These crystal skin Shrimp Dumpling Suimono (clear soup) are a twist on the traditional har gow, a dim sum favorite. They make a delicious appetizer.
Every once in a while, it is fun to make something delicate like these crystal skin Shrimp Dumplings. They are not the easiest to make but the challenge can be very rewarding. They taste absolutely wonderful and are very pleasing to the eye. These dainty morsels can be served as an appetizer or a side dish.
Crystal Skin Shrimp Dumplings
Shrimp Dumplings, are also known as har gow in a dim sum spread are normally served dry in little bamboo steam baskets. For this presentation, I combined them with suimono, an easy Japanese clear soup. I used instant dashi for convenience but you can easily make your own using my dashi stock recipe. You can also use chicken broth if preferred.
This crystal skin dough was adapted from my mom-in-law’s recipe for another type of dumpling called chai koay. That will be a subject of a future post in Malaysian Chinese Kitchen. Unlike chai koay which is made in the shape of a money bag, I have decided to shape these like har gow. They look really pretty and translucent in the clear soup.
Tools Used in Making This Shrimp Dumpling Suimono
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• Circulon Genesis Stainless Steel Nonstick 5-Quart Covered Dutch Oven
• Stainless Steel Folding Hot Dish Plate Clip Retriever Tongs
• Chef Craft Stainless Steel Ladle
INGREDIENTS
Filling
- 8 oz shrimps (roughly chopped) (225g)
- 4 shitake mushrooms (diced)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Shao Hsing cooking wine
- 1/8 tsp ground pepper
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 green onion (finely sliced)
Dough
- ¾ cup wheat starch (3.5 oz/ 100g)
- ¼ cup tapioca starch (1 oz/30g)
- ¾ cup water (180ml)
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
INSTRUCTIONS
Filling
- Combine shrimps, mushrooms, soy sauce, Shao Hsing cooking wine, ground pepper, and sesame oil in a bowl. Mix well, cover, and allow it to marinade in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Dough
- Place wheat and tapioca starches in a large bowl.
- Bring ¾ cup (180ml) water to a boil. Immediately pour over wheat and tapioca starch. Stir with a spatula to form a sticky dough.
- Drizzle vegetable oil over dough and knead for 1 to 2 minutes until a smooth dough forms. Cover bowl with shrink wrap.
Wrapping and Cooking the Dumplings
- Remove filling from refrigerator. Mix in sliced green onion.
- Lightly flour work surface and rolling pin with some wheat starch. Break a small piece of dough from the bowl and roll it out to about 2mm thick. The thinner the dough, the more translucent the dumpling will appear. Cut out as many circles as possible using a 3-inch cookie cutter. Remove the edges and reuse in the next batch.
- Place a wrapper in the palm of your hand and a rounded teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper. Fold wrapper into a half circle. Pleat around the edge of the wrapper from the center towards the side. Do the same for the other side. Press to seal and shape into a crescent. Place on a plastic lined plate. Repeat until all dough is used up.
- Transfer dumplings onto a parchment lined plate. Fill a deep pot with an inch of water. Place a rack in the center. Bring water to a boil. Place plate with dumplings onto the rack. Cover and steam on medium for 10 minutes.
Cooking the Soup and Putting the Dish Together
- While dumplings are being steamed, bring 3 cups (720ml) water in a medium saucepan to boil. Add dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and carrots. Allow it to boil for 2 minutes, then turn off stove.
- When dumplings are cooked, remove and place 2 to 3 dumplings in a shallow bowl. Pour some soup over the dumplings. Place a few of the carrots from the soup in the bowl.
- Garnish with 2 sprigs of cilantro and serve immediately with ponzu sauce.
NUTRITION
I served these Shrimp Dumpling Suimono with ponzu sauce. The slight acidity in the sauce went really well with the dumplings. Do give it a try.
Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day! 😎
Veronica Ng says
February 10, 2015 at 11:09 pmI love this crystal skin dumplings in soup, what a change from the normal har gaw and chai kuih. Thanks for sharing.
Linda says
February 12, 2015 at 8:01 amYou are welcome, Veronica! We enjoyed this appetizer very much. Will be making it again soon. 🙂
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
February 11, 2015 at 2:05 amI love a classic Asian dumpling soup and this post has definitely made me crave one now!
Linda says
February 12, 2015 at 8:02 amDumpling are such tasty and lovely morsels. Very rewarding to make your own.
Haruna says
February 11, 2015 at 2:58 pmThis soup and dumpling combination is so dainty and they must taste really good too!
Linda says
February 12, 2015 at 8:03 amThanks Haruna! They tasted wonderful. Will make them again soon. 🙂
Maggie says
March 16, 2015 at 12:07 amThese dumplings are so beautiful and I love your video! I’m always feeling intimidated to cook shrimp dumplings , because we’re living in northern part of China and only cooking dumplings with wheat flour. But after watching your video, I found it’s actually easier than I thought, and I can’t wait to try to make them soon! 🙂
Linda says
March 16, 2015 at 7:04 pmThank you, Maggie! Shrimp dumplings can be a challenge but with a little practice, you will do just fine. 🙂
Preetha says
February 1, 2018 at 3:41 amHi Linda, I’ve enjoyed your recipes and videos very much. I live in New Zealand and your website is the answer to my cravings for goodies like kuih koci, school canteen karipap! I was wondering if these wheat stsrch dumplings can be frozen uncooked?
Linda says
February 6, 2018 at 8:00 amI am very happy to hear that you enjoy my recipes and video. 🙂 One day I will make kuih koci, something that I enjoy very much.
I have never tried freezing these dumplings uncooked but I think it can be done because store bought ones at the Asian markets are all come frozen. The texture may not be as soft and delicious as when they are steamed as soon as they are made.