Recipe: Dan Dan Dumplings
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I love to experiment with taking the components of an existing dish and reimagining them in the form of a dumpling filling. If there’s a tried and true combination of ingredients already, then stuffing all of those flavors together into a one-bite dumpling format for most efficient delivery to the tastebuds will obviously result in something awesome. The trouble is that it’s hard to really celebrate those brilliant fillings in photo form. (Or, at least I personally struggle with that.) Dumplings are plenty cute-looking whole, but what makes them delicious is hidden inside.
But I finally had an idea for a dish-within-a-dumpling combo that I thought was worth photographing, because the sauce is just as important and sexy-looking as the dumplings. Presenting: Dan Dan Dumplings.
This idea builds off of this existing recipe that I developed for Bibigo USA, as a moreish way to serve their frozen mandu. I am super obsessed with Sichuan pepper and mala (numbing-spicy) foods and as part of that recipe, I developed my own version of mala chili oil! If you have never experienced them before, Sichuan pepper husks are super unique in that they contain a molecule that causes a tingling sensation on your tongue. It is not a burning heat, like eating a spicy chili, but rather a numbing sensation like when your foot “falls asleep”. I know it sounds a little unsettling when put that way, but it is honestly a delightful experience when eating in conjunction with flavorful, spicy foods. The combination of Sichuan pepper and spicy chilies is known in Chinese cuisine as mala, which translates to numbing-spicy.
Dan dan noodles have become an iconic mala dish associated with Sichuan cuisine in Chinese-American restaurants, and they are the inspiration for these dumplings. Dan dan refers to the carrying pole that OG street food vendors would use to transport their ingredients as they walked around. Since I’m not carrying my ingredients around on a pole, technically these aren’t “dan dan dumplings”, but I am gonna call them that because they are meant to be the dumpling version of dan dan mian. The dish usually has 3 major components: 1) an oily sauce that is a little numbing, nutty (from sesame paste), and spicy; 2) bouncy noodles; 3) a topping made of ground pork and preserved greens and sometimes a blanched Chinese vegetable. Instead of wok-frying the ground pork mixture, I stuffed it inside the dumpling wrappers, ditched the noodles, and went heavy on the chili oil in the sauce, in a similar vein to chili oil wontons.
I used the recipes for dan dan noodles by Woks of Life and Omnivore’s Cookbook as references for developing this dumpling recipe. One slight road bump that I ran into when replicating the flavors of dan dan noodles was the type of pickled vegetable used in the pork mixture. Both reference recipes call for a specific Sichuan-style preserved vegetable called sui mi ya cai. After staring at the shelves of pickled vegetable packets for quite some time at my local Asian supermarket, one of the uncles working at the store offered to help, but said they didn’t have it. This “preserved mustard green (chili)” is what I used instead.
Because the chili oil sauce is such a key component to this dish, I wanted to use a dumpling fold that would allow the sauce to really stick to the dumplings. What better way to accomplish this than to turn the dumplings themselves into little cups? Apparently this is known as the “rose bud” dumpling fold, but I received overwhelming feedback that this fold is quite reminiscent of the hats from The Handmaid’s Tale. It is super easy—just place a little scoop of filling on one half of the dumpling wrapper, fold in half and seal with some water, then overlap the two sides of the semicircle. You can see a video of how to do it here.
I obviously went very heavy on the chili oil in these photos. You can add it to your taste, but I was quite happy eating these as they were.
How to Make Dan Dan Dumplings
Ingredients For the chili oil
2 tbsp coarse Chinese or Korean chili flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 scallion, thinly sliced
4 tsp pink Sichuan pepper
2 star anise
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup high smoke point neutral oil
Ingredients for the Dumplings
1/2 lb ground pork
2 tsp hoisin sauce
2 tsp shaoxing wine
1 tsp kecap manis (or 1/2 tsp dark soy and 1/2 tsp brown sugar)
1/2 tsp five spice powder
1/4 tsp ginger powder
a pinch of toasted and ground Sichuan pepper (optional)
1 2.5 oz packet spicy preserved mustard greens
about 24–26 dumpling wrappers
Ingredients for the Sauce
4 tsp Chinese sesame paste, stirred
2 tsp honey
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp black vinegar
For Garnish
1 scallion, sliced
1–2 tbsp roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped
cilantro (optional)
Procedure
In a heat-safe bowl, combine chili flakes, garlic, scallions, and salt. In a small saucepot, combine oil, Sichuan pepper, and star anise. Heat on medium-low heat until the lighter interior parts of the peppercorn husks begin to turn brown, about 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and wait for the pepper to turn fully dark brown, about 1 more minute. Carefully pour oil through a fine mesh strainer over the ingredients in the bowl. Stir everything in the bowl together and allow to sit for at least 10 minutes (more is recommended) to let the flavors integrate and the garlic cook through.
To make the dumpling filling, combine the ground pork, hoisin sauce, shaoxing wine, kecap manis, five spice, powdered ginger, and ground Sichuan pepper (if using) in a bowl until mixed evenly. Fold in the preserved mustard greens. Stuff inside dumpling wrappers and seal shut as desired (see notes above for rose bud fold). Place folded dumplings on a tray dusted with flour to prevent sticking.
In a separate bowl, whisk together sesame paste and honey. Whisk in soy sauce and black vinegar at a gradual drizzle to prevent the sesame paste from clumping.
Bring a large pot of water to boil, then carefully add the dumplings. Remove them as they float to the surface and transfer them to a bowl or tray with a little bit of oil.
Add about 2 tablespoons of the hot cooking water to the sesame sauce and whisk to combine. Then add 2 tablespoons of the chili oil and whisk again.
To serve, spread a generous layer or the sesame sauce in the bottom of each bowl. (You may still have a little bit left over.) Divide the dumplings into each bowl, then drizzle chili oil over the dumplings to taste. (You may still have some chili oil left over too, but I didn’t because I like it numby and spicy!) Garnish, and then mix dumplings in the sauce and oil before devouring.