Pork and Shrimp Dumpling Soup

Dumplings (makes about 60-65)

• 65 wonton wrappers
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1/2 lb peeled shrimp, minced
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp minced fresh ginger (about 1 inch if using fresh)
• 1 large egg, beaten

Soup

• 1 Tbsp oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic (about 6 cloves)
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 2 Tbsp fish sauce, plus more, to taste
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 24 pork and shrimp dumplings (gee, what will we do with the other 3 dozen?)
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced

Dumplings:

Place the wonton wrappers under a damp towel while you work to keep them from drying out. Mix the rest of the dumpling ingredients gently in a large bowl until thoroughly combined.

Arrange a wrapper with the point facing you. Place 1 tsp of the filling just under the midpoint. Roll the nearest corner up over the filling until the wrapper resembles a triangle. Moisten the left and right points and fold them like an origami cup (the part of the flap that was along the right/left side of the triangle should now be parallel to the bottom of the triangle).

Place the finished dumplings under a moist towel while you work.

To freeze, place on a baking sheet in the freezer until frozen. Transfer to a Ziploc and store frozen up to 3 months.

Soup:

Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Ad the onion and saute until soft and translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until the garlic just begins to brown, 2-3 minutes. Pour in the chicken stock, stirring to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Stir in the fish sauce and the black pepper, increase the heat to high, and bring the stock to a boil.

Gently add 24 of the dumplings and then cover and simmer over low heat until the dumplings are cooked through, 10-15 minutes. Add more fish sauce and black pepper as needed. Garnish with green onion and serve.

Makes 4 servings.