FEBRUARY 2021 75at room temperature at least 1 hour or up
to 2 hours.- Meanwhile, make the filling: Pulse
chopped cabbage in a food proces-
sor until finely chopped, 4 to 6 pulses.
Transfer cabbage to a clean kitchen towel,
and squeeze firmly over sink to remove
any excess liquid. Transfer cabbage to
a medium bowl; stir in pork, scallions,
chives, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and
sesame oil until well combined. Chill, cov-
ered, until ready to use. - Lightly dust 2 baking sheets with corn-
starch; set aside. Divide wrapper dough
evenly into 4 portions. Place 1 dough
portion on a clean work surface; cover
remaining portions with a damp cloth.
Knead dough portion until smooth, about
15 seconds, if needed. Roll dough portion
into a 10-inch-long rope (about^3 / 4 inch
thick). Cut rope crosswise into 10 (1-inch-
long) pieces (about^1 / 4 ounce each). Cover
dough pieces with a damp paper towel.
Working with 1 dough piece at a time, roll
into a ball with your hands. Place rolled
dough ball on work surface, and, using the
bottom of a measuring cup, push down
to flatten into a circle. Lightly dust both
sides of dough circle with flour; using a
dowel rolling pin, roll into a 3^1 / 2 -inch circle.
(If desired, you can trim using a 3^1 / 2 -inch
cookie cutter.) Repeat process with
remaining 9 dough pieces, stacking and
covering wrappers. - Working with 1 dumpling wrapper at a
time, spoon 2 teaspoons filling into center
of wrapper, and spread slightly. Holding
the wrapper flat in your hand, lightly
wet edges of wrapper with water using
your fingertip; fold in half to form a half-
moon, pressing out the air as you seal the
dumpling. Cradling the dumpling in one
hand, use the thumb and index finger of
your opposite hand to fold and pinch the
sealed edge, forming pleats along the
length of the dumpling. Transfer sealed
dumpling to prepared baking sheet; cover
with a slightly damp paper towel. Repeat
process with remaining dough and filling
to yield 40 dumplings. - Prepare a wide pot or wok for a bamboo
steamer, and add 1 inch of water. Bring
to a boil over high, making sure water
doesn’t touch bottom of steamer. Line
bottoms of 2 stackable bamboo steamer
baskets with cabbage leaves. Arrange
10 dumplings in a single layer in each
steamer basket. Stack and cover steamer,
and place in prepared pot. Reduce heat to
medium-high, and steam dumplings until
wrappers are glossy and slightly translu-
cent, 5 to 10 minutes. Repeat steaming
process with remaining 20 dumplings. - While dumplings steam, make the
dipping sauce: Stir together soy sauce,
vinegar, scallions, black pepper, and
sesame seeds in a small bowl. Serve
dumplings hot with sauce, garnished with
Chinese chives and, if desired, chile oil.
MAKE AHEAD Filling may be stored in an
airtight container in refrigerator up to 1
day.
WINE Melony, spicy Chenin Blanc: 2019
Birichino Jurassic Park Vineyard Old
VinesWhole Fish Drizzled with Hot
Ginger-Scallion Oil
PHOTO P. 66
ACTIVE 20 MIN; TOTAL 45 MIN
SERVES 2 TO 4The Chinese word for fish (yu) sounds
similar to the Chinese word most closely
translated to “abundance,” so serving fish
symbolizes a wish for prosperity and abun-
dance in the new year. Light soy sauce is
lighter in color but higher in salt than dark
soy sauce, so it is ideal for steaming sea-
food and imparting more flavor.1 (2-lb.) whole snapper, carp, or sea
bass, cleaned
Kosher salt, to taste
3 large scallions, thinly sliced on an
angle (about 1 cup)
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled
and cut into (1-inch x^1 / 16 -inch x^1 / 16 -
inch) strips (about 2 Tbsp.)
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 Tbsp. light soy sauce (such as Pearl
River Bridge)
1 Tbsp. (^1 / 2 oz.) Shaoxing wine
Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish- Fill an 8-quart oval roasting pan or an
8-quart oval Dutch oven with water to a
depth of^1 / 4 inch; fit a steaming rack in pan.
Bring water to a boil over high. Meanwhile,
rinse fish inside and out; pat dry. Place
fish on a heatproof oval platter, and sprin-
kle lightly with salt. - Place platter holding fish on steamer
rack over boiling water. Cover, reduce
heat to medium, and steam until fish is
just cooked through and thickest part of
flesh flakes easily with the tip of a paring
knife, 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully transfer
fish to a large serving platter, and sprinkle
with scallions and ginger. - Heat oil in a small saucepan over
medium until very hot but not smoking,
about 5 minutes. Immediately and care-
fully pour hot oil over scallion mixture
on fish. You should hear sizzling, and the
scallions will slightly wilt. - Stir together soy sauce and wine in a
small bowl; drizzle over fish. Garnish with
cilantro, and serve immediately.
WINE Aromatic dry Riesling: 2019
Penfolds Bin 51
Lunar New Year Dumplings
ACTIVE 2 HR 40 MIN; TOTAL 3 HR 50 MIN
SERVES 8 TO 10Plump and tender dumplings symbolize
longevity and wealth. Chang fills hers with
a fragrant and flavorful blend of garlic, gin-
ger, scallions, and Chinese chives bound
with tender ground pork. Store-bought
wonton wrappers may be substituted for
freshly made dough.WRAPPERS
2 cups all-purpose flour (about 8^1 / 2
oz.), plus more for dusting
1 / 8 tsp. kosher salt
1 / 2 cup plus 1 Tbsp. boiling water
Cornstarch, for dusting
FILLING
6 oz. napa cabbage, coarsely
chopped (about 3 cups), plus whole
cabbage leaves for lining steamer
baskets
6 oz. ground pork
6 Tbsp. finely chopped scallions
6 Tbsp. chopped fresh Chinese
chives or garlic chives, plus more
for garnish
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
11 / 2 tsp. finely chopped garlic
3 /^4 tsp. grated peeled fresh ginger
3 /^4 tsp. toasted sesame oil
DIPPING SAUCE
1 / 2 cup soy sauce
1 / 4 cup rice vinegar
2 tsp. thinly sliced scallions (white
parts only)
1 tsp. black pepper
1 / 2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds
ADDITIONAL INGREDIENT
Chile oil (optional)- Make the wrappers: Stir together flour
and salt in a large heatproof bowl. While
stirring constantly with a fork or chop-
sticks, pour boiling water into flour mix-
ture until shaggy pieces of dough form.
Knead in bowl until flour absorbs all water,
about 2 minutes. Continue kneading until
smooth, about 3 minutes. Shape into a
ball, and cover with a damp cloth. Let rest
Dumplings are a Lunar New Year
necessity; here, they are drizzled
with hot chile oil and sprinkled
with pungent Chinese chives.
Gently steaming the dumplings
in bamboo baskets lined with
cabbage leaves helps them keep
their pleated shape without tear-
ing and renders the filling juicy
FOOD STYLING: RUTH BLACKBURN; PROP STYLING: CHRISTINE KEELYand the wrappers supple.