Shanghai Dumplings - Chowza Wrapper 2 cups of flour 1/4 cup of water; more or less; hot Filling 1 pound of ground pork 1/2 teaspoon of Chinese Five Spice 1 Scallion, chopped 1 teaspoon of  Light soy sauce 1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon of Szechuan peppercorns

A very simple and filling Shanghai staple. Put flour in a food processer. Gradually add water (your mileage may vary) while mixing until the dough forms into a ball. Roll out on a floured surface to about 1/16" thick. Use a glass to cut into 3" circles. Set wrappers aside. Mix filling ingredients. To assemble, put a wrapper in the palm of your hand. Place about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the wrapper and fold in half. Keep 1/4" of the wrapper free of stuffing for a good seal. Moisten edge with water. Crimp the edges together using your first 2 fingers and thumb, fluting the edges. Go around in one direction, flip over, then reverse. The idea is to seal them good! Cool in the fridge for at least an hour. Steam for 20 minutes; let cool. Deep fry until golden brown. Serve hot. Variations/notes: * Place each dumpling on a small piece of cabbage or lettuce to prevent sticking to the steamer rack. * Try boned pork steaks, fat removed, ground in a food processor. * Also try shrimp, chicken, or a combo of all. * Hot peppers, or pepper sauce, may be added to the filling. * The steam/cool/fry technique is the only way it matches the real thing! But these are also good just steamed. I usually do them mixed.

Sauces: Chopped garlic and light soy sauce : Colemans Dry Mustard mixed with cold water or light soy sauce : Sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds, and dark soy sauce : Hot pepper sauce of your choice Makes about 16 dumplings. Personal Note: When in Shanghai, I visited a restaurant that served only dumplings, on Nanjing Lu. They had =so= many variations of fillings and sauces; it was incredible. When I asked how the wrappers were made, I was told just mix flour and water, nothing else.

Recipe concocted by Kurt Faria, assembled by taste and memories of Shanghai, Chunghwa, 1994. Posted to MM-Recipes Digest V4 #080 by Kurt Faria <kfaria@tgn.net> on Mar 20, 1997