Dàn jiǎo (蛋饺, egg dumplings)

Dàn jiǎo (蛋饺, egg dumplings) on a bed of diced veggies

This recipe was taught to me by Zhu Dandan in Beijing who learned it from her Shanghainese grandmother. Her grandmother only stir-fried the dumplings. Zhu Dandan stir-fries the dumplings with diced vegetables to make it more nutritious for her family. I mince a 1-inch piece of ginger and mix it into the pork filling, giving the pork filling a little kick and fragrance. These dumplings look like they take a lot of work, but are actually easy. You’ll only need a little prep time to make each dumpling. Consider them mini-omelets.

Part one: Making the egg dumplings

Ingredients:

• 250 grams ground pork
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• water
• 10 medium eggs
• 3 tablespoons cooking oil

Method:

1. Combine pork, salt, and soy sauce. Add enough water to create a soft, thick batter-like consistency. Marinate for five minutes.
2. Beat ten eggs in a separate bowl.
3. Heat oil in a wok, half a centimeter deep.
4. Pour one tablespoon of beaten egg into the center of the wok, creating a small pancake. This is your dumpling wrapper. It may sputter and flower with bubbles, just be careful. As the flower of bubbling egg appears, add a teaspoon of pork filling into the center. Using a pair of chopsticks and the aid of a spatula, bring one edge of the egg wrapper to the other edge, creating a crescent shape — a mini omelet. Flip the dumpling to pan-fry both sides until golden. The pork will not be completely cooked in this step.
5. Repeat until all meat and eggs are finished.

Part two: Stir-fry egg dumplings

Meat filling has not been thoroughly cooked in the first step. You may use other vegetables. The following veggies are what Zhu Dandan used. I have used aubergine, large white asparagus, and green chili peppers as well.

Ingredients:

• 100 grams wild rice stem (茭白, jiāobái),  diced
• 100 grams Chinese yam (山药, shānyào), diced
• 100 grams carrots (胡萝卜, húluóbo), diced
• 100 grams shiitake (香菇, xiānggū), diced
• 100 grams cucumber (黄瓜, huángguā), diced
• egg dumplings (蛋饺, dàn jiǎo), from part one of recipe
• 2 tablespoons corn oil (玉米油, yùmǐ yóu)
• 2 teaspoons salt (盐, yán)
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce (酱油, jiàngyóu)
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon chicken essence (鸡精, jījīng), optional

Method:

1. Blanch diced wild rice stem, Chinese yam, carrots, and shiitake.
2. Heat in the wok. Add wild rice stem, Chinese yam, carrots, shiitake, and cucumber to stir. Add one teaspoon of salt and dark soy sauce.
3. Return the egg dumplings to the wok and stir-fry, tossing the egg dumplings carefully into the diced veggies.
4. Add a cup of water, another teaspoon of salt, and chicken essence. Simmer for one minute. Transfer to a plate.*

* For presentation: After stir-frying, I remove the egg dumplings first and set aside. I spoon the diced veggies onto a serving plate, making a bed. I place the egg dumplings like dominoes over the bed of veggies.

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