shrimp and vegetable shuumai :)

i go to philadelphia every year, and there is this restaurant called saigon maxim that serves dim sum. they roll around with their metal carts and point to cylinder containers filled with foods you've probably never seen in your life. from bbq chicken feet to sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves...yes, they have it all. but theres always that one cart that has pork shuumai...and shrimp shuumai. i never get the pork, so instead? the shrimp shuumai. one word: DELICIOUS. shrimp shuumai is the best, and healthiest type of dumpling ive EVER tasted. it was so light and full of flavor, and i literally have these once a year. craving them latley, i decided to make my own. i found a recipe online, but it used pork; i needed a substitute, so i used some fresh vegetables.

here is what i used to make them:
* 18 pieces of shrimp, peeled, head off
* 1 large portebella mushroom cap, finely chopped
* 2 T frozen or fresh corn, chopped small, not minced though
* 1 T shaoxing chinese wine
* 1 T sesame oil
* 1 T soy sauce
* salt & pepper
* 1 T chopped scallions (green onion)
* 2 T of white onion, finely chopped
* 1 small bag of "petite" or "baby" peas (frozen)

also, you'll need a steamer. i have a pot that came with a steamer seperate that i had to put on top, so i used that. i also used a cuisine art mini prep plus chop/grind machine (aka, food processor. but i dont call it that!). first, i used the chopping machine to finely chop the mushroom cap (of course, dont put the whole cap in the thing, you'll break it! chop it up into smaller pieces first) and i sauteed it and put it in a bowl. next, i chopped up the corn, then the added the scallions. next, i added the liquids; the sesame oil, shaoxing, and soy. after that, i chopped up my shrimp. now i chopped HALF with a KNIFE, so id have nice chunks of shrimp, then the other HALF i put in the chopping machine so it would be kind of a paste. with the shrimp, paste and chunks in a seperate bowl, i put the cornstarch in with the vegetables and liquids. you may need to add more than 2 T...depending on if the mixture isn't pastey enough. then i added the shrimp, mixed it in, and then the chopped onion.

i used dumpling wrappers, instead of shuumai skins because i couldnt find them. shuumai skins are square, and dumpling wrappers are in shapes of circles. with a spoon, place a spoonfull of the mixture into the middle of the dumpling skin. with your fingers, shape the skin around the mixture so that it can stand up on its own and place a pea in the middle. repeat.

oil the bottom of the steamer so it doesnt stick, and place 4-5 shuumai in at a time. steam for about 10 mins. repeat.