Lada's Kitchen: Steamed Thai Dumplings - Kanom Jeeb (ขนมจีบ)

This dim sum or kanom jeeb is originally a Chinese dish, but the tiny and luscious dumpling has become a part of Thai cuisine. These satisfying little dumplings are packed with pork, shrimp, and crunchy water chestnuts. They can be made in advance and store them in the freezer, and then steam whenever you are ready. Let's get started ka!

Ingredients: Makes 35 dumplings

2 pounds ground pork
15 shrimps, peeled, deveined, chopped
1 can or 8 oz water chestnuts, chopped
3 scallions, chopped
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 salt
pinch black pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 pack or 16 oz. Shanghai style dumpling wrappers
To make cilantro paste
5 garlic cloves
handful cilantro stems or 3 roots, chopped
1 teaspoon whole white pepper

Dipping Sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon black or sweet soy sauce
1 tablespoon Thai sweet and chili dipping sauce, or 1/2 teaspoon sugar and chopped chilies if desired
2 tablespoons white vinegar
pinch roasted sesame seeds

Fried Garlic for garnish
1 head garlic or 7-8 cloves
3-4 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil

Topping (optional)
2 egg yolks, beaten
1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

Directions

Make cilantro paste, in a mortar and pestle, add cilantro, garlic, and whole white pepper and pound together until smooth.

Make the dumplings, in a large mixing bowl, add ground pork, chopped shrimp, cilantro paste, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch, and beaten egg. Mix everything together until the mixture is smooth and thick. Add chopped water chestnuts and scallions, mix until combined. Marinate the filling in the refrigerator at least 30 minutes.

How to wrap the dumplings:
If your wonton wrappers are square, trim off the corners. Brush flour from the wrapper and add about 1 spoonful of the filling in the center of each wrapper. Close it up into a cylinder by using your hand to squeeze it. Use the spoon or your fingers flatten out the top. Use egg wash or water to prevent the wrapper separating from the filling.

Make the topping or garnish:
Beat egg yolks and stir in canola oil until smooth. Steam it until cooked through about 7-10 minutes. Use fork meshing the steamed egg until small pieces or crumbles.

Garnish the top of each dumpling with eggs crumbles or diced carrots. Bring water to a boil. Line the stemmer with parchment paper or banana leaves. I brush the stemmer with the garlic oil so the dumplings don't stick. Stem about 12-14 minutes or until cooked through. If cooking from the frozen, it will take longer to cook.

Make fried garlic, add oil and heat a pan over medium heat. Stir in chopped garlic and stir until light golden brown. You can keep garlic and oil separate, so the fried garlic is still crispy.

Make the dipping sauce, in a small bowl, combine soy sauce, dark or sweet soy sauce, white vinegar, Thai chili sweet dipping sauce or sugar, and stir well until the sugar is dissolved. You can add chopped red chillies if desired. Check the seasonings.