paper-thin siu mai
siu mai is a traditional Chinese snack that should be familiar to everyone. It's commonly sold at many street food stalls and can also be found in various restaurants of different levels. This snack has a long history. The name "paper skin" speaks for itself – the skin is very thin, to the point where you can even see the filling through it. When you take a bite, despite the thin outer layer, it has a resilient texture. The filling inside is typically a mixture of pork and mushrooms, with tender and juicy meat, making it incredibly flavorful and unforgettable.
INGREDIENTS
- 500 grams of glutinous rice
DIRECTIONS
Let's start by preparing the ingredients. For making siu mai, you'll need dried shiitake mushrooms. Soak them in water beforehand, and save the soaking liquid. After they're soaked, chop them into small pieces. Peel the carrot and dice it into small pieces as well.
Cut the pork belly into small pieces or simply buy ground pork. Heat oil in a pan, then add the pork and stir-fry until fragrant and browned. Add the chopped mushrooms and carrots, stir-fry until evenly mixed. Season with light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, five-spice powder, sugar, and salt. Add a small amount of the soaking liquid from the mushrooms. Stir-fry all ingredients until partially cooked, then set aside for later use.
Wash the glutinous rice thoroughly and place it in a basket. Put the basket in the inner pot of the rice cooker and add water until it reaches the same level as the glutinous rice. Steaming the rice in this way will result in rice with a good texture and distinct grains.
After the glutinous rice is steamed, use a spatula to stir it evenly to let it cool down.
Once the glutinous rice is cool enough to handle, add it to the previously prepared filling and mix well. The siu mai filling is now ready. You can taste it and make final adjustments to the saltiness as needed.
Take several store-bought dumpling wrappers and stack them together, rolling them out to about twice their original size. Shape the filling into small balls, approximately 65 grams each. Use the rolled-out dumpling wrappers to wrap the filling, similar to making dumplings, sealing them tightly. Now, each paper-thin siu mai is wrapped and ready.
Once all the siu mai are wrapped, you can steam them. When there's steam coming out of the pot, steam for about 8 minutes. The steamed paper-thin siu mai wrappers are almost transparent, allowing you to see the filling clearly, which looks appetizing and appealing.
After steaming, you can remove them from the pot.
It's really delicious! Who can resist the joy of eating siu mai? You can easily make them at home, so give it a try soon!