. Just make sure your dumpling is good and sealed.
Place several T (enough to cover the bottom just barely) of oil in a frying pan and heat over medium.
When oil becomes hot, place dumplings, bottom down, on the pan and brown the bottoms (~2 minutes).
Caution: Please read the warning below prior to doing this step. Place 1/4 cups of water in the pan. Cover immediately.
Turn heat to medium-low and steam until pork is fully cooked (~6 minutes).
While dumplings are cooking, mix dipping sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside. Enjoy!
Caution: This step requires adding water to an oiled pan. This will send oil popping everywhere and can burn you if you are not careful. It sounds way scarier than it actually is, but please use caution when doing this. I use the frying pan lid (which you will need to steam the dumplings) as a barrier, plus it helps with clean up if you do it quickly!