Dodo Gizzard Dumplings

This recipe has been on my mind since last year but the perfect time to execute never came. Today I finally felt ready. It is very simple but the creative direction needed to make sense to me. I needed to evaluate if it would be well received and all that jazz. I can’t say for sure that it will be well received but I hope it at least piques your interest and you decide to experiment with it this weekend.

Steamed dumplings are one of my favourite appetizers off the Chinese menu. I do not care too much for the fried version, they seem to oily for me but the steamed version mmmm *rubs belly* especially with a spicy sauce to make it interesting. That is exactly what I did to mine. Instead of making the dodo gizzard spicy, I decided to save that for the sauce to go with it. I made everyone in my house try it and they were asking for more. It may seem like a longer process especially because of the dumpling wrappers, but it is so worth it especially when you are expecting visitors. You can also make the dodo gizzard dumplings and save in the freezer and steam them when you are ready. Hope you try the recipe and send us pictures on our social media accounts. 

Recipe for Dodo Gizzard Dumplings

Ingredients (makes about 12-15 dumplings)

1 cup of flour

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/3 cup of water

1/2 ripe plantain

1 cup of gizzard

1 cup of chopped bell peppers (red, green, yellow)

A handful of chopped red onions

Seasoning cubes

1 cooking spoon of blended tomato-pepper mix

1 clove of garlic

1/2 cooking spoon of Vegetable Oil

Method

Dumpling wrappers

In a bowl, mix the flour and salt and slowly pour in the water and combine till a dough is formed. Do not pour in all the water at once so the dough can form better.

Knead the dough for about 5 minutes and allow to rest for 20 minutes either in the fridge or on your kitchen counter.

Cut the dough into half and knead on a floured surface then with a rolling pin, roll out the dough as thinly as possible. 

Using a small circular object, make circles with the rolled out dough and set aside and individually roll out those circles till they are thinner and set aside.

Dodo Gizzard

Season and boil the gizzard till soft. Cube and fry the plantain till golden brown. Chop both the gizzard and plantain into smaller pieces so they can fit in the dumpling wrapper.

In a small pot, heat up the oil and stir fry the onions and chopped bell peppers. Add the blended tomato mix, season and stir in the plantain and gizzard and set aside.

At this time, bring out the dumpling wrappers, scoop a little dodo gizzard into the wrapper and fold into the dumpling shape. Pinch the edges to make sure they are secure.

In a steamer or a sieve over a pot, steam the dumplings for 8- 10 minutes and serve immediately with a pepper garlic sauce.