Hot and sour soup with beef dumplings
A new take on a Szechuan classic. Hot and sour soup balances hot chilli with fresh, acidic vinegar. It’s bright, flavourful and warming all at once. You can make your own dumplings very easy, using the recipe included. Or, try using pork dumplings from the recipe above, or any of your favourite frozen dumplings from PAK’nSAVE.
This recipe is also a part of our Beef Recipe Collection.
Ingredients
Method
Dumplings
- 200g Prime Beef Mince
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 Tbsp tamari soy sauce
- dash of sesame oil
- dumpling wrappers
Soup
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 Tbsp tamari soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 stalk celery sliced finely on the cross
- 1 red pepper, sliced finely
- 1 thumb fresh ginger, sliced finely
- 1 Tbsp sweet chilli sauce
- 1 spring onion sliced finely
- handful of interesting mushrooms
- 1 cup hot water
- To make the dumplings, mix the meat, tamari and garlic well, then heat sesame oil and brown the mince mixture gently. Set aside to cool once lightly cooked through.
- Take a dumpling wrapper (covering the remainder so they do not dry out). Place a teaspoon of the beef mixture in the centre of each dumpling wrapper, fold up the sides and crimp at the top. They should stick easily. Cover and set aside.
- To make the soup, throw everything except the vegetables into a large pot and bring to a gentle simmer. Taste. If you require a little more sweetness add a touch more sugar, for more heat add pepper or chilli sauce.
- Just before you are ready to eat, add the vegetables, simmer for around 10 minutes then add the dumplings. They'll only take a few minutes to be ready. The wrappers turn clear when the dumplings are cooked.
- To serve, place a few dumplings in warm bowls and then spoon the broth and vegetables over the dumplings. Garnish with a few finely sliced spring onions.
Tips:
- Add some minced mushrooms to the dumpling mixture for some extra stuffing and a blast of flavour!
FAQs:
- Can you overcook these beef dumplings?
Yes, you can overcook the dumplings if they are boiled for too long. They will start to disintegrate if they are being overcooked, but it does take a while, so it is unlikely you will overcook them.
- How do you keep dumplings moist before cooking?
As you fold your dumplings, keep them covered with a slightly damp kitchen towel. This prevents the dumplings from drying out as dry skins can split when cooked.