The Chinese Cooking Workshop

Originally posted 25th February 2015

Chinese Cooking Workshop

I arrived late for my first class to learn how to make dim sum at the Chinese Cooking Workshop.  It would have helped if I had written down the building number as well as the intricate map I had copied from the internet.  The Shanghai map on my phone is not very accurate, so I prefer to draw out a map for myself from the internet when I'm trying to find somewhere, but it's a bit hit and miss.  Anyway I eventually found the Chinese Cooking Workshop at No.2 Dongping

Classroom at the Chinese Cooking Workshop

Road, by Hengshan Road with a little help and although I was 20 minutes late I was accommodated fairly easily and caught up with the others in the classroom in the glasshouse where a number of steel-topped workbenches were arranged.

I was there to learn to make Green Onion Flavoured Pancakes and Pumpkin Dumplings.  First of all the pancakes.  Starting with a mound of wheat flour, I made a hole with my fingers down to the work surface, big enough to accommodate

Lard, sausage, spring onions and seasoning

60ml water at 60°C and with a moat drawn around the hole to catch any wayward water.  This was then worked into a dough with a plastic dough cutter and my hand.  The fillings were then mixed together in a small bowl with a wooden spatula -  spoonfuls of chopped lard, sausage, spring onion and salt & pepper and then set to one side.  Returning to the dough, this was rolled out, and worked into 6 balls.  Each ball was then rolled out individually, the stuffing mix placed on the dough and the

Rolled pancake dough

dough was then rolled up on the cross.  This fat cigar was then rolled in on itself to make snails, the end stretch and tucked underneath, oiled on each side and then left in an oiled, covered dish to rest.  We returned to these pancakes later on in the session and taking each one in turn, flattened them slightly and then very gently rolled them out on an oiled surface.  They were then fried on both sides, and eaten gustily at the final tasting.

 

Cooked pumpkin

To make the dumplings, mixed flour containing sticky rice flour, wheat flour, rice flour and sugar was mixed with cooked pumpkin and a little pumpkin juice and worked to make a yellow dough.  Red bean paste was used as the filling in, and for the decoration on, these so 12 filling balls and 12 tiny tear drops were rolled from the paste.  12 further balls were made from the worked yellow dough, each one was then made into a cup to hold one of the larger paste balls, and then worked around dark brown the filling to fully enclose it and

Red bean paste

rolled in the hands until spherical.  It was then scored with the dough cutter and a dimple made in the top to receive the bean paste tear drop.  The balls were then placed in a bamboo steamer and cooked for 7-8 mins.  These are sweet dessert dumplings, sticky and delicious.

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Class members

I haven't had a cookery lesson since Miss Roundhill's class when I was 13 years old.  But I enjoyed myself, and it was good to meet my fellow cooks, a charming young man from Toulouse, two girls from Hong Kong and a couple of ladies from Shanghai.   I expect I shall be going back some day soon for some further lessons.

Moi

My pancakes and pumpkin dumplings