comfort food

This may sound strange coming from a white blonde girl, but Chinese dumplings are a kind of comfort food for me. Now to really understand how this is possible, I need to tell you a little bit about myself. When I was 20, I lived in Taiwan for a year. I headed there with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) and the SALT program geared for young adults interested in doing overseas service for a year. I had previously travelled to China for 6 weeks with my highschool and was very interested in Asian culture. I had no idea how foreign I would feel. I pulled out my journal from my time there and this is part of an entry from my 5th day in Taiwan...

Wed. July 10/94 "It's evening now. I don't know what city we are in right now. (I was being shown the south part of the island) I have decided that I do not like spending time in groups here. For the soul reason that everybody is speaking Chinese and I don't have a clue what is going on. This is when I feel the most lonely. My compulsion to cry is certainly not over. I wasn't prepared to be homesick or to feel like such a foreigner. I didn't think it would be this difficult. Today when I was sitting at a train station I felt like the entire room of people was staring at me. It can get quite humorous when people stare at me and walk into things or bump into people. But generally the novelty of being noticed has warn off. I wish I could find some sudden comfort when I feel my throat start to close up and my eyes become moist. My one retreat is sleeping. It calms me and I don't have to think about how difficult things are. I am not over jet lag or I just find all of this exhausting. I feel like I am upsetting my hosts...."

Thankfully things got much easier and I had an incredible experience living in the Taiwanese culture. In the beginning I remember feeling a great deal of relief when I would visit one particular family. My placement in Taipei, Taiwan was at the church to teach English. The church's only paid staff, Glendy, was the church secretary and we spent a lot of time together. In those first few weeks she often took me to her home for lunch and I would spend a few hours there while she rested. Glendy lived with her elderly parents and her mother reminded me so much of my Oma that I loved being in her calm and comforting presence. She physically reminded me of my Russian born Oma, the smell of their house vaguely reminded me of my Oma's house and Glendy's mother's English name was Sara. Yep, you guessed it...my Oma's name is Sara.

So, how is this connected to Chinese dumplings you are wondering? Glendy and I would go to her home for lunch and often we would have Chinese dumplings. I loved them but I remember Glendy complaining about having to have dumplings again! Hey, they were easy. You would just visit the street vendor that was making handmade dumplings, you'd buy a few boxes and instant lunch.

So that is my Chinese dumpling story and one reason why I felt like making them this weekend.

Here is the recipe that I used. I did not steam my dumplings, but boiled them for 2 minutes. I served them with a simple soysauce and sesame oil (just a tad) dip.

Vegetarian Steamed Dumplings - from foodtv.com
Ingredients
1/2 pound firm tofu
1/2 cup coarsely grated carrots
1/2 cup shredded Napa cabbage
2 tablespoons finely chopped red pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped scallions
2 teaspoons finely minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Bowl of water, plus additional water for steamer
35 to 40 small wonton wrappers
Non-stick vegetable spray, for the steamer
Directions
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.
Cut the tofu in half horizontally and lay between layers of paper towels. Place on a plate, top with another plate, and place a weight on top (a 14-ounce can of vegetables works well). Let stand 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, cut the tofu into 1/4-inch cubes and place in a large mixing bowl. Add the carrots, cabbage, red pepper, scallions, ginger, cilantro, soy sauce, hoisin, sesame oil, egg, salt, and pepper. Lightly stir to combine.
To form the dumplings, remove 1 wonton wrapper from the package, covering the others with a damp cloth. Brush the edges of the wrapper lightly with water. Place 1/2 rounded teaspoon of the tofu mixture in the center of the wrapper. Shape as desired. Set on a sheet pan and cover with a damp cloth. Repeat procedure until all of the filling is gone.
Using a steaming apparatus of your choice, bring 1/4 to 1/2-inch of water to a simmer over medium heat. Spray the steamer's surface lightly with the non-stick vegetable spray to prevent sticking. Place as many dumplings as will fit into a steamer, without touching each other. Cover and steam for 10 to 12 minutes over medium heat. Remove the dumplings from the steamer to a heatproof platter and place in oven to keep warm. Repeat until all dumplings are cooked.
The ones that tore a bit when I was folding I saved to make potstickers. I simply heated a pan with some olive oil and placed the dumplings flat. When the bottom got brown, I added 1/4 cup of water and immediately covered the pan. This steamed the dumplings. When the water was evaporated, approximately 3-4 minutes, I removed them. Andrew preferred these. I preferred the boiled kind. For the kids, I made a mashed potato/cheddar cheese filling, cooled it in the fridge and used the wonton skins to make homemade perogies. I boiled them for 2 minutes and all three kids loved them!
And for Week 5 of our carbon fast...
Monday, March 30th: Take a shower instead of a bath. Look into getting a more efficient shower with a "low-flow" shower head.