Czech Tomato Gravy (over Sliced Beef) – Rajská Omáčka


Date Published: May 28th, 2024 | Last Updated: May 28th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: mains, Czech, easy
Serves: 4 | Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 45 mins

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I’m told that “Rajská Omáčka” (pronounced: rays-ka oma-ch-ka) directly translates to “tomato sauce”. This is one of Toby’s childhood dishes that his grandmother used to make him. Every time he says it, all I hear is “racecar” 😅. To me, this sauce pretty much tastes like a tomato soup without the herbs, but it’s served over slices of beef or pork and some knedliky (Czech dumplings – potato or bread). There are other versions of this sauce that vary in tartness and sweetness (like my original attempts), but I’ve written this recipe to be as similar to babička’s as possible.

You have no idea how hard it is to get a picture of babička standing still and smiling 😅

To be honest, this is not my favourite dish, but its got nostalgic value for Toby so I set out to try and make it for him. After a couple of attempts from online and cookbook recipes, he said it “just wasn’t like babička’s” but he couldn’t tell me what was wrong with it 😒. So I put it on the back burner up until our recent trip to Czech a couple weeks ago and we asked babička to show us how she makes it. Her version was a little less tomato-y than the versions I made and although it’s still not my favourite dish, seeing Toby’s happy face slurping down his second helping of the tomato sauce was enough reason for me to add this recipe to the collection.

This recipe is easy and cooks up quickly. You can pair the sauce with whatever meat you wish including a vepro, but for a quick lunch or dinner with minimal effort, I’ve included the instructions to cook a rump roast in a pressure cooker in 30 minutes and it’ll be ready around the same time as the sauce.

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Recipes that pair well together with this sauce:

Ingredients you’ll need:

  • Beef:
    • 900g (2 lbs) rump roast/chuck steak
    • 1/2 Tbsp salt
    • Enough water to cover the beef
  • Sauce:
    • 1 Tbsp pork lard
    • 2 medium (~800g) onions, diced
    • 1 large can (793g/28oz) diced tomatoes
    • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    • 4 cups (1L) beef broth
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1.5 Tbsps granulated sugar
    • 5 black peppercorns
    • 3 allspice berries
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 2-4 Tbsps heavy cream (to taste)
  • To serve: with slices of knedliky/Czech dumplings (potato or bread)

Directions:

A. Cook the beef: in a pressure cooker/instant pot: *This step is optional. You can serve this tomato sauce with whatever type of meat you like, but if you’re looking for a quick cooked beef, the instant pot will be the fastest.

Add enough water to cover the beef
Pressure-cooked for 30 mins
Let rest of 10 minutes
Slice after resting

Add the beef, salt and enough water to cover the meat. Put the lid on and cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 30 minutes, then quick release. Remove the beef from the liquid and let it rest for 10 mins before slicing.

  • Alternatively if you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can boil the beef in water over the stove until the beef is tender. This will take about 2 hours.

B. Make the sauce while the beef is cooking:

In a small pot on MED-HIGH heat, melt the pork lard and sauté the onions for 5-8 minutes until softened.
Add the salt, sugar, black peppercorns, allspice berries, and bay leaves. Stir for 2 mins until the sugar has fully dissolved.

Next, add in the flour and stir for 2 minutes until well incorporated and the flour cooks a little. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan so nothing sticks.

Pour in the beef broth and stir everything together. Bring the heat up to HIGH to let it come to a boil then back down to MED heat and let it boil for 8-10 minutes until the sauce thickens into a gravy-like consistency.

Once it has thickened, pour in the can of diced tomatoes including all of the liquid. Bring the sauce to a boil again, then simmer on MED heat for 20 minutes.

Note: Make sure to stir and scrape the bottom of the pot every few minutes so nothing sticks to the bottom.

After 20 minutes, turn off the heat and discard the bay leaves and all spice berries.

