Scallop and chive dumplings

These delectable dumplings come from Li Shu Tim, the dim sum chef at One Harbour Road. The filling includes doubanjiang, the spicy chilli sauce from Sichuan province, but only a touch – Cantonese diners don’t like their food too hot.

Scallop and chive dumplings Credit: Murdoch Books

• makes

  20

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

The pastry is fascinating. Made with wheat starch and tapioca flour, it’s a bit involved, but once you’ve made it the first time it becomes much easier. Part of the dough mixture is made with boiling water, which in some ways is similar to the hot-water pastry used for British meat pies. This recipe makes more pastry than you need, but it will keep in the fridge, wrapped in plastic. If you don’t feel like making the pastry, just buy gow gee dumpling skins from your Asian grocer.

Ingredients

Filling

• 120 g (4¼ oz) garlic chives
• 1 tsp tapioca flour
• 70 g (2½ oz) uncooked prawn meat
• 220 g (7¾ oz) scallops without roe, diced
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• 2 tsp caster (superfine) sugar
• 2 tsp doubanjiang 

Pastry A

• 210 g (7½ oz) tapioca flour
• 70 g (2½ oz) wheat starch

Pastry B

• 210 g (7½ oz) wheat starch
• 70 g (2½ oz) tapioca flour

Instructions

To make the filling, put 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) water in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the chives for 20 seconds, then drain and refresh in iced water. Pat dry and chop into 1 cm (½ inch) lengths. Add ½ teaspoon tapioca flour and a pinch of salt and to the prawn meat and stir in one direction for 2 minutes. Refrigerate for 10–15 minutes (this is a Chinese technique to make the prawns crunchy). Rinse the prawns under cold water to remove the starch. Pat dry with paper towel and chop into a small dice similar in size to the scallops.

Put the prawns, scallops, vegetable oil, sugar, doubanjiang, chives and remaining tapioca flour in a bowl. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and white pepper and mix well. Refrigerate until needed.

For the pastry, mix the tapioca flour and wheat starch from pastry A in an electric mixer, add 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) boiling water and mix quickly.

Once formed into a dough, mix in the wheat starch and tapioca flour from pastry B, turn out onto a clean work surface and knead for 3–5 minutes until combined.

Form the dough into a long roll and cut into equal portions of around 20 g (¾ oz). Roll each out to a disc of 8–10 cm (3½–4 inches) diameter. Place a teaspoonful of filling in the centre of each, then fold and pinch the edges together to form a dumpling. Steam the dumplings for 6 minutes and serve with your choice of dipping sauce.

Recipe and image from Hong Kong Food City by Tony Tan (Murdoch Books, hc, $49.99).

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

The pastry is fascinating. Made with wheat starch and tapioca flour, it’s a bit involved, but once you’ve made it the first time it becomes much easier. Part of the dough mixture is made with boiling water, which in some ways is similar to the hot-water pastry used for British meat pies. This recipe makes more pastry than you need, but it will keep in the fridge, wrapped in plastic. If you don’t feel like making the pastry, just buy gow gee dumpling skins from your Asian grocer.