PORK AND SHRIMP DUMPLINGS (JIAO ZHI)

To make the dough, place the flour in a large bowl and slowly add the water stirring with chopsticks to combine.  Once all of the water is added and dough begins to come together, turn it onto the counter and bring it together into a ball using your hands.  Knead for at least 10 minutes.The dough will be hard to knead at first – this is a great arm workout!

Form dough into a ball and place it in a bowl dusted with flour.  Soak a clean dish towel with warm water and wring it out completely.  Top the dough with the damp dish towel and cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap.  Let rest for at least 3-4 hours.

After the dough has rested, remove from the bowl and knead for 3 minutes (dough will be much softer now).  Divide dough into 3 equal parts and top again with the damp towel on the counter.  Let rest for 30 minutes.

While dough rests, prepare the filling.  Place the dried shitakes in a small bowl and cover with boiling water.  Let them rehydrate for 20 minutes while you prepare the rest of the filling.  Top them with a plate or weight to keep them submerged in the water.

Fill a medium saucepan halfway with water and bring to a boil.  Place the cabbage in the boiling water and cook for 1 minute until just wilted.  Drain in a strainer and press out any excess moisture with a paper towel.

In a large bowl, combine the ground pork, chopped shrimp, cabbage, scallions, garlic, ginger root, salt, soy, mirin, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and water.  Drain the mushrooms and squeeze out any excess moisture.  Chop fine and add to the bowl.  Using your hands, massage all of the ingredients until everything is evenly incorporated.  Set aside.

To make the wontons, lightly flour your hands and take one piece of the dough and roll it into a small log, about 1” thick and 5-6″ long.  Cut the log into 12 equal disks.  Note – keep all of the dough under the damp towel when you are not working with it so that it does not dry out.  Flatten one disk with your hand to make a small circle.  Using a rolling pin, roll the disk into a very thin circle to about 3-4” in diameter.  Place about 1 tablespoon of filling the center of the dough.  Take the edges of the dough and fold them over the filling to create a ‘half moon’ shape and seal the edges of the dough tightly together.  Flute the  edges of the dough by creating small ‘dumpling’ folds.  Make sure to fully seal the folds by squeezing with your fingers.  Place on a cookie sheet dusted with flour.  Repeat with the remaining dough to create 36 dumplings.

To cook the dumplings you can either boil/steam or pan fry.  To boil, bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Working in batches, drop the dumplings in the boiling water and gently stir to prevent them from sticking to the bottom.  Cook until they rise to the top of the water and then cook 1minute more.  Remove with a slotted spoon or spider and place on a plate.  Garnish with scallions and serve immediately with dipping sauce.

To pan fry, heat 3 tablespoons of oil (vegetable or peanut) in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Place the dumplings in the hot oil and sear until golden brown, about 1 minute per side.  Once they are seared, place about ¼ cup of water in the hot pan and cover immediately to steam and fully cook through, about 1 more minute.  Remove to a plate and serve immediately with dipping sauce.  Dumplings can also be frozen raw.  Do not defrost before cooking, just increase the cooking time by a few minutes to cook through.

To make the dipping sauce, whisk together the soy, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, and scallions in a small bowl.