Next, use a stick blender (or transfer the sauce to a blender) and blend the sauce until you get a smooth texture. If you want an extra smooth sauce, strain it through a fine sieve.

Add 2 Tbsps of heavy cream then taste and adjust salt, sugar, or more heavy cream as needed. (Babička will sometimes add in some ketchup if she wants it more tart and tomato-y 🤫.)

Serve the sauce ladled over the cooked sliced beef and a few knedliky. Enjoy!

Summarized Recipe:

Czech Tomato Gravy (over Sliced Beef) – Rajská Omáčka

Date Published: May 28th, 2024 | Last Updated: May 28th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: mains, Czech, easy
Serves: 4 | Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

  • Beef:
    • 900g (2 lbs) rump roast/chuck steak
    • 1/2 Tbsp salt
    • Enough water to cover the beef
  • Sauce:
    • 1 Tbsp pork lard
    • 2 medium (~800g) onions, diced
    • 1 large can (793g/28oz) diced tomatoes
    • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    • 4 cups (1L) beef broth
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1.5 Tbsps granulated sugar
    • 5 black peppercorns
    • 3 allspice berries
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 2-4 Tbsps heavy cream (to taste)
  • To serve: with slices of knedliky/Czech dumplings (potato or bread)

Directions:

A. Cook the beef: in a pressure cooker/instant pot: Add the beef, salt and enough water to cover the meat. Put the lid on and cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 30 minutes, then quick release. Remove the beef from the liquid and let it rest for 10 mins before slicing.

  • Alternatively if you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can boil the beef in water over the stove until the beef is tender. This will take about 2 hours.
  • *This step is optional. You can serve this tomato sauce with whatever type of meat you like, but if you’re looking for a quick cooked beef, the instant pot will be the fastest.

B. Make the sauce while the beef is cooking:

  1. In a small pot on MED-HIGH heat, melt the pork lard and sauté the onions for 5-8 minutes until softened.
  2. Add the salt, sugar, black peppercorns, allspice berries, and bay leaves. Stir for 2 mins until the sugar has fully dissolved.
  3. Next, add in the flour and stir for 2 minutes until well incorporated and the flour cooks a little. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan so nothing sticks.
  4. Pour in the beef broth and stir everything together. Bring the heat up to HIGH to let it come to a boil then back down to MED heat and let it boil for 8-10 minutes until the sauce thickens into a gravy-like consistency.
  5. Once it has thickened, pour in the can of diced tomatoes including all of the liquid. Bring the sauce to a boil again, then simmer on MED heat for 20 minutes.
    • Note: Make sure to stir and scrape the bottom of the pot every few minutes so nothing sticks to the bottom.
  6. After 20 minutes, turn off the heat and discard the bay leaves and all spice berries. Next, use a stick blender (or transfer the sauce to a blender) and blend the sauce until you get a smooth texture. If you want an extra smooth sauce, strain it through a fine sieve.
  7. Add 2 Tbsps of heavy cream then taste and adjust salt, sugar, or more heavy cream as needed. (Babička will sometimes add in some ketchup if she wants it more tart and tomato-y 🤫.)
    Serve the sauce ladled over the cooked sliced beef and a few knedliky. Enjoy!

Abby1 Comment

Vepřo knedlo zelo (pork, dumpling, sauerkraut) – a Czech national dish


Date Published: Feb 14th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 14th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: czech, mains
Serves: 4-6 | Prep time: 3 hours (mainly to wait until the potatoes cool) | Cook time: 3 hours

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Vepřo knedlo zelo is Czech’s national dish (or at least one of them – I couldn’t find an official source to state what the official national Czech dish is, but most sources have pointed to this one (another source claims it to be svičkova)). Regardless of whether or not it’s the true national dish, it’s definitely very popular and found in most Czech restaurants.

