Lunar New Year Dumplings Recipe
Welcome to Lunar New Year! Today, we’ll be making Homemade Chinese Pork Lunar New Year Dumplings in honor of the holiday. These little bundles of yum are seriously delicious, and you don’t want to miss out on this recipe! Making dumplings can sound intimidating at first, but this recipe doesn’t require any special equipment.
Lunar New Year has deep roots. It’s celebrated in China and other Asian countries, and begins on the first new moon of the lunar calendar, and ends on the first full moon of the lunar calendar. Legends about a monster named Nian claim that the beast would prey on humans on New Year’s Day, but he was afraid of the color red, loud noises, and fire. To ward him off, people decorate their homes with bright red decorations and set off brilliant fireworks.
These dumplings are mouthwatering, and the dipping sauce is divine. The recipe does require preparation and patience, but it’s worth every minute. Think about it as an opportunity to chill out, quiet your mind, and embrace the process; it’s very meditative, particularly as you roll and form each dumpling. Get the family involved, too! It’s a fun opportunity to spend time together.
There are a few important ingredients to create the authentic flavor of these pork dumplings. I’ve included some ideas for substitutions if you can’t locate all of them, but do your best to find an Asian market in your area. There’s no better way to explore a culture than to source ingredients, and you’ll likely find new favorites to love, too! You can also order toasted sesame oil, Chinese black vinegar, Shaoxing wine, and chili oil online.
Take time to explore this incredible holiday! There are many ways to observe Lunar New Year wherever you live, and it’s worth a bit of effort to discover how magical the celebrations can be around the world.
Makes – about 24
Prep Time – 1½ to 2 hours
Cook Time – 20-25 minutes
Ingredients
For the Dumpling Dough
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour
- ¼ cup Cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup Boiling Water
For the Dumpling Filling
- 1 packed cup (about 8 oz.) ground Pork
- 1 cup shredded Cabbage
- ¼ cup finely chopped Shitake Mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped Green Onion
- ½ teaspoon finely minced fresh Ginger
- ½ teaspoon finely minced Garlic
- 3 tablespoons Low Sodium Soy Sauce
- 1 tablespoon of Chinese Shaoxing Wine
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Toasted Sesame Oil
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon White Pepper Powder
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper Powder
For the Dipping Sauce
- 2 tablespoons Low Sodium Soy Sauce
- 2 tablespoons Chinese Black Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped Green Onion
- ¼ teaspoon finely minced fresh Ginger
- ¼ teaspoon finely minced Garlic
- 1 heaped teaspoon Chili Oil
Instructions
For the Dumpling Dough
- In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, cornstarch and salt and mix well.
- Add the boiling water and stir with a spoon or chopsticks till it comes together into a shaggy dough.
- Once all the flour is incorporated in to the shaggy dough, touch it and see if you can handle kneading it. The dough should be warm but not hot.
- Knead the dough with the palm of your hand. If needed as a tablespoon or two of room temperature water. The dough should be a stiff one and not too soft, so use water sparingly.
- Once kneaded in to a smooth round ball, cover it and let it rest for 30 minutes to an hour for the gluten to develop.
For the Dumpling Filling
- Add ½ a teaspoon of salt to the shredded cabbage and let it sit for 10 minutes.
- In a medium sized bowl add ground pork.
- Squeeze out all the moisture from the cabbage and add it to the pork, along with finely chopped green onion and mushrooms, finely minced ginger and garlic. Mix well.
- Next add the soy sauce, Chinese Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, sugar, salt, white and black pepper and vigorously mix in one direction till it forms into a sticky paste like situation.
- Cover and let it rest for 30 minutes for the flavors to develop.
For the Dipping Sauce
- In a bowl mix together, soy sauce, black vinegar, sugar, green onion, ginger and garlic and chili oil.
- Keep aside to server over the dumplings.
Making the Dumpling Wrappers
- On a very lightly floured surface, divide the dough ball into two. Keep one half covered while we work on the other.
- Roll the half into a 1-inch-thick rope and then cut it into twelve, about 1-inch-thick pieces.
- Roll each piece into a smooth ball and then slightly flatten them with the heel of your palm.
- Roll out each piece into 3” round circle. Keep wrappers loosely covered with a kitchen towel to prevent drying out. Repeat with the other half.
Forming the Dumpling
- Place half a tablespoon of the ground pork filling in the center of the rolled-out dumpling wrapper.
- Fold the top half of the dough over bottom half, making a half moon shape. Lightly pinch the middle point of the half-moon together.
