My Canadian has a deep love for spicy food so I knew these jalapeno popper dumplings will become a firm favourite of his. They are 100% inspired by Lady and Pups, a blogger based in Hong Kong with a completely fearless approach to cuisines, flavours and food combinations. I adore reading her blog to see what new medley she has created.
Now the popper inspired dumplings. I was looking for a herby cheese filling, speckled with savoury pork and a real kick from the chilli. Cream cheese and fatty pork can be heavy when combined together. This is why you need a sharp cheddar and a little vinegar to help cut through that richness. Gently steamed and then lightly pan fried, the end result was a crisp exterior that yields to a gooey, spicy filling.
This recipe makes 60 dumplings making them ideal an easy future meal. Before cooking the dumplings, lay them on a lined baking tray and place in the freezer until they’ve hardened. This is so they don’t stick together. I then gather them into ziplock bags for easy future snacks or meals.
Note: The chowder recipe that is shown in the photo can be found here.
Ingredients
- 500gm free range pork mince
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 shallot, finely diced
- 1/2 cup chopped pickled jalapenos
- 4 fresh jalapenos, finely diced
- 1 spring onions, finely sliced
- 2 handfuls fresh herbs roughly chopped, I used coriander and flat leaf parsley
- 1/4 cup cream cheese
- 1/4 cup grated cheddar
- 2 tbsp cornflour
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 60 dumpling wrappers
Instructions
In a large bowl, mix together all pork mince, garlic, shallot and jalapenos. Stir through the spring onions and herbs, combining with the pork to mix well. Then add the two cheeses, cornflour and soy sauce and mix through, making sure everything is evenly mixed throughout.
At this point, get yourself a damp tea towel and a finger bowl of water. Line a baking tray with paper and get ready for dumpling making. Take one wrapper, place a tablespoon or so of filling in the middle. Swipe the wrapper edges lightly with water, then bring the edges upwards and pinch tightly to close. Make sure the filling in completely enclosed, there are no air bubbles around the filling or no gaps between the pastry, otherwise the filling will burst out. Place on the baking tray and continue with the rest of the dumplings.
Be sure to keep the dumpling wrappers that are waiting to be filled under a damp tea towel, so they don't dry out.
At this stage, freeze some for a future easy meal or cook for dinner. To cook them, place a bamboo steamer over a pot or wok of just boiling water. The water level should not touch the steamer. Fill the steamer with the dumplings, making sure they don't touch either. Cover with the lid and steam gently for 10 minutes. You can at this stage, lightly pan fry the edges for a crisp contrast, or simply devour them straight from the steamer.
