Pea Dumplings in Chinese Broth

As I mentioned yesterday, I love cooking shows and right now I am hooked on Masterchef Australia!

One of the episodes involved cooking Chinese meals and Julia made an inspiring dumpling recipe in broth.

I was itching to try my hand at some gluten free dumplings. I am sure normal dumplings are hard enough to make because gluten free dumplings did prove to be laughably challenging - luckily I attempted them on Sunday - so I had quite a few hours to play around. The end result was tasty, but I need to work on getting the dough extra thin I think - so this is my challenge to myself for the next while. I will report back on my progress shortly.

Seeing as I was in the spring spirit, I decided to attempt another recipe using peas. I have no idea what went into Julia's broth, so decided to wing it and I used maize flour in my dumplings - so they are more Mexican meets Chinese meets Leaine's Kitchen :)

Pea Dumplings in Chinese Broth:
(Makes 15 - 20 Dumplings and Broth for Two - Increase the broth quantities if you want to cook for more people)

Ingredients:

Dumpling Dough:

1 Cup Yellow Maize Flour (*Earth Products)
1 Cup White Rice Flour (*Health Connection)
1 Cup Boiling Water (Add a bit more if it doesn't all stick together the first time)
1 Teaspoon Salt

Filling:

1 Cup Peas
6 Baby Salad Onions, Sliced
1/4 Teaspoon Dried Mint
4 Teaspoons Soya Cream
1 Teaspoon Soya Sauce
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Chinese Broth:

1 Cup Good Vegetable Stock (I used Organic Liquid Vegetable Stock from Woolies)
1 Lemon Grass Stalk, Bruised to Release Oils
1/4 Teaspoon Dried Chilli
2 Cloves
1 Cinnamon Stick
5 Salad Onions, Sliced
1 Teaspoon Ground Coriander
1 Knob Ginger, Sliced
1 Teaspoon Fructose
1 Tablespoon Soya Sauce - Gluten Free and Yeast Free such as *"Bragg Liquid Aminos"
1 Teaspoon Fish Sauce
1/4 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Squeeze of Lemon Juice
1 Cup Water

Canola Oil for Frying

*These products can be found at most health shops

Directions:

Start with the filling and blend all ingredients together in a blender until they form a paste
Add all the broth ingredients to a pot and put onto boil, after a few minutes reduce heat and allow to simmer
Mix the dough ingredients together and roll out on a floured surface until very thin
Cut circles out of the dough
Put a small amount of the pea filling onto each circle and seal it up into a moon shape
Try and be as quick as you can here as the dough dries out quickly - if this happens, keep brushing with a little water
The dough is also very delicate so you need to be careful when making the pea parcels as it can crack and the dough will ooze out
When you have make all of your dumplings heat a pan of oil and fry very quickly on both sides until the dough turns crispy
Lay on kitchen paper to get rid of the excess oil
Serve immediately in the broth, so that the dumplings are still crispy
The dumplings are also delicious on their own and would be great with a dipping sauce instead