Dish of the week: Dumplings!

Although filled dumplings most probably evolved later on in Europe, the original theory narrates the story of a physician during the eastern Han dynasty named Zhang Zhongjing.  He returned to his ancestral village only to discover that his fellow citizens were suffering from frostbite, particularly around the ears due to lack of food and cold weather. Determined to help them, he cooked black peppers, lamb and medicinal herbs, shredded them and wrapped them in some dough shaped like ears, hence the origin of the name ‘jiao’er’ – tender ears. (although people now call them ‘jiazo’ or Gyoza in Japan). He served them boiled with a bowl of hot soup and miraculously, the frostbite disappeared. Since then, people began to imitate and alter Zhang’s recipe serving them to help celebrate Chinese New Year. Dumplings have evolved in the masses to include hundreds of different fillings and doughs across China, Japan and the rest of the globe. Good news though! Dumplings are not too hard to make. Here is a simple dumpling recipe for you to follow: