Wild Morel Mushroom & Pork Dumplings

Wild Morel Mushroom & Pork Dumplings

Ingredients

• 500g Pork shoulder mince
• 100g Dried wild morel mushrooms
• 100g Small celery
• 100g Scallions
• 1 tbsp Ginger-scallion-star anise infusion
• 5g Thirteen-spice powder
• 5g Ginger powder
• 5g Scallion powder
• 1 ladle Soy sauce
• to taste Salt
• a pinch MSG
• to taste Toasted sesame oil
• 1 small piece Ginger (for infusion)
• ½ stalk Scallion (for infusion)
• 3-4 Star anise (for infusion)
• 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns (for infusion)
• as needed Water (for infusion)

Instructions

1. Mince the pork shoulder into a fine filling.
2. Make the ginger-scallion-star anise infusion: Place sliced ginger, scallion segments, star anise, and Sichuan peppercorns in a small saucepan. Add a saucepan of water, bring to a boil, and simmer for 15–20 minutes to fully extract the aromatics. Reduce until about 1 tablespoon of infused liquid remains.
3. Let the infusion cool, then add it to the pork mince in small increments, stirring each time until the meat fully absorbs the liquid. The filling is ready when it becomes smooth, sticky, and holds together without being watery.
4. Season the pork filling with soy sauce, ginger powder, scallion powder, and thirteen-spice powder. Stir clockwise or mix by hand with disposable gloves until the seasonings are fully incorporated.
5. Finely chop the scallions.
6. Finely chop the small celery.
7. Soak the dried morel mushrooms until rehydrated, rinse clean, and squeeze out excess water.
8. Cut the morels into small pieces — don’t mince them. Keeping some texture gives a better bite.
9. Add all the prepared ingredients to the pork filling. Season with salt, MSG, and sesame oil. Mix clockwise with gloved hands until evenly combined.
10. The finished dumpling filling — smells amazing.
11. Start wrapping: Place a generous amount of filling in the center of each wrapper.
12. Pinch the wrapper shut using the thumb-and-forefinger technique — just make sure it’s sealed and won’t leak. Shape is up to personal preference.
13. Here’s roughly a single serving portion.
14. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the dumplings, and gently push them apart along the edge of the pot with a ladle. Once they float, let them simmer for another 1–2 minutes.
15. Remove and plate.
16. Delicious!