Chicken, spinach and coriander dumplings with honey soy

Dumplings are so easy to make once you’ve mastered the art of folding the dumpling skin! They can be frozen after Step 8, just make sure you freeze them separately on trays and once frozen, pop them into an airtight bag. They can be cooked straight from frozen.

Fresh from the garden: baby spinach, coriander, spring onions, ginger, garlic
Recipe source: Melissa from The Bondi Cook
Makes: 40 dumplings

What to do:
For the filling

1. Wash the coriander in a big bowl of cold water and spin dry. Finely chop the stalks and leaves.
2. Wash and spin dry the spinach and finely chop.
3. Wash the spring onions and finely slice.
4. Peel the skin from the ginger and finely chop or grate with the microplane zester.
5. Combine them all into the bowl of the food processor, weigh the mince and add in and then measure in the rest of the ingredients. Blitz for a few seconds to combine thoroughly. Scoop out into a large bowl, using a spatula to scrape down the sides.

Preparing the dumplings

1. Fill a small bowl with clean water and make sure your hands are clean. Wipe down and dry your work surface. Lightly flour a large baking tray with cornflour. Open the packet of wonton wrappers and peel off one per person and lay it on the surface in front of you.
2. Place a large teaspoon of filling in the centre of each wrapper and moisten the edges with a finger dipped in water. Fold the dough in half and pinch together with your fingers.
3. Pleat around the edge, pinching with your fingers to seal well. The dumpling should look like a small Cornish pasty with a flat base and rounded top.
4. Transfer each finished dumpling to the tray and keep it covered until you have stuffed all the dumplings in this way.

To make the sauce

1. Peel the garlic and squeeze through the garlic press into the small saucepan.
2. Peel the ginger using a potato peeler and zest into the saucepan using the microplane grater.
3. Wash the coriander well and spin dry. Finely chop stalks and leaves and reserve.
4. Heat the saucepan with garlic and ginger and a tablespoon of oil, on low heat and gently cook the garlic and ginger until soft. Do not let them go brown! Add in the honey and let cook until bubbling, and then add in the soy sauce and cook for another minute.
5. Add in the chopped coriander and pour into small serving bowls to dip.

To cook

1. Heat a large non-stick frying pan until it is very hot. Add the oil and place the dumplings flat-side down into the pan.
2. Reduce the heat and cook for about two minutes until they are lightly browned. Add the water, cover the pan with the lid and simmer gently for about 10 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed. Check the water half-way through and add more if necessary. Uncover the pan and continue to cook for a further two minutes.

To serve

1. Divide the dumplings onto serving plates and serve with dipping sauce in a bowl on the side.

Notes: Why is it important not to lick your fingers while preparing this recipe? What others fillings could we put in a dumpling?