The name of the dish directly translates to the 3 components that make up the dish: vepřo = pork, knedlo = dumpling, zelo = sauerkraut. Disclaimer: this page is not a recipe page of all 3 components, but rather a guide to making all 3 components in order with links to each of their dedicated recipes. I’ve chosen to split it up this way to make it easier for the reader to navigate rather than writing it all in one monstrously long recipe post with a million photos. Each component is also delicious on their own that you can pair it with other dishes instead of just in a vepřo knedlo zelo.

1. Vepřo = pork

The pork portion is usually a pork shoulder, which can be roasted or smoked. The first time I had this dish was at babička’s place and she served it with a smoked pork shoulder. She was cooking away with it for hours that the whole apartment smelled like smoked ham – I’m pretty sure my jacket still has a hint of it 4 weeks later 😅. When I set out to recreate this dish, we visited the lovely little Polish butcher a block away from us and found that they sell beautiful already-cooked smoked pork shoulder! We couldn’t resist and bought a few hundred grams (it was delicious). We still go back there when we’re feeling too lazy to cook and heat it up with sauerkraut and dumplings.

Instead of a smoked pork, a roast pork is the other version of this dish. When I first made it from scratch, I didn’t expect much since the steps were so simple and straightforward. I also don’t usually cook with pork much so my experience with making pork roasts is very limited, but I’ve gotta say, it came out really fucking good – even Toby approves! Although the smoked pork is good and easy, the roasted version is a lot juicier in my opinion. The recipe for the roasted pork shoulder is below.

2. Knedlo = dumpling

Knedlíky are Czech dumplings. There are a few different kinds of Czech dumplings, but in this particular dish, it’s commonly served with either the bread version (houskové knedlíky) or the potato version (bramborové knedlíky) (you can find out more about the difference here). I personally prefer it with a heavier dense potato dumpling, but it can be served with the lighter fluffier bread dumpling version too. In this guide, I will reference the potato dumpling version (which happens to be easier too!). Here are links to both types of dumplings:

3. Zelo = sauerkraut

You can serve this dish with whatever style of sauerkraut you like, but I prefer it with a sweet smokey version like this one here. Since this is my favourite sauerkraut, I will also be writing this guide in accordance to that recipe. Fun fact: I actually liked this version of sauerkraut so much that I needed to find a meat dish to go with it which is how I got onto making a vepřo knedlo zelo in the first place. I never would’ve made this dish if I hadn’t succeeded in making the sauerkraut 🙃.

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the guide! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Directions:

1. Make the pork roast first. This is the most time-consuming and will take 2.5-3 hours to cook. Although lengthy, all this time is literally waiting. There’s nothing else that needs to be done with the pork once you pop it in the oven which makes it the perfect time to prepare everything else. When it’s done, measure it with a meat thermometer to ensure that it’s cooked and slice it. Easy. If you’re not ready to serve it yet while you finish the other components, leave it drenched in the drippings/oils from the pan to keep it moist and soaking up flavour.

2. While the pork is roasting in the oven, start making the potato dumplings. It only takes about 15-20 minutes to put the dough together and once the loaves are formed, it takes about half an hour to cook each batch. If you have extra stove space and extra pots, you can get two pots going at the same time so you can cook them all at once to save time rather than waiting for back to back 30 minutes. Make sure you set timers so you don’t forget about them.

3. When the dumplings are boiling, start making the sauerkraut. It takes about 30-40 minutes in total including two 15 minute braising times during the process, so while you’re waiting you can intermittently check on the dumplings.

4. Once everything is done, plate it up and serve. Enjoy!

Recipes used:

Abby3 Comments

Czech Potato Dumplings – Bramborové Knedlíky


Date Published: Feb 13th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 13th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: Czech, sides, breads, vegetarian
Serves: 8-10 | Prep time: 1 hour | Cook time: 1.5 hours total (20-30mins per dumpling)

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What are Czech Dumplings or Knedlíky?

