Miso Aubergine & Tofu Dumplings with Citrus Dipping Sauce Recipe

Gyoza

½ pack gyoza wrappers (circular)

1 large aubergine

200g medium-firm tofu (placed on a chopping board and pressed with a heavy book on top to push out some of the water)

100g Chinese cabbage, roughly chopped

1 broccoli head and stem

20g spring onion, finely diced

½ whole white onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 garlic clove, peeled,

15g ginger, peeled

1½ tbsp sake

1½ tbsp sesame oil

1½ tbsp dark soy sauce

1½ tbsp salt

½ tsp ground Sichuan pepper (alternatively use white pepper)

Citrus Dipping Sauce

300ml Shiragiku rice vinegar

200ml dark soy sauce

5 tsp sesame oil

100ml Mizkan Honteri Mirin-style

100ml orange juice

1. Mix together all the ingredients for the dipping sauce and store to one side in a jar.

2. In a blender, blitz first the broccoli flower head until it’s a fine rice, then add the chopped stem and blitz. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, chopped Chinese cabbage and then blitz again. Add salt and pepper, blitz, then add sake, sesame oil and soy sauce and blitz, then finally add the aubergine and blitz again.

3. In a large bowl, add the tofu and spring onions and mix together by hand, kneading as though making bread for about 10 minutes. This will help release any additional water in the mix, and is better for the texture of the tofu – blitzing will simply turn it to a thick liquid. Chill for 30 minutes.

4. Get your mix out of the fridge and open the wrapper packet. Take one out and cover the rest with a damp towel.

5. Dip your finger in a small bowl of water and wet ½ inch (12 mm) of the rim of 1 wrapper, taking 1 level teaspoon of mix and put it into the centre of the wrapper. Do not be tempted to overfill as the more filling you use the harder it is to fold and seal the wrapper.

6. Holding the wrapper in one hand, fold the wrapper with the other hand by folding it in half then pleating the top half into little pleats from left to right, sticking each pleat to the bottom half. 5, 6 or 7 pleats are good.

7. When you have made as many as you need, put hot water in your steamer and place some baking paper over the steamer holes. Line your dumplings up on the paper so they are not quite touching each other and steam for 10 minutes over a medium heat.

8. Alternatively you can fry the dumplings; heat up a little cooking oil in a pan and gently place the gyoza in it with the flat side facing down. Cook on a high heat until the bottom of the dumpling becomes crispy and golden.

9. To finish cooking the dumpling, add 70ml of water (mixed with a pinch of cornflour) to the pan carefully (as steam will rise quickly). Place a lid on top of the pan and leave the heat on medium-high and cook until the water has disappeared.

10. Serve 5 gyoza per person with a small bowl of the Citrus dipping sauce as a starter, or 7 with a bowl of Ramen noodles as a main course.