Dim Sum-ptuous

Teacher Benz made this lovely plate. At the local shops, the presentation isn't as pretty.

Chinese have been around in Thailand for about 1000 years and according to Wikipedia, "The community is the best-integrated overseas Chinese community in the world". In Songkhla, the old streets like Nga Nam Road have many shops surrounding the ornate Chinese temple with signs in Thai and Chinese. Along with the gold jewelry shops and shops with cheaply made stuff for 20 baht or less, one can find another Chinese staple: dim sum, little tapas like snacks such as steamed dumplings and meat or custard filled buns.

My new favorite restaurant in Songkhla with tons of real Chinese flavor.

On a Sunday, a group of teachers and students from the Food & Nutrition Department made a short trek to a local community center to teach another group of housewives how to make these Chinese bites that have become integrated into Thai cuisine.

the housewife on the left really enjoyed giving me a hard time :)

The Thai version of both of these treats is a bit sweeter than those I experienced in China. I'm not sure why Thais like to add sugar to savory dishes but even at a noodle shop, the typical condiments are: fish sauce, pickled chilis, sour chili sauce, chili powder, and sugar. A roubao or meat bun in China is a soft steamed bun with a big, greasy, savory ball of seasoned meat in the center. When you bite into it, a big burst of juice squirts out. The meat buns we made are much lighter, which may also be due to using chicken rather than pork (some of the women in attendance are Muslim so we used only chicken and seafood.). The dumplings we made aren't like gyoza, or the fried/steamed things you get at Chinese takeaway. That's not to say they aren't traditional. China has so many varieties of cuisine from region to region and this particular kind may not be known where I was in Nanjing.

I think almost any meat or vegetable could be used in these treats if chopped finely and put in the right proportions. Additionally, I think sugar could be eliminated or substituted with spice or more salt. But here is the recipe that is used in the traditional dim sum shops around town.

Shrimp and Pork Dumplings

Ingredients:

380g peeled and deveined white shrimp

75g minced pork

2 steamed egg yolks

20 g tapioca or corn starch

18g sugar

20g soybean sauce

35g sesame oil

a head of garlic

a package of square yellow wanton wrappers

banana leaves (this prevents the dumplings from sticking to the pan and adds a bit of flavor)

prep for both snacks

 

Procedure

Dredge the shrimp in cornstarch and let sit for a few minutes. This helps with the texture.

Rinse the cornstarch off the shrimp and then mash them into a paste with the flat end of a cleaver.

mashed shrimp

Mix all ingredients but the egg yolk and garlic in a large bowl, adding the starch last. Pick up the mixture and slam it against the side of the bowl to remove air and to make it more paste like.

To fill the wrapper, make a circle with your thumb and middle finger. Place the wanton wrapper over the hole and press down a bit to make a pocket. Add a spoonful of the mixture and form the wrapper so that it can stand. The wanton should be unclosed. Put some water on your fingers and squeeze the sides to ensure it doesn't fall apart when steaming. Put a piece of egg yolk on the top of the mixture.

not as easy as it looks

Line a steamer pan (has holes on the bottom) with banana leaves. Brush a little oil on the leaves. Place the dumplings on the banana leaves, leaving a little space between them.

Put a lid on the steamer and place over boiling water for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, dice the garlic into small pieces and fry in a good amount of oil until brown and crispy. Make sure the heat isn't too hot or they will burn and taste bitter.

they cut some banana leaves into strips to use as a brush--ingenious!

Take the dumplings out of the steamer and brush the bits of garlic and some of the oil on top. Serve with pieces of lettuce and other herbs. Can also be served with nam jim, a sweet and spicy dipping sauce.

the little rose is made from tomato peel

Steamed meat buns (sarapao)

Unfortunately I don't have the amounts for the ingredients, but you can get the general idea.

some ingredients--the egg things on the right are a Songkhla specialty

The filling:

Chinese sausage (made from chicken or pork and are a little sweet)

dried mushrooms soaked in water

a root vegetable like jicama

bamboo shoots

spring onions

ground chicken (could use ground pork or beef)

boiled egg yolks

Method:

Fry the sausages in oil until browned.

Dice and boil the bamboo until it's yellowish. This removes the bitter taste.

I never knew what bamboo looked like before this day

Dice everything very finely and put in a large bowl. Add:

soy sauce

sesame oil

corn starch

sugar

salt & pepper

Mix everything together thoroughly and set aside.

 

Bun dough

all-purpose flour

yeast

baking soda

shortening

sugar

water

Procedure

add water slowly and knead dough into a big ball. Cover with a cloth for about 1 hour.

In a mixer, add baking soda, shortening, sugar, and water. Mix on medium-high speed for about 5-7 minutes.

prepping, cooking, mixing on the floor is normal

Sprinkle flour on a table and remove the dough from the mixer. Knead into a long tube.

Cut off about 40 grams of the dough and mix into a ball (about the size of a golfball).

Flatten the ball with the palm of your hand and pound into a round pancake like shape.

Place a spoonful of the filling in the center of the dough. Add egg yolk. Fold up the sides and pinch at the top.

 

mine is the atrocious looking one on the upper left

 

Place on a small square of non stick paper and into a steamer for about 15-20 minutes.

 

 

makeshift kitchen outside

student works on cleaning and prepping the veggies