Knedlíky or dumplings are a staple side dish in Czech food. I see it as THE carb in a Czech meal. Similar to noodles in Asian food or pasta in Italian food, if there’s something rich, saucy, or soupy, you bet it’ll be served with a knedlíky.

There are a few different kinds of dumplings, but the two most common ones I’ve seen in Czech are the fluffy bread dumplings (houskové knedlíky) and the denser potato dumplings (bramborové knedlíky). The lighter bread dumplings are made with a yeast dough so it’s fluffy but still with a bit of structure and chew and best served with a saucy dish such as svičkova to soak up all the flavours whereas the potato dumplings are much more dense and is like eating a side dish of potatoes that can balance the richness of a dish such as something served with sauerkraut like a vepřo knedlo zelo. Of the two, the bread dumplings are more commonly seen and you can very easily buy them at the supermarket in Czech instead of making them fresh, but I don’t think anyone will be angry if you use them interchangeably. This recipe is for the potato dumplings (bramborové knedlíky). If you want to make the bread dumplings, you can find the recipe here.

Bread Dumpling / Houskové Knedlíky – lighter, fluffier
Potato Dumpling / Bramborové knedlíky – denser
Comparison of the two types of Czech dumplings

Do I need to use a special type of flour?

These dumplings are traditionally made with ‘sharp flour’ or ‘continental flour’ which is a coarser flour made from hard wheat that is common in Europe, but actually super difficult to find in regular grocery stores. As a result, this recipe uses a 3:2 ratio mix of all-purpose flour and farina/cream of wheat to achieve the same texture.

Although these dumplings are pretty easy to make, please allow enough time to cook them all. If you don’t have a big pot, you may have to cook them one or two at a time (which is what I always end up doing) and it takes 20-30 mins each time (allow 1.5 hours to cook all 4). If you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time! I don’t know why it took me so long to think of this.

How do I freeze leftover knedlíky?

Every recipe for knedlíky I’ve seen always makes WAY more than what you need. My guess is that since you’re going through all the effort of making them, you might as well make a bigger batch and freeze them to have on hand. This recipe is no different. If you follow the instructions, you’ll have enough knedlíky for 8 – 10 people. I had thought about halving the recipe when I was writing it, but then remembered how well they keep in the freezer and how easy it is to have dumplings in a pinch when you’re short on time or too lazy to put in the effort, so I left the proportions alone.

I find it best to freeze leftover dumplings in slices rather than a log so it defrosts quickly. You can either freeze them in single portions or altogether in a bag, but make sure you separate the slices a little so it’ll be easier to separate when you only want to defrost a few slices. I freeze them in a ziploc bag or you can wrap it up in cling wrap individually.

To defrost and reheat: The best way to get the best texture is to steam them, especially if you are reheating from frozen. However, I’m lazy and I take out my desired portion and leave it in the fridge the night before then microwave them with a sprinkle of water before serving.

*Note: This recipe and its instructions have been adapted from Cook Like Czechs (who’s got way more beautiful-looking dumplings than I could ever achieve – check it out).

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

  • 900g yellow/Yukon gold potatoes
  • 260g (1.5 cups) all-purpose flour
  • 160g (just under 1 cup) cream of wheat/farina
  • 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or potato starch
  • 1 tsp kosher/cooking salt
  • 1 egg, whisked

Directions:

Peeled the next day
Boiled potatoes grated finely

Prepare the potatoes (make ahead of time): Boil the potatoes with the skin on until soft and easily pierced with a fork (20-30mins). Drain the potatoes and let it cool down completely (1-2 hours, or overnight). Once cooled, peel and discard the potato skin and use a hand grater to finely grate (use the small grating hole) the peeled potatoes into a bowl and set aside.

To save time, boil the potatoes the day before and let it cool overnight then peel and grate it the next day. Don’t peel or grate it too early or else the potato will start drying out.

