Sesame Ginger Dumplings

We have jsut returned from a westward vacation, which involved driving long distances in the winter. Always a bit of a crap shoot and while it was not without a bit of nail biting, it went well. The highlight was seeing friends, and cooking with them. We spent much of our time assembling furniture for a new house we had gotten, and this is one of the memorable dishes we had. I highly recommend this! pound ground chicken or pork 2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger 1 clove garlic, minced or grated 2 cups roughly chopped spinach or bok choy 2 tablespoons plus, 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce or tamari Black pepper 24-26 round dumpling or wonton wrappers 1/4 cup plus, 1 tablespoon raw sesame seeds 3-4 medium shallots, thinly sliced 3 cups low sodium chicken broth 2 tablespoons rice vinegar 5 tablespoons sesame or olive oil 1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced or smashed The wrappers should be round--either dumpling or wonton wrappers will do. Make the filling. It’s very simple but very good. Just some fresh ginger and garlic mixed with ground pork or chicken and chopped greens of some sort. Add a bit of soy sauce for saltiness, and a pinch of pepper for a little kick. Assembly is not hard. You can also fold the dough into half-moons or gather them up into a knot top. Either way, it’s an easy process. Just spoon the filling into the center of your dumpling wrapper, then lift the edges of the dough up and over the filling, pinching at the top to seal. Don’t stress about making these look perfect. Finally, brush the bottom of each dumping with water and coat in sesame seeds. The crispy sesame seeds on the bottom are delicious. Before you start cooking the dumplings, make that spicy, gingery broth. The key to this is caramelizing the shallots. They add so much flavor and make the broth feel rich and indulgent. Let the broth simmer while you cook the dumplings. Pan-fry them, then add water to steam and finish cooking them. It can be a little messy of a process, but it’s pretty easy. Once the water evaporates, I like to leave the dumplings on the pan another minute to allow the bottoms to get crispy again. When pan-frying/steaming, it’s important to note that the pan will splatter when you add the water. So please be careful and stand back when doing so. Last thing is to toss the Panko breadcrumbs and thinly sliced garlic into the skillet and let them get nice and crispy with some chili flakes. To serve, I like to arrange the dumplings in low bowls, spoon the steaming broth over, then top with that crispy garlic plus fresh green onions