- Holding the dumpling in one hand, use you other thumb and pointer finger to fold a tiny pleat on either side (of the pinched middle point) of the dumpling.
- Now, firmly press to seal the dumpling closed. If your wrappers have dried out, you might have to moisten the edges with a little water to make it stick closed.
- Place the formed dumpling in a lightly floured baking sheet.
- Repeat with the remaining dumpling wrapper and dough.
Cooking the Dumpling
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil.
- Drop a few dumplings in the boiling water. They will immediately skink to the bottom.
- Let the dumplings cook for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring the water occasionally. The dumplings are done when they float to the surface.
- Remove with slotted spoon to a dry plate. Repeat with the remaining dumpling.
- Serve the dumpling immediately with the prepared dipping sauce.
Notes
Here are some substitutions
- Soy Sauce – Choose Tamari for a gluten-free option or Coconut Aminos for a soy-free option
- Toasted Sesame oils imparts a beautiful and a distinct ‘dumpling flavor. It is easily available in the Asian section of most supermarkets. There is no substitution, but you can leave it out.
- Chinese Shaoxing Wine adds a beautiful fruity flavor. Substitute with sherry or just leave it out for an alcohol-free version.
- Chinese Black Vinegar is fruity with a sweet undertone. If unable to find, use 1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar and 1 tablespoon White Vinegar instead.
- You can substitute white or cremini mushroom instream of shitake mushrooms.
- Chili oil is a very unique concoction and very hard to substitute. In case you have to substitute, use ½ teaspoon of toasted Sesame oil and some chili flakes and sesame seeds. Or you can leave it out altogether.
- You can freeze the uncooked dumpling in a flat tray and then store it in Ziploc bags for later use.
These look absolutely delicious and I am loving the idea of making these form scratch! I am pinning this and making them soon 😉
Omgoodness these look yummy! I like how easy they are to make, Happy Lunar New Year!
Wow! I love this recipe I love dumplings, and I am so excited to make this for everyone. Yummy!
Oh my, these look so yummy! I think my grandsons would have fun helping me make something like this!
We’re having dumplings for the Lunar New Year too. I love that you included Shiitake mushrooms in your recipe. That really makes the dumplings so flavorful.
The recipe is looking moth watering! It’s absolutely awesome!
I know we would love these! We are all about dumplings. I’ll make these one night for sure.
Love dumplings! Thanks for educating me on the Lunar New Year traditions.
I do love dumplings. I will have to make these soon as I am drooling over here.
I’m a huge fan of dumplings, looking forward to trying this recipe.
I love dumplings, but sadly I always buy frozen ones. You have given me the courage to try making them at home.
Happy New Year!
Oh my! This is such a really amazing recipe! It look so good! I know my family would love this so much!
Wow! That looks absolutely delicious and tasty! I would really love to try this recipe!
I never knew you it could be possible to make dumplings completely from scratch at home. I bet you could add so many different ingredients inside.
Your this recipe mad my new year more amazing. Te recipe sounds so cool
This sounds like a great recipe. I really do love fresh dumplings. I love that you can freeze them.
I love that you even included a recipe for the wrappers. I usually get the store bought ones
This recipe has me drooling! I love cabbage and mushrooms. Saving this post!
Oh my goodness! These dumplings look amazing!
These look delicious! I definitely need to try them, haha!
Yummy! I’m so fond of eating dumplings even in ordinary days.
My city is famous for dumplings. We call it gyoza in Japanese. But I never had a chance to make them at home. Thanks to this recipe!
I loved it. The thing with dumplings is that you can make them in advance and then freeze it. You can fry it anytime.
I love dumplings. They are best eaten with sauce
I am overcome with desire to eat all the dumplings right now. We are in a major snowstorm though, so I can’t even order these. I’ll be thinking about them until I can!
Wow! That looks absolutely delicious and tasty! I would really love to try this recipe!
These look absolutely amazing! I can’t wait to give them a try 🙂
I really love dumplings they are super tasty. This sounds like a great recipe for my family to enjoy.
This lunar new year dumpling looks delicious I would love to try this for this weekend dinner.
Sounds amazing to make dumplings at home! I should try it!
I love dumplings and this is making me hungry. I may have to order takeout later today. 🙂
These look great, and the spicy sauce also looks amazing! I have never made dumplings before and this would be a fun project.
I love dumplings. Nice recipe. Thanks for sharing !.
I’m a huge fan of dumplings, looking forward to giving this a try.