Before kneading
After kneading in the stand mixer
Turned out dough onto a floured surface and continued kneading until smooth dough ball
Smooth dough ball – soft but able to hold its shape and not sticky

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cream of wheat, corn starch, and salt. Add in 1 whisked egg and the grated cooked potatoes. Use your hands or a stand mixer and work the dough until you get a smooth, soft, homogenous dough ball. Add a little extra flour if the dough is too sticky.

Evenly divide the dough into 4
Knead and roll each one into fat logs

Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces (roughly 330g each), each formed into fat logs (see photo). Make sure the length of your log does not exceed the diameter of your pot. Don’t worry if they’re not perfect logs. You’ll hardly notice when you serve them as slices.

Lightly boil a pot of water. Gently lower 2 logs into the water (if you have a small pot, you may want to cook just one at a time to not overcrowd them). Let them boil for 25 – 30 minutes. Occasionally move them around in the water to ensure they are not stuck to the bottom of the pot. They will start to float when they’re roughly halfway cooked. To check if they’re cooked, you can slice off a piece and try it – you should get a dense bread-y texture with a little bounce.

Tip: To save time and if you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time!

Once cooked, remove each log from the water onto a cutting board or drying rack and stab it a couple times with a chopstick or a fork to release the steam. Let it sit for a few minutes to slightly cool down, then slice into 1.5cm slices and serve!

Some examples of knedliky served in traditional Czech dishes:

Vepřo knedlo zelo.
Segedinsky goulash
Rajska

Summarized Recipe:

Czech Potato Dumplings – Bramborové Knedlíky

Date Published: Feb 13th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 13th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: Czech, sides, breads, vegetarian
Serves: 8-10 | Prep time: 1 hour | Cook time: 1.5 hours total (20-30mins per dumpling)

Ingredients:

  • 900g yellow/Yukon gold potatoes
  • 260g (1.5 cups) all-purpose flour
  • 160g (just under 1 cup) cream of wheat/farina
  • 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or potato starch
  • 1 tsp kosher/cooking salt
  • 1 egg, whisked

Directions:

  1. Prepare the potatoes (make ahead of time): Boil the potatoes with the skin on until soft and easily pierced with a fork (20-30mins). Drain the potatoes and let it cool down completely (1-2 hours, or overnight). Once cooled, peel and discard the potato skin and use a hand grater to finely grate the peeled potatoes into a bowl and set aside.
    • To save time, boil the potatoes the day before and let it cool overnight then peel and grate it the next day. Don’t peel or grate it too early or else the potato will start drying out.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cream of wheat, corn starch, and salt. Add in 1 whisked egg and the grated cooked potatoes. Use your hands or a stand mixer and work the dough until you get a smooth, soft, homogenous dough ball. Add a little extra flour if the dough is too sticky. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces (roughly 330g each), each formed into fat logs (see photo). Make sure the length of your log does not exceed the diameter of your pot.
    • Don’t worry if they’re not perfect logs. You’ll hardly notice when you serve them as slices.
  3. Lightly boil a pot of water. Gently lower 2 logs into the water (if you have a small pot, you may want to cook just one at a time to not overcrowd them). Let them boil for 25 – 30 minutes. Occasionally move them around in the water to ensure they are not stuck to the bottom of the pot. They will start to float when they’re roughly halfway cooked. To check if they’re cooked, you can slice off a piece and try it – you should get a dense bread-y texture with a little bounce.
    • Tip: To save time and if you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time!
  4. Once cooked, remove each log from the water onto a cutting board or drying rack and stab it a couple times with a chopstick or a fork to release the steam. Let it sit for a few minutes to slightly cool down, then slice into 1.5cm slices and serve!

