There are many people around the world that transform making dumplings from “just cooking” category into “an art”. I am not the one of them. I just love food… and I am a mother.

So if you are a mom for sure you know that feeling when after many food fails finely the kids say: “Nice. I want more” and this is the MOMENT OF GLORY. You become a machine and cook, cook and cook.

If you don’t have kids just imagine that there is the most demanding food critic in your kitchen and you have to impress him/her. So when even a smile of this person make you feel like in HEAVEN.

THIS IS THAT MOMENT AND THAT DISH!

I am HAPPY!

Dumplings with meat

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 350 g all purpose flour
• 170 ml warm water
• 1 egg + 1 more for brushing
• 1 tsp salt

Filling:

• 300 g chicken breasts
• 200 g minced beef
• 50 ml full fat milk
• 1/4 onion (ab. 50 g)
• Salt, pepper

Cooking method:

1. For dough: sift the flour, mix it with salt. Make a hole in the flour and add egg and warm water (around 40 C). Mix first by spoon, and then by hands.

2. Knead the dough till it becomes non-sticky, silky and elastic (I don’t use extra flour while kneading). Cover it by the kitchen towel and leave for 4o min in the fridge to activate the gluten.

3. Meanwhile prepare the filling. Mix chicken and beef in the mixer, add diced onion, salt, pepper and milk. I used mixer as I was in hurry but better consistency and taste can be achieved if using meat grinder – the filling will be softer and juicier.

4. Once the filling is done put it out from the mixer to a bowl and keep it in room temperature until the dough is ready.

5. Making dumplings.

There are many ways to make dumplings. But I use the one which works for me the best. It is my friend Zaytuna who showed me this very easy, simple and clean way – making a big dough roll and cutting the circles. No more dough pieces around, rolling the dough and flouring floor! You can stop making dumplings any moment without the mess around.

So, few easy steps: make a huge dough sausage with diameter around 3,5 cm for big dumplings (easy and faster to make) or 2,5 cm for smaller one with kids-friendly size. Slice it gradually on the circles of 0,5 cm wide. Don’t cut to many as they can stick together. Cover the roll by wet towel to avoid dryness.

6. Using a small rolling pin to roll each piece (just two movements) to make it double- sized.

7. Whisk an extra egg in a separate utensil (I use a jar that make it easy for storage). This egg works as a concrete for dumplings’ edges (to avoid their opening during the cooking in water).

8. There are so many types of dumplings around the world and even more ways of wrapping them. All start more or less the same – we put the filling on the dough circle. Then – please choose your favorite one: chinese, russian, polish, vietnamese, italian, etc.

9. I use the wrapping way that our kids like most of all. After all I make the dumplings for kids. So the shape is a half of moon: put the filling inside the dough circle, apply a little of egg on the one edge and stick both edges together.

Totally I’ve made 16 big dumplings (17 g each) and 51 small ones (11 g each). It is 833 g together. Not bad for 2 hours. More practice and I will manage to make all these shapes that YouTube spreading around the chefs and not only.