Grandma's Dumplings from Scratch: 100+ Year Old Recipe Recipe - Food.com (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to perfect dumplings? ›

Don't Overwork the Dumpling Dough

First, mix the dumpling ingredients just until the dough comes together. You'll whisk together the dry ingredients, then add melted butter and heavy cream. Stir everything together until the wet and dry ingredients are combined and you don't see any more dry flour.

Homemade dumplings can fall apart for a number of different reasons, or any combination of them. Often they burst during cooking because they have too much filling for the amount of dough. Some doughs are too dry, so the dumplings won't stay sealed. Others can be too wet and sticky and end up tearing.

Do not overmix the dough: Overmixing the dough can result in tough and chewy dumplings. Stir the Bisquick mix and milk just until the ingredients come together and form a soft dough [2].

If you are using a high-protein flour, such as bread flour, the dumplings may be tough. Using a lower-protein flour, such as all-purpose or cake flour, can help to make the dumplings softer and more tender. Overworking the dough: If you knead the dough too much or handle it too much, it can become tough.

These dumplings start with all-purpose flour, which creates structure and holds the other ingredients together. Baking powder is a leavening agent, which means it releases gas that makes the dough expand. It's responsible for the dumplings' light and fluffy texture.

What are dumplings made of? The dumpling dough is made of three main ingredients: flour, water and salt. But which flour you use depends on which dumpling you want to make.

The dumplings will be completely cooked and ready when they float on the surface of the boiling water.

If your dumplings taste like flour, that means the flour hasn't been cooked thoroughly. David Mowbray is right -- You need a new recipe! Do I add flour even if my batter tastes like flour? If there's a recipe, which there probably is..

The steam that builds up by covering the pot is what cooks the dumplings. Don't boil or stir the dumplings. Vigorous boiling and stirring will cause the dumplings to fall apart.

Once your water is boiling, let your dumplings cook in the steam for about ten minutes. Don't remove the lid as letting the steam escape will disrupt the cooking process and result in undercooked dumplings, so keep that lid on!

How to make dumplings more juicy? ›

Hand-mincing meat and adding more pork belly results in the juiciest dumplings. Traditionally, some Chinese cuisine uses hand minced meat for their dishes. For example, lots of dim sum items like siu mai, pork buns, beef meatball, and more use hand minced meat to control the texture and fat content of the dish!

If you want to get similar results at home, there are only two tricks you really need. First is to add a bit of extra starch to your dumplings. Dust them with cornstarch, shaking off the excess before the initial fry. Second is to use a non-stick skillet, or an extremely well-seasoned cast iron pan.

Double-check that you added the correct amount of baking powder and that it's not expired. Additionally, if the dumplings don't have room to grow in the pot, they may not rise properly. Make sure to drop them spaced apart and on top of the meat and vegetables so that they don't sink into the stew.

Carefully place the dumplings into the boiling water and boil for 20-25 minutes until they start to float. (You can boil in two batches depending on the size of your pan.) Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the water and place them on a plate. Serve hot with your preferred stew or veggies.

Margarine and butter can both be used as a substitute for shortening, though their moisture contents should be taken into consideration before making the swap. While shortening is 100% fat, margarine and butter contain a small percentage of water (so, shortening adds more fat, thus more richness and tenderness).