Abby6 Comments

Lamb and Onion Dumplings


Date Published: Dec 24th, 2021 | Last Updated: Dec 24th, 2021
Author: Abby |Category: Asian, easy, < 30mins, mains
Serves: 100 dumplings | Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 15 mins

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Every time Toby and I travel, we’re always looking for the best local eats with the highest reviews. We might be stingy on hotel rooms, but we never skimp on good food. When we were exploring Alice Springs, a local dumpling house came up on our radar called Confucius Palace Dumpling Restaurant. I always question the authenticity of Chinese restaurants especially when they’re in a rural setting with very few Asian people around and even more skeptical when most of the reviews were posted by non-Asian people. I didn’t hold my breath because I’ve been let down too many times, but we were both pleasantly surprised! We ordered a few different types of dumplings, but our favourite was the lamb and onion (their chicken and corn wasn’t bad either). I had never had lamb in a dumpling until now and it was delicious! It went straight to my list of things to recreate when I got home and here it is! This recipe took a little trial and error, but I think I’ve got it pretty close to what it was in the restaurant. The filling is surprisingly basic and contains minimal ingredients. Most dumpling fillings include a lot of chopping, but not this one! You can whip up the filling in as quick as 15 mins and the rest is just wrapping. If you’re ever in Alice Springs, I’d highly recommend trying out that dumpling place!

You can pan-fry them or boil them (scroll to the end to see instructions on how to do either). I find boiling is best with this type of filling. They’re best served hot and eaten straight away. They’re not quite as good when microwaved.

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

  • Filling:
    • 2.5 cups onions diced (1 large or two small)
    • 1kg lamb mince
    • 6 Tbsps soy sauce
    • 3 tsps white pepper
    • 1/2 cup shaoxing wine (Chinese cooking wine)
  • Dumpling wrappers (2 packs = ~100 wrappers)

Directions:

Sauté the onion in a pan with a drizzle of oil until the onion becomes translucent and softened. Then turn off the heat and set aside to cool.

Add the rest of the ingredients to a mixing bowl: lamb, soy sauce, white pepper, shaoxing wine. When the onion has cooled, add it to the bowl and mix everything together. You’re ready to wrap!

After wrapping them, you can either cook them straight away (see instructions below), or freeze them. When freezing, arrange the dumplings neatly in a tray and try not to let them all touch or else they’ll stick together when frozen. Once the dumplings are frozen, you can place them in an airtight container or bag.

How to Cook Dumplings:

Check out this post on detailed step-by-step instructions.

How to Cook Dumplings – 2 ways!


In this entry, I’m sharing the two ways I cook my dumplings: pan-fried and boiled. I find boiling is best for dumplings that have a filling with a stronger flavour. Pan-frying is better in fillings with a lighter flavour where you can notice the extra fried toastiness.

Abby's avatar by Abby

Summarized Recipe:

Lamb & Onion Dumplings

Date Published: Dec 24th, 2021 | Last Updated: Dec 24th, 2021
Author: Abby |Category: Asian, easy, < 30mins, mains
Serves: 100 dumplings | Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

  • Filling:
    • 2.5 cups onions diced (1 large or two small)
    • 1kg lamb mince
    • 6 Tbsps soy sauce
    • 3 tsps white pepper
    • 1/2 cup shaoxing wine (Chinese cooking wine)
  • Dumpling wrappers (2 packs = ~100 wrappers)

Directions:

  1. Sauté the onion in a pan with a drizzle of oil until the onion becomes translucent and softened. Then turn off the heat and set aside to cool.
  2. Add the rest of the ingredients to a mixing bowl: lamb, soy sauce, white pepper, shaoxing wine. When the onion has cooled, add it to the bowl and mix everything together. You’re ready to wrap!

Check out post above on how to cook dumplings

Abby2 Comments

Vegetable Dumplings


Date Published: Dec 16th, 2021 | Last Updated: Dec 16th, 2021
Author: Abby |Category: mains, Asian, vegetarian
Serves: ~100 dumplings | Prep time: 30 mins | Cook time: 15 mins

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These veggie dumplings are a mix of carrots, cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, and chives. The slight crunch of the veggies with the umami soft mushrooms make these my go-to dumplings to make! They’re also great to bring at parties when you don’t know everyone’s dietary preferences. I think they’re best pan-fried but you can also steam or boil them too.

