Seasoning

We went to Ottawa last week for my birthday and we had lunch at a little place in the market called Soup dumpling Co. Naturally we ordered a couple of baskets of steamed dumplings although we both prefer fried dumplings. Of course they were delicious— but messy. They have written instructions on the table on how to eat them, which is cute but not necessary. They are hot when you bite into them and you’re likely to burn your lip a little while the soup dribbles out, but we did enjoy them. It’s always smart to order what a restaurant does best. When I got back to the hotel I saw this dumpling lasagne on Instagram and I thought it looked delicious and made it for dinner when I got home. It’s basically just a deconstructed soup dumpling; you can make individual ones in ramekins or a big one like I did. I knew it would be good but didn’t expect the response it got. We inhaled the whole pan, three of us, and my son was still talking about it days later. I had a whole package of wonton wrappers; I couldn’t find any dumpling wrappers, so instead of freezing them I made another pan using pork and shrimp, which is a favourite dumpling filling. I will definitely be making it again and it seems everyone was making it on Instagram this week. For a good reason; it’s easy, fast and super yummy.

Viral soup dumpling lasagne
1 lb. ground pork
1 cup finely chopped cabbage
1 cup diced oyster mushrooms
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon chili crisp
1 tablespoon Sherry
1/4 cup vegetable stock or water
1 package wonton wrappers
Black or white sesame seeds

Combine pork with cabbage, mushrooms, garlic, green onions, ginger, soy, sesame oil, chili crisp, and sherry until well mixed. Set aside. Spread sesame oil on bottom of 8- or 9-in square pan. Fill a small bowl with water. Dip your wrapper in the water, shake off excess and line bottom of pan to make a single layer. Spread half of pork mixture on top and repeat with another layer of dipped wrappers. Spread remaining pork on top and then another layer of wrappers. Pour vegetable stock or water over top and put dish in a bigger pot with lid. Fill bottom with water to come halfway up the sides of baking dish.

Cover with lid; bring to boil stovetop and then turn down to medium so it is just nicely simmering. Steam lasagne for 30-40 minutes until filling is cooked through and hot. Remove pan from water, drizzle top with soy sauce, chilli crisp or chili oil, green onions and sesame seeds.

Makes 4 servings.