Siu Mai the Delicious Dim Sum Favourite

Siu Mai (Shumai) are delicious steamed pork and prawn (shrimp) dim sum. A favourite amongst Yum Cha enthusiasts. Luckily these dumplings are incredibly easy to make at home.

I was inspired to make these at home after a visit to Long Va Tea House in Macao. A friendly olde-worlde establishment filled to the brim with antiques.

If you want to try making Chinese dim sum at home, Siu Mai are a good one to start with. Very easy to make as they are open-topped. No folding skills required.

Sara xxx

Long Va Tea House, Macao

I fell in love with Long Va Tea House in Macao. Not a trolley dolly in sight. Instead there is a mountain of bamboo steamers filled with all sorts of dumplings at one side of the tea house. It was a case of helping yourself to the steaming baskets.

Long Va was a complete contrast to the bustling Red Market next door. A tranquil space. Where you could imagine in years gone by the musical sing-song of birds owned by local men enjoying yum cha before heading to the park with their feathered friends.

Sadly SAARS put an end to that. You will see a couple of empty bird cages hanging at the tea house. A reminder of days gone by.

The siu mai here were big, round, and generous, unlike their less chunky dim sum brothers you find at yum cha in Sydney or Din Tai Fung. Super juicy and delicious, but they didn't include prawn (shrimp) as my recipe does.

Ingredients

1. Pork Mince/Ground Pork: Fatty pork mince is a requisite. The fat will keep your dumplings juicy, plus fat is flavour. Ground pork belly is the best choice to use.
   If you can't eat pork substitute minced (ground) chicken thigh.
2. Soy Sauce: I use plain standard soy sauce, alternatively you could use light soy sauce.
3. Bicarb Soda/Baking Soda: I read about the baking soda trick on Serious Eats. They advised that soaking the prawns/shrimp in water and baking soda make them plumper when cooked.
4. Ginger: Freshly grated ginger and its juice. You could substitute the same amount of crushed ginger from a jar.
5. Cornflour/Cornstarch: This helps bind all the ingredients together and retain juices within the dumpling.
6. Prawns (Shrimp): Use fresh or frozen for this recipe. I use frozen cleaned and peeled prawns for this recipe, which have been thawed.
   If you can't eat prawns (shrimp), leave them out and replace their weight with extra pork or chicken if substituting the pork.
7. Shaoxing (Chinese Cooking Wine): This can be substituted with dry sherry, mirin, or cooking sake.
   If you can't consume alcohol substitute with chicken stock (or leave it out).
8. Sesame Oil: Is an aromatic in this recipe adding a hint of toasty sesame to the siu mai.
9. Green Onion/Scallion: To be traditional you should only use the white and pale green part of the green onion (scallion) as colour-wise there shouldn't be any visible green. If you want to use the whole green onion, feel free to do so.
10. Dumpling Wrappers: Roughly 8cm/3.5" in size, I use square wonton dumpling wrappers as I can't get round ones where I live. If you can source round ones then use those. There is no need to cut rounds out of the squares, this is an absolute waste of food, waste of your time and energy. You can substitute round white gyoza dumpling wrappers if you wish.
11. Salt & Pepper: Sea salt and ground white pepper, a token amount of each to season.
12. Dried Shiitake Mushrooms: Rehydrated shitake mushrooms have much more flavour than fresh ones. They can be found in major supermarkets and Asian grocers.
13. Sugar: For flavour balance.
    Vegetable oil (not pictured): Helps with the juiciness of the dumplings.

Dipping Sauce

From what I understand there isn't an "official" dipping sauce for siu mai. Below are some suggestions. My personal favourite dipping sauce is chilli paste.

• Light soy sauce
• Standard soy sauce
• Chilli paste
• Or make a sauce of 3 parts soy sauce and 1 part black Chinese vinegar

Making the Filling

Add peeled and cleaned prawns in a medium-size bowl with cold water. Mix in the bicarb soda/baking soda thoroughly. Cover the prawns and place them in the fridge for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes remove the prawns from the fridge and drain. Rinse them well under cold water and dry with paper towel. Chop prawns finely on a cutting board and then place them back into the fridge until you are ready to make the siu mai filling.

How to fold Siu Mai

1. Place a wonton wrapper in the palm of your hand
2. Spoon roughly a tablespoon of filling onto the wonton wrapper. If your wrappers are larger you may need a little more filling.
3. If needed shape the filling so it is round.
4. Bring two opposite corners of the wrapper towards each other and push them against the filling so they stick. It will look a bit like a wonton taco.
5. Repeat with the other two wrapper corners.
6. Dab a finger in a little water and use that to stick down any wrapper folds not adhering to the siu mai.
7. If you want your siu mai to have the appearance that you have used round dumpling wrappers. This gives the dumplings a smooth finish on top (see image below). Fold down the wrapper corners that are sticking up and stick to the sides of the dumplings with a little bit of water if needed.
   Note: As you can see from the steamed siu mai photos, I don't bother with this step and have ragged or frilly dumpling tops. They taste just as delicious and saves you the extra work.
8. Put dumpling on a flat surface and push down gently to flatten the bottom. Place siu mai in a lined steamer basket ready to steam.

Steaming the Dumplings

How many you steam at a time will depend on how big your bamboo steamer basket is, and how many you have. I used two 25cm/10" bamboo steamer baskets that were stacked on top of each other for this recipe.

When you place the steamer baskets in your wok there should be enough room for a cup and a half of water and the basket to be resting 3cm/1 inch above the water.

Alternatively use a pot that is slightly smaller than the steamer baskets. Place the baskets on top of the pot.

1. Place wontons in a steamer basket lined with parchment paper (see instructions on making steamer basket liners below). Make sure to leave some space between each siu mai to prevent sticking and allowing the steam to circulate for even cooking.
2. Fill wok or suitable pot with water and bring the water to a simmer. Then put the steamer baskets on top and cover with a lid.
3. Steam the siu mai for 8-10 minutes, or until they are cooked through.

Decorative Dumpling Topping

I use finely diced carrot to top the siu mai. This is added to the tops of the dumplings before steaming. Carrot adds a pop of colour. You can even get creative and cut out shapes as shown above.

Alternative toppings often used are tobiko (flying fish roe), ikura (salmon roe), or even peas. The main aim is to add colour. You don't have to add a topping if you don't want to. My delicious dumplings in Macao didn't.

If using tobiko or ikura, add this after the siu mai have been steamed. Just like the carrot add a pea to the top of the dumpling before steaming. You could even use frozen peas if that is what you have.

How to Make Steamer Basket Liners

Lining the steamer basket is necessary, it stops the dumplings from sticking to the bamboo or metal. They are made from baking/parchment paper and have holes in them that allow the steam to circulate around the steamer.

Round steamer basket liners are readily available at Asian grocers. Unless you steam a lot of dumplings it will be more affordable to make your own. They are very easy to make once you get the knack.

1. Cut a length of baking/parchment paper that is the same width as your steamer basket.
2. Fold the paper in half.
3. Fold the paper in half again along the folded edge.
4. Fold the paper in half again to so it starts to form a triangle. How triangle it looks will depend on the starting width and length of the paper.
5. Fold in half again.
6. Fold in half once more.
7. Place the point of the folded paper in the middle of the steamer basket.
8. Cut the folded paper where it comes to the inside edge of the basket.
9. To form the holes in the liner cut triangles out of one side of the folded paper. Cut the pointy tip off the end.
10. Unfold the paper and you will have a circle with holes in it that fits inside the steamer basket.

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