Warning: this recipe makes a buttload of dumplings (~100), but don’t worry, they last ages in the freezer and is perfect for those days when you don’t feel like putting in any effort to feeding yourself or if you just want something quick and easy. This is pretty much the rule of most Asian households when it comes to making dumplings. You either make a ton of dumplings for yourself and cram it in the freezer to slowly eat them throughout the next year or gift them to friends and family. When you break it down, on average I’ll eat about 15 dumplings per meals (20 if I’m really hungry), which only results in 6-7 meals.

Fun story: at the start of the COVID pandemic when everyone was raiding all the supermarkets, Toby and I bought a ton of minced pork and made 500 dumplings in one night incase there actually was a food shortage or if the pandemic became too out of control and we couldn’t safely leave the house to buy groceries. From memory the pork wasn’t too expensive, but the napa cabbage we used was like $10 😐.

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Recipe adapted from: Woks of Life

Ingredients you’ll need:

I like to chop my veg a little larger for more crunch. You can use a food processor to make your life easier.
  • 2 Tbsps minced ginger
  • 2 large onions, chopped
  • 3 cups shiitake mushrooms*, chopped
  • 3 cups cabbage, finely chopped
  • 3 cups carrot, finely shredded
  • 2 cups garlic chives, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp white pepper
  • 1.5 Tbsps sesame oil
  • 6 Tbsps Shaoxing cooking wine or dry sherry
  • 4 Tbsps soy sauce
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • ¼ cup oil
  • salt, to taste
  • 2 packages of pre-made dumpling skins (~100 skins) (follow the original recipe if you want to make your own skins instead)

* You can use either fresh shiitake mushrooms or the dehydrated ones and rehydrate them by soaking in hot water for 10 mins. You’ll have to cut off the hard woody stems before chopping. I find the dehydrated mushrooms to have better umami flavour than the fresh ones.

Directions:

Over MED heat, cook the minced ginger in some oil until fragrant (~30secs). Then add the onions to the pot and stir-fry until translucent.

Add the mushrooms to the pot and cook until tender.

Add the cabbage and carrot to the pot until veggies are tender and the released liquids have been cooked off. Transfer the entire mixture to a large mixing bowl and allow to cool.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the mixing bowl: chives, white pepper, sesame oil, cooking wine, soy sauce, sugar, oil, and salt to taste (the soy sauce is usually enough).

Mix all the ingredients together. You’re ready to wrap! (If there’s too much liquid, you can add some cornstarch to thicken the liquid, but some liquid pooling at the bottom will be inevitable due to the salt drawing out the fluids from the veggies.)

After wrapping them, you can either cook them straight away (see instructions below), or freeze them. When freezing, arrange the dumplings neatly in a tray and try not to let them all touch or else they’ll stick together when frozen. Once the dumplings are frozen, you can place them in an airtight container or bag.

How to Cook Dumplings:

Check out this post on more detailed step-by-step instructions.

How to Cook Dumplings – 2 ways!


In this entry, I’m sharing the two ways I cook my dumplings: pan-fried and boiled. I find boiling is best for dumplings that have a filling with a stronger flavour. Pan-frying is better in fillings with a lighter flavour where you can notice the extra fried toastiness.

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There are a few methods to cook dumplings, but my favourite way is to pan-fry them for that extra crunch. If you prefer to be a little healthier, then boiling them would be the way to go.

A. Pan-frying

You’ll need a flat wok or pan with a lid for this method. The method is essentially first steaming the dumplings with a bit of water and oil. The steam from the water cooks the filling and the skin of the dumpling, then the remaining oil cooks the bottom of the dumplings for crispiness. 👌

  1. Heat up a flat wok or pan on MED heat. Add a drizzle of neutral oil and place the dumplings fat side down on top of the oil. Try not to crowd the dumplings so they don’t stick together and makes it easier to flip.
  2. Add 1 cm of water to the pan and put the lid on.
  3. Once all of the water evaporates, remove the lid and continue cooking the dumplings until the bottoms are toasty golden brown. Then flip the dumplings over and cook the other side of the dumplings until it’s golden brown. You can add a little extra oil into the pan to help the other side brown. Serve!

