tofu dumplings with brussel sprouts...and love.

so, i've never made dumplings before, i've never liked fried food, and i don't have a steamer...but hey! after a couple of very strong homebrewed beers (a yummy baltic porter, courtesy of a brewer friend), anything seems pretty do-able. plus, i've had a couple of blocks of tofu, wonton wrappers, and frozen brussel sprouts in my fridge for a while now, so i decided to hit up the korean grocery/fish market on the corner for ginger and scallions, and give it a shot. (note on small, ethnic grocery stores: they are the best. everything is always cheaper, and often in small, cooking-for-one friendly packaging. i go a lot to this fish market, although never to buy the fish, which always seems like a gamble. there's also a mexican grocery which i've yet to try, but plan on going to, to hunt down some masa for tamales. stay tuned.)

i've kind of taken the general thrust of technique for the dumplings from this blog, which also makes me want to try other japanese-inspired dishes. the brussel sprouts are inspired by this heidi swanson recipe. (if i could kill anyone for the purpose of stealing their life, mr.ripley style, it would be swanson: foodie, photographer, and general bad ass. wow i hope i don't get in trouble for putting that on the internet). since, like i said, i don't have a steamer, i decided to go with lightly frying the little suckers, but you could probably use the same ingredients, but sautée the filling first, and then steam them.

tofu dumplings with brussel sprouts...and love


wanton skins
a mess o' brussel sprouts (try to use fresh, but frozen will do)
2 blocks extra firm tofu, drained
2 eggs
1/2 cup edamame
a medium bundle of scallions, chopped
a large bulb of ginger, grated
lots of minced garlic
salt, sugar, red pepper flakes
sesame oil
canola oil
a lime or two

brussel sprouts:
shred the brussel sprouts and sautée in sesame oil with ginger, garlic, salt, and red pepper to taste. don't overcook them: you want them to be brightly colored, and kind of flexible, but not yellow or droopy. squirt some lime juice on in the last minute or so, if you want.


dumplings:
process the tofu and eggs to a creamy mixture, then blend in the edamame, scallions, ginger, garlic, salt and sugar.i put some lime juice in, but i'm not sure it actually came through in the end...
i'm a big believer in the phrase "to taste"...how much of everything is in there will depend on what you like. this is only partly because i am too lazy to measure things (so go ahead, taste it...no, i don't care that there are raw eggs. sack up, scooter).


take wanton skins and moisten the edges with your finger, dipped in water. put about a teaspoon of the tofu mush in, and fold it over, so that there is still a border of damp wanton visible. fold the border back over to close, and moisten the whole edge to seal (see below).



heat some canola oil in a frying pan. fry each dumpling until golden brown, flipping each half way through to cook on both sides. do not walk away from the stove to pour yourself another beer in the middle of your second batch.

let the fried dumplings cool/drain a bit, then serve on top of the brussel sprouts.