No folding required: The lazy cook’s guide to viral dumplings

Dinner is inescapable. Even for someone as certifiably obsessed with cooking as I am, I know what a relentless chore it can be. These are the recipes for those days. The recipes that lean into the viral “hacks” and the overexcited “you must try this” energy of social media.

Think of them as dumplings, but not. They are faster, easier and more delicious than they should be, given the hacks involved to get there. They all serve two to four people (with rice, steamed greens or something extra), and they all incorporate what I call loaded dumpling sauce, which you’ll want to keep on hand for everything.

Ridiculously delicious fold-free dumplings

The crispy skirt, the one-and-done nature of it all – this dish has everything going for it.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 lemongrass stems
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp ginger pickling liquid
• ½ bunch coriander leaves and stems
• 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 500g pork mince
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 12-16 gyoza wrappers
• loaded dumpling sauce to serve (see recipe)

For the slurry

• ¾ cup water
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 2 tsp hoisin sauce

For the mega crunch

• ½ cup pork crackle chips, roughly chopped
• ¼ cup fried noodles
• 2 tbsp fried shallots
• 1 tbsp fried garlic
• ½ cup coriander leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 spring onion, sliced

METHOD

1. To make the mega crunch, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and set it aside.
2. To make the dumpling filling, place the lemongrass, garlic, ginger liquid, coriander and hoisin into a blender and blitz into a pulpy paste. This removes the woody texture of the lemongrass while retaining its glorious flavour. Transfer the paste to a bowl with the pork mince and mix by hand until well combined and sticky, which ensures the filling stays juicy and tender.
3. Heat the vegetable oil in a large lidded non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Using a small ice-cream scoop or two large spoons, place mounds of the filling in a circle in the pan, leaving space between each one. The mixture should yield 12 to 16 dumplings. Cook for a few minutes until the bases are golden brown, then lay a gyoza wrapper over each meatball, pressing down gently so the wrappers adhere.
4. Make the slurry by whisking the ingredients together in a jug and pour the mixture over the dumplings. Cover the pan with the lid, reduce the heat to low and steam for 5–7 minutes, or until the pork is cooked through and most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove the lid, increase the heat and cook for a further 2–3 minutes until the slurry forms a crisp, golden skirt around the dumplings; check this by gently lifting one edge with a spatula.
5. Remove the dumplings from the heat and run a spatula around the edges to ensure nothing is sticking. Place a large plate over the pan. With one hand firmly on the plate and the other on the pan handle, flip the pan over quickly. Lift the pan away to reveal the crispy dumpling base.
6. Drizzle the loaded dumpling sauce over, sprinkle with the mega crunch and serve.

Commitment-issues dumplings

Some dumplings arrive in life fully formed – all pleated, polished and emotionally available. These are not those dumplings. These are what you make when you want dumplings but just can’t. No folding, no spooning, no patient pinching of edges – just a dump-and-burn situation that I highly recommend. All the flavour, all the elements and absolutely none of the faff.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• 1 generous thumb-sized piece of ginger, chopped
• 2 tbsp gochujang paste (or to taste)
• 600g pork mince
• ¼ cup kecap manis (dark sweet soy)
• 2 tbsp soy sauce (I used smoked soy)
• ½ tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 20 dumpling wrappers

To serve

• chopped spring onion
• toasted sesame seeds
• loaded dumpling sauce (see recipe)
• Kewpie mayo

METHOD

1. Add the sesame oil to a frying pan and place it over medium heat. Once hot, add the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant. Add the gochujang and the mince, and cook until the mince is browned and cooked through.
2. Add the remaining ingredients (except the dumpling wrappers) and simmer for 5 minutes or until slightly reduced. Add the dumpling wrappers – just throw them in, no precision required – and cook for another 3-5 minutes, or until the wrappers are soft.
3. Spoon onto a serving platter. Top with spring onion, sesame seeds and generous spoonfuls of loaded dumpling sauce. Drizzle over a little Kewpie mayo and serve.

Dumpling dump

Can we take a moment and acknowledge that the “viral” dumpling bake is only ever as spectacular as the toppings that adorn it? The dumpling bake itself is already doing admirable work – gingery broth, puffed dumplings bronzing at the edges. But toppings are where legends are made.

This is where we stop being sensible and start accessorising. Soy butter, sharp pickled ginger, herbs, sesame, maybe a few rogue fried noodles – it’s edible jewellery for your plate so that you get hot/cold, soft/crunchy, rich/fresh, sensible/unhinged. Which is frankly the emotional range I want from my dinner these days.

If you want to mix things up, swap out the gochujang for kanzuri – I am obsessed. This Japanese fermented chilli paste, made with koji and yuzu, delivers a massive umami punch alongside a bright, citrusy floral hit.

INGREDIENTS

• 500g frozen Asian dumplings (pork, chicken or vegetable)
• 250ml coconut milk
• 250ml chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp soy sauce (smoked, if you have it)
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• ½ tbsp gochujang paste (or to taste)
• 1 tsp brown sugar or honey

For the soy sauce butter

• 50g butter
• 1 tbsp smoked soy sauce

To finish

• loaded dumpling sauce (see recipe)
• fried noodles
• pickled ginger
• sesame seeds
• spring onion slices
• lime juice

METHOD

1. Heat oven to 200C fan-forced (220C conventional).
2. In a baking dish, whisk together coconut milk, stock, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, gochujang and brown sugar. Nestle the dumplings into the sauce.
3. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15–20 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the dumplings are golden at the edges.
4. Meanwhile, melt the butter until golden and nutty, then stir through the soy sauce. Spoon the soy butter over the hot dumplings.
5. Top with all your desired accoutrements. Finish with a generous squeeze of lime juice and serve.