B. Boiling

This method is a lot more straight-forward. You’re essentially boiling the dumplings until the insides are cooked. Make sure your dumplings are sealed well, otherwise the filling will fall out in the boiling process. Try not to over boil it, or else the skin will become too soggy and break apart. If your dumplings are stuck together from the freezing process, just throw them in the pot altogether. Do not try to break them apart of else the skin will break. They will naturally separate in the pot.

  1. In a large pot, fill 2/3 of the pot with water and bring it to a boil.
  2. Once the water is boiling (we want a big boil where the water is moving vigorously, not just a simmer), gently add in the dumplings.
  3. When the water starts boiling again, add in a cup of cold water.
  4. When the water starts boiling again, add in ANOTHER cup of cold water.
  5. When the water boils a fourth time, the dumplings should be ready. The dumplings should be floating and you’ll see little pockets of air under the skin to signify the inside is cooked. If not, boil them for a little longer.
  6. When the dumplings are cooked, strain them from the pot to a plate and add a drizzle of sesame oil (or neutral oil) and mix it around to prevent them from sticking together. Serve!

Summarized Recipe:

Vegetable Dumplings

Date Published: Dec 16th, 2021 | Last Updated: Dec 16th, 2021
Author: Abby |Category: mains, Asian, vegetarian
Serves: ~100 dumplings | Prep time: 30 mins | Cook time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbsps minced ginger
  • 2 large onions, chopped
  • 3 cups shiitake mushrooms*, chopped
  • 3 cups cabbage, finely chopped
  • 3 cups carrot, finely shredded
  • 2 cups garlic chives, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp white pepper
  • 1.5 Tbsps sesame oil
  • 6 Tbsps Shaoxing cooking wine or dry sherry
  • 4 Tbsps soy sauce
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • ¼ cup oil
  • salt, to taste
  • 2 packages of pre-made dumpling skins (~100 skins) (follow the original recipe if you want to make your own skins instead)

* You can use either fresh shiitake mushrooms or the dehydrated ones and rehydrate them by soaking in boiling water for 10 mins. You’ll have to cut off the hard woody stems before chopping. I find the dehydrated mushrooms have better umami flavour.

Directions:

  1. Over MED heat, cook the minced ginger in some oil until fragrant (~30secs).
  2. Add onions to the pot and stir-fry until translucent.
  3. Add the mushrooms to the pot and cook until tender.
  4. Add the cabbage and carrot to the pot until veggies are tender and the released liquids have been cooked off. Transfer the entire mixture to a large mixing bowl and allow to cool.
  5. Add the rest of the ingredients to the mixing bowl: chives, white pepper, sesame oil, cooking wine, soy sauce, sugar, oil, and salt to taste (the soy sauce is usually enough).
  6. Mix all the ingredients together. You’re ready to wrap! (If there’s too much liquid, you can add some cornstarch to thicken the liquid, but some liquid pooling at the bottom will be inevitable due to the salt drawing out the fluids from the veggies.)

How to Pan-Fry Dumplings:

  1. Heat up a flat wok or pan on MED heat. Add a drizzle of neutral oil and place the dumplings fat side down on top of the oil. Try not to crowd the dumplings so they don’t stick together and makes it easier to flip.
  2. Add 1 cm of water to the pan and put the lid on.
  3. Once all of the water evaporates, remove the lid and continue cooking the dumplings until the bottoms are toasty golden brown. Then flip the dumplings over and cook the other side of the dumplings until it’s golden brown. You can add a little extra oil into the pan to help the other side brown. Serve!

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