Beijing Doornail Dumplings Recipe

Cooking Directions

• STEP 1.To make the sauce, in a small bowl add 2 tbsp fermented soybean paste, ½ tbsp oyster sauce, ½ tbsp light soy sauce, 2 tbsp water to dilute it, a drizzle of dark soy sauce for colour, freshly ground white pepper to taste , ½ tsp five spice powder. Mix well.
• STEP 2.In a saucepan add 1 tbsp oil, 2 minced cloves of garlic. Stir on medium heat till fragrant.
• STEP 3.Then add the prepared sauce mixture and cook for 4 minutes or till oil appears along the edge and there is a layer of oil floating on the surface. Turn off the heat and set it aside.
• STEP 4.To make aromatic water, in a grinder jar add 2 cloves of garlic, 4 slices ginger, ½ tbsp sichuan peppercorn, ¼ cup water and blend it together. Then pass this liquid through a sieve to separate the aromatic water from the solids.
• STEP 5.In a large mixing bowl add 400 gm ground beef that has 15% fat, add the aromatic water, crack in 1 egg, add the cooked sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil. Mix by hand to combine all the ingredients well. Mix the filling in one direction for a few minutes till thin white strings appear in the mixture. Cover the bowl with plastic film and place it in the refrigerator.
• STEP 6.To make the dumpling wrapper place 350 gm high protein content flour in a large mixing bowl. Add ½ tsp salt and whisk together.
• STEP 7.Pour in 110 ml hot water in batches, stir continuously. Then add 110 ml room temperature water in batches as well and continue to stir till the flour comes together.
• STEP 8.Then knead by hand to make a dough. Once the dough comes together, cover with a bowl and let it rest for 30 minutes. At this stage the dough will still be sticky and not smooth.
• STEP 9.After 30 minutes the dough will be softer and less sticky.
• STEP 10. Place it on a clean flat working surface and knead it for another 5 minutes till the dough is smooth and shiny.
• STEP 11. Return the ball of dough to the bowl and apply 2 tsp olive oil all over the dough. Cover it again and let it rest for 1 hour.
• STEP 12. After 1 hour the texture of the dough will have changed. It will be elastic and pliable.
• STEP 13. Make a hole in the centre of the ball of dough and stretch it till it resembles a large doughnut or ring. Cut one side open and roll the dough into an evenly shaped long log.
• STEP 14. Divide the log into 12 equal portions.
• STEP 15. Dust flour over the portions and flatten them by the palm of the hand to form flat thick pancakes. Cover them with plastic film so that they do not dry out.
• STEP 16. Take the filling out of the fridge and add 1 cup finely diced scallions or leeks. Mix with the ground beef.
• STEP 17. Take a portion of the dough and coat it with flour. Using a rolling pin roll out the dough into a flat circular sheet. Lift one side of the sheet with one hand and rotate the sheet while rolling out only the edges with the rolling pin in the other hand, leaving the centre thicker and the edges thinner.
• STEP 18. Spoon some filling in the middle and hold the dumpling wrapper to form a tight fitting cup. Pleat the edges by folding and pinching all the way around. When the end is reached, pinch the middle to close and seal the dumpling.
• STEP 19. When all the dumplings have been formed, heat a heavy duty cast iron skillet and add a generous amount of oil to cover the bottom of the pan.
• STEP 20. Arrange the dumplings in the pan when the oil is still at room temperature. Leave a little space between each dumpling.
• STEP 21. Cover and cook on low heat for about 8 minutes on each side. Gently flip the dumplings over to avoid tearing the skin. Cook till evenly golden brown.
• STEP 22.Take them out of the pan and serve hot.

Special Comments

• STEP 1.Using half hot and half cold water to make the dough helps make it soft and elastic at the same time.