pork & prawn siu mai with black vinegar caramel

i suppose living in footscray makes it super easy 2head down 2barkly street for some yum cha or dumplings but i love making my own @ home... it means you can make up little bundles of flavour explosions that suit your taste buds.... if you love chilli you can add as much as want.... love shitake mushrooms? add a shitload & enjoy the results.... here i have decided to use what i had in the fridge.... pork mince & raw prawns... together they are a match made in asian foodie heaven! :)

pork & prawn siu mai with black vinegar caramel

you will need:

250g of pork mince
200g of medium sized raw prawns, peeled, deveined and finely chopped
8 garlic shoots, finely chopped
4 red shallots, finely chopped
20g fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 red bird's eye chillies, finely chopped
6 spring onions, white part only, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons of pat chun (sweetened chinese vinegar)
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
2 teaspoons of roasted sesame seeds
1 teaspoon of schizuan salt n pepper mix
1x packet of wonton wrappers

black vinegar caramel

you will need:

1/2 a cup of palm sugar
1/3 a cup of chinkiang vinegar (chinese black vinegar)
1 tablespoon of water

method:

1. combine the pork&prawns in a large bowl and knead well for 3mins with the back of your hands. add the garlic shoots, shallots, ginger, chilli, spring onion, pat chun, soy sauce, sesame seeds and the salt n pepper mix and incorporate with your hands. cover with plastic wrap & leave in the fridge for 20minutes to chill.... that will make it easier to work with! :)

2. this is the tricky bit..... but with a little patience and practice it gets easier to make your siu mai look like the real deal.... place the won ton wrapper in the palm of your hand, spoon about 1 heaped tablespoon of the siu mai mixture into the centre and use a crimping motion to fold the edges of the wrapper up around the sides of the meat, leaving the top open... dont fret if you dont get the hang of this 1st time round.... tap the base on a bench to flatten inside slightly so the dumpling can sit upright. repeat this over&over&over till you use up all the siu mai mixture and are a dumpling master!! ;p

3. grab a bamboo steamer, the bigger the better & spray with cooking spray and add dumplings in a single layer, leaving space around each one so they dont stick 2gether. cover and steam over a wok of simmering water for 4-5minutes, or until the base of the dumplings are firm and they are cooked through.

4.  now for the black vinegar caramel. put the sugar, vinegar & water into a saucepan and cook, over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. bring to the boil and simmer for 5minutes, or until syrupy. let cool.....

5. grab a cold beer, white wine or whatever tickles your fancy and enjoy....

yum! yum! siu mai!! :)