A Tale of the Ugly Dumplings

I decided to make mandu, Korean dumplings. They turned out very ugly but very scrumptious.

Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 lbs. ground pork
- 2 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 2 tsp. sesame oil
- 2 big cloves of garlic, minced
- a carrot, shredded or finely minced
- a few scallions, chopped
- some fresh chives, chopped
- a shallot, minced
- fresh ginger, shredded or minced
- vegetable oil for frying
- won-ton wrappers

First, turn on some nice music, preferably something calming. You are going to be spending some time doing this.

Ok, then, heat your wok, add a little bit of oil, then the ginger, some of the minced garlic, and the shallots. Saute your carrots, about 2 minutes (just to soften them). (Look! I found YELLOW (!!!) carrots at Whole Foods!)

Dump the garlicky carrots into the ground pork. Add soy sauce, oyster sauce (omg, that is pungent), sesame oil, the rest of the garlic, soy sauce, chives, and chopped scallions. Mix this up and let it marinate (I believe I let mine marinate for 45 minutes.)

Then, you fill your lazy-person, pre-made won-ton wraps up. Put a little meat in the center of the wrap, and press the edges together. Some people are very good at this and can do all sorts of fancy shapes and folds. Good for them. (Harumph.) I can assure you that your dumplings will be yummy no matter what they look like.

Heat wok, add a generous amount of oil, and when the oil is hot, fry your dumplings. Drain on a paper towel, and enjoy! (I also dropped some of mine into a boiling pot of mild-brothed soup, along with a handful of spinach - see first pic).

For a dipping sauce, I combined some light soy sauce, a tiny bit of chili oil, rice vinegar, and a drop or two of sesame oil. Topped it with toasted sesame seeds and chopped scallions.

NOM NOM NOM NOM NOMMMMMMM!