Makes approximately 20 dumplings (depending on how big your hand is)
Recipe
1kg glutinous rice
50 bamboo leaves
600g pork (shoulder pork)
Marinade for meat:
4tsp sugar
2tsp pepper
1.5tsp five spice powder
2tsp salt
4tsp sesame oil
4tsp oyster sauce
2tsp light soya sauce
2tsp dark soya sauce
2tsp rice wine
1tsp mirin (optional)
Other filling stuff:
60g dried chestnuts – soaked for 1 hour
6 (or more!) dried Chinese mushrooms – soaked in room temperature water until soft, drained and quartered
0.5tsp sugar
5 Salted duck egg yolks
1 cup of mung beans – soaked for a couple of hours in room temperature water until soft-ish
4tbsp of oil
30g dried shrimp – soaked in room temperature water until soft and drained
60g shallots – sliced
1 whole bulb of garlic – sliced
0.5tsp salt
For the rice:
2tbsp oil
4 cloves garlic – minced
2tsp salt
0.5tsp five spice
2tsp soya sauce
String for tying – Raffia works great!
About 60cm worth for each zhang. Maybe a tad longer if you’re making big ass dumplings.
Directions
Night before:
1. Wash and soak the rice.
2. Soak the leaves overnight
3. Season pork with the marinade for meat.
On the day you make the chang:
1. Boil the chestnuts for 15 – 20 mins until soft. Drain then leave aside.
2. Season the mushrooms with 0.5tsp of sugar, then fry the mushrooms in the 4tbsp of oil for a couple of minutes. Drain the mushrooms and leave them aside.
3. Add the prawns to the oil in the pan and stir fry for a minute then drain and leave aside.
4. Add the sliced shallots and the sliced bulb of garlic to the oil and fry it until it’s golden and fragrant.
5. Once the garlic and shallots are golden and fragrant, add the seasoned pork and fry it until it’s half cooked (approximately 5 mins). Once half cooked, set the meat aside in a bowl.
6. Now cook the rice. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok and add the 4 cloves of minced garlic. Give the garlic a little fry (till fragrant).
7. Add the rice to the garlic and oil, then add the salt, five spice and soya sauce. Fry the mixture for about 5 mins then dish out and set aside.
Now for the assembly!
You can cook the zhang by boiling them in water for 2 hours. Alternatively you can pressure cook them for 30 mins.
Bak Zhang