Recipe: Pork Ginger Dumplings
Make these to celebrate Lunar New Year, gung hay fat choy!
Dumplings are made and eaten to celebrate Lunar New Year because they are a symbol of wealth and shaped like ancient gold ingots. Just like the coin-shaped Chinese Almond Cookies… “hope you get rich!” is the theme.
There are many ways to make dumplings. Family recipes, techniques, and traditions are shared sitting around a table folding dumplings. This week’s recipe is in collaboration with my friend and MoguMagu co-host Wendy Zeng. Grab some friends to sesh, get high, and make tasty dumplings.
RECIPE BY WENDY ZENG + CHRISTINA WONG
Pork Ginger Dumpling Recipe
Authentic, homemade Chinese pork dumplings from scratch with a cannabis-infused dipping sauce. How to make the filling, fold the dumplings, and cook.
DOSING:
Makes ~40 dumplings with infused dipping sauce. You’ll need 0.15 grams of ~20% THC flower in this recipe for a total of ~20mg THC in the cannabis-infused sesame oil. 2 tablespoons of sesame oil contains ~5mg THC.
Alternatively, our favorite cannabis-infused brands include: Sessy CBD sesame oil and Potli Halal Hemp chili oil.
INGREDIENTS:
1 package round dumpling wrapper (~40 wraps)
1 pound ground pork*, preferably higher fat content (15-20%) *plant-based substitute with omnipork, Beyond Meat or Impossible ground beef
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
¼ cup minced chives or scallions
1 tablespoon soy sauce
¼ tsp white or slightly less than ¼ tsp black pepper
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or sake or dry white wine
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tsp ajinomoto (MSG) or substitute chicken bouillon powder
Cannabis-infused dipping sauce:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3-5 peeled cloves garlic, finely minced
1 sprig scallion
2 tablespoons cannabis-infused sesame oil (recipe follows)
1 ½ tsp sugar
½ tsp black vinegar
1 tbsp of your favorite chili oil
1 tsp ajinomoto (MSG) or chicken bouillon powder
Optional: ½ tsp ground Sichuan peppercorn
Cannabis-infused sesame oil (makes 8 tablespoons)
½ cup (109g) sesame oil
0.15 grams of cannabis flower (~20% THC)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Make infused sesame oil: Preheat the oven to 240°F. Place 0.15 grams of coarsely ground cannabis flower into a small mason jar, seal with the lid, and heat for 40 minutes in the oven to decarb, which activates the THC. Remove from oven and let cool until the mason jar is safe to touch. The ground flower will look toasted. Pour ½ cup of sesame oil into the mason jar, close the lid, and shake to combine.
Reduce the oven temp to 170°F and place the mason jar with sesame oil and flower into the oven for heat and infuse for 3 hours. Remove the mason jar from the oven and set aside to cool until safe to touch. Pour the infused sesame oil through a fine mesh strainer into a clean jar or bowl, straining out the ground flower and reserving the oil. Label the jar “2 tablespoons = 5mg THC,” and set aside – safely out of reach from little ones.
2. Prepare the filling: In a large bowl, mix together the ground meat, minced ginger, chives/scallions, soy sauce, pepper, wine, sesame oil, and vegetable oil until evenly incorporated.
3. Fill the dumplings: Open the dumpling wrapper package and keep covered with a damp cloth to prevent drying out. Take one wrapper in the palm of your hand and put a small spoonful, about 1 tablespoon, of the mixture in the center of the wrapper. Dip your finger in the small bowl of water and wet around the edge of the round circle, like you would an envelope.
4. Fold and seal the dumplings: Seal the top and bottom edges like a taco. Using your thumb and forefinger press the seams together to seal the edges. Place the finished dumpling on the prepared sheet pan.
5. Make the sauce: In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients with 2 tablespoons of infused sesame oil, and stir to mix evenly. Reserve the remaining sesame oil to use for additional sauces.
6. Cook the dumplings: Over medium-high heat, bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil. Carefully place a handful of fresh dumplings into the boiling water and bring back to a rolling boil. When the dumplings float in the water, use a slotted spoon to strain out the dumplings into a serving bowl. Enjoy with the dipping sauce.
To freeze for later: Place pan of dumplings into the freezer on the pan. When frozen, transfer the frozen dumplings into an airtight container/bag.
To cook from frozen: Put frozen dumplings into a pot of boiling water. As soon as they float, pour in a cup of tap water, bring to boil again before consuming to fully cook the meat inside without overcooking the wrapper.
Gung hay fat choy! Hope you get rich!
- Christina W. + Wendy Zeng
