As with making traditional french onion soup, the secret to perfect, melt in your mouth onions is time. By letting them simmer in beef stock, herbs and spices for 45-60 minutes, the onions soak up all the flavor and liquid, making them tender and savory.
As for preparing the dumplings, although this was my first time making them from scratch, much to my surprise and delight, they were incredibly easy to make and turned out just as pretty as the ones you see at dim sum (or the frozen ones you get from Costco). Follow these steps for perfect dumplings every time:
- Place no more than 2 teaspoons of filling in the center of the dumpling wrapper. Adding more than this amount will make the dumpling difficult to seal completely and if you’re cooking with meat, it will take longer to cook.
- Brush the edges of the dumpling wrapper with a whisked egg before folding in half. Doing so will help you seal the dumpling tightly and keep it from falling apart while cooking.
- Make “z” shaped pinches along the top of the dumpling. Start by making one pinch in the center of the dumpling and hold down the pinch for 5 seconds. Make additional pinches along the sides, holding down each pinch for 5 seconds as you go.
Finally, when you’re ready to cook your dumplings, first sear them in a nonstick pan until the bottoms are golden brown. This will prevent the bottoms from becoming soggy and breaking apart. After the bottoms are seared, add water to your pot to steam the dumplings. Make sure the amount of water you put in the pot doesn’t touch the seams of the dumplings, only touching the about 1/4 inch of the dumplings.
French Onion Soup Dumplings
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 cups sliced onions
- 2 cups beef broth
- 10 sage leaves
- 1 tbsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 24 dumpling wrappers
- 1 egg whisked
- 1 cup gruyere cheese shredded
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup water
- chives chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Melt butter in a saute pan. Saute onions in butter until glossy and translucent, but still firm.
- Add beef broth, sage leaves, pepper, and salt. Simmer covered on low to medium heat for at least 40 minutes, until all liquid has evaporated. Remove caramelized onions from heat.
- Whisk one egg in a bowl. Set aside.
- To prepare the dumplings, place 1 tsp of onions and 1 tsp of shredded gruyere cheese in the center of the dumpling wrapper. Use your finger to brush egg along the edges of the wrapper. Fold wrapper in half, pinch "z" shapes along the top of the dumpling and press down the edges for 5 seconds.
- Heat a nonstick pot with vegetable oil. Sear dumplings on high heat until the bottoms become golden brown, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add in water and cover pot with lid. Cook for 3-5 minute until liquid is complete drained.
- Remove dumplings from pot and garnish with chopped chives and additional cheese.
Notes
Make sure dumpling wrappers are thawed, if frozen, before preparing dumplings.
