How to Make Siomai

Siomai also called pork dumpling is a tasty Chinese dumpling that is now popular for many Filipinos. Because of its unique taste and one of the easiest to make, siomai has become one of the booming food cart businesses in the country.

Siomai has a lot of variations and you can make your own homemade siomai like fish siomai, chicken siomai and beef siomai among others. The secret in having a soft, tasty siomai is that the ground meat should have some fat otherwise the cooked siomai will be too tough. Prawns or shrimps can be substituted for part of the pork if desired. But if anyone has shellfish allergy or any type of fish allergy, you should avoid it.

Siomai is commonly eaten with a dip composed of a mix of soy sauce, calamansi extract, and chili sauce. The “Original Siomai sa Tisa”, one of my favorite, is very popular in Cebu, it comes with a siomai chili sauce, which has a spicy flavor that complements the dish, partnered with puso (hanging rice) and soft drink.

Do you know how to make siomai? Try these siomai recipes:

Siomai Recipe

Ingredients:

1 kg ground pork (suggested proportion of fat to lean meat is 1:3)
1/3 cup chopped water chestnuts or turnips (singkamas)
3/4 cup chopped carrots
2 tbsp or 4 cloves minced garlic
2 medium or 1 large minced onion(s)
bunch of spring onions or leeks
1 egg
5 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon salt
5 g seasonings
50 pcs. large or 100 pcs. small wanton or siomai wrapper
Soy sauce, calamansi (lemon or kumquats), sesame oil and chilli paste (for the sauce)

Siomai Cooking Instructions:

– Mix all the ingredients for the filling in a bowl.
– Arrange 10 wrappers in a tray, and weigh 100 g of siomai mixture. Place 2 tsp of meat in each wrapper until nothing is left unfilled. Each wrapper will have 10 grams of siomai.
– To enclose, gather up the edges of the wrapper and gently fold it so that it forms a basket shape, with the top of the filling exposed. Press lightly as you pleat each side. Or, if you don’t want to expose the filling, use a bigger wrapper. Do the same to the remaining meat mixture.
– Meanwhile, boil water and brush steamer with oil.
– When the water gets to a rolling boil, arrange the siomai in the steamer and let stand for 15-20 minutes, longer for larger pieces.
– Serve with soy sauce, calamansi and sesame oil. Chilli paste is optional.

Chili Sauce for Siomai:

– 1/8 kilo Chillies (Siling Labuyo)
– 3 tablespoons cooking oil
– 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
– dried shrimp or meat finely chopped or grind (Adds more flavor but optional)

Siomai Chilli Sauce Cooking Instruction:

– Combine chopped chillies, dried shrimp or meat and minced garlic then simmer for around 20 minutes or till most of the water has evaporated. Add oil, simmer and stir well.

Put your cooked Siomai in a nice packaging when planning to sell it. Siomai can be marketed in schools, offices, or to your neighbors.

Chicken Siomai (Steamed Dumplings) Recipe

Ingredients:
½ kilo ground chicken breasts
½ kilo prawns (optional)
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
Siomai wrapper
4 tablespoons bread crumbs
Salt & pepper

Sauce:
– 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
– 4 tablespoons dark soy sauce
– 1 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)

Procedure:

Chop finely half of the prawns and set aside the other half. In a mixing bowl, mix ground chicken and finely chopped prawns, add light and dark soy sauce, bread crumbs and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Separate siomai wrappers individually. Place ½ teaspoon in the center of each wrapper; pat the area surrounding the meat with water; bring the sides of the wrapper up over the meat mixture and press the sides together leaving using your fingertips leaving the meat exposed. Flatten the bottom part by tapping slowly on a plate for the siomai to stand on its own. Repeat the wrapping procedure until done and ready to cook.

Line a bamboo steamer with strips of banana leaves and grease with very minimal oil. Arrange the siomai into the steamer. Boil 2 cups of water in a pan with a rim that perfectly fits into the steamer. Simmer for 20 minutes. Serve siomai immediately with soy sauce.

Sources: pinoyrecipe.net, thekitchenjournal.blogspot.com.
Photo: pinoycravings.com