Chicken Shu Mai Recipes

CHICKEN SIU MAI (CHICKEN DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• Make the filling: In a large bowl, combine chicken, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, scallions, cornstarch, white peppercorn oil, oyster sauce, ginger, Shao Hsing, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, pepper, and egg white. Stir to mix thoroughly. Transfer to a shallow dish, and refrigerate, uncovered, for 4 hours, or covered, overnight.
• Make the dumplings: Lightly oil a bamboo steamer basket, or line the bottom with a round metal steamer insert; set aside. Work with one wrapper at a time, and cover unused wrappers with a damp cloth. Place 1 1/2 tablespoons filling in center of each wrapper. Hold filling in place with the blade of a butter knife. Holding the dumpling in the other hand, gradually turn the knife and dumpling slowly in a clockwise direction so that the dumpling forms a basket shape.
• Remove knife, and pat filling with point of knife to smooth. Squeeze the dumpling slightly to adhere dough to filling, this will ensure that the dumpling and filling will remain intact during the steaming process. Tap the dumpling bottom lightly on work surface to flatten. Place into prepared steamer basket. Repeat with remaining filling and wrappers.
• Bring 3 inches of water to a boil in a wok. Place steamer basket over water. Cover, and steam until dumplings are cooked through, about 6 minutes. Turn off heat. Remove the steamer from the wok, and transfer to a platter. Serve dumplings directly from steamer with mustard dipping sauce on the side.

SHU MAI: (CHICKEN-AND-SHRIMP PASTRIES)

Steps:

• Cut away and discard any membranes or peripheral fat from the chicken breast. Place the breast on a flat surface and cut it into the thinnest possible slices. Stack the slices and cut them into very thin shreds. Cut the shreds into very fine cubes. Chop the cubes with a cleaver or a heavy sharp knife. Or blend the meat in a food processor, but do not process to a paste.
• Chop the shrimp by hand or in the container of a food processor until it has the same consistency as the chicken.
• Combine the chicken and shrimp in a mixing bowl and add the egg white. Add the cornstarch, salt, sugar and soy sauce and blend. Blend the ginger and wine. Squeeze to extract the liquid. Discard the ginger. Add the liquid to the chicken and shrimp mixture. Beat briskly about five minutes. Add the green onion and coriander and blend well.
• If the won-ton skins are square, cut them into rounds or circles. To do this, stack the won-ton skins and cut them into circles about three inches in diameter. Cut around with a cleaver, a sharp knife or a three-inch biscuit cutter.
• Hold one round won-ton skin in the hand and fill the center with one tablespoon of the filling. Bring up the edges of the won ton skin to enclose the filling all around, but leaving the top of the meat mixture exposed. Smooth over the top. As the shu mai are filled, arrange them open side up on a steamer rack without crowding.
• Bring water to a boil in the bottom of a steamer rack. Place the rack with shu mai over the boiling water and cover tightly. Let steam eight minutes. A sauce is not essential for shu mai, but if desired, vinegar, soy sauce, Sichuan paste and hot mustard may be added.