GAMBLER'S LUCKY DAY DUMPLINGS

Gambler's Lucky Day Dumplings image

For Lunar New Year, we would always eat dumplings for good luck. It is said the more dumplings you eat, the wealthier you will be for the rest of the year! The flavors of these prime short rib and butternut squash dumplings stem from the traditional Vietnamese beef stew: bo kho. The stew is perfect to eat alone, but this fun twist on the traditional recipe turns it into dumplings and gets the entire family involved.

Provided by Food Network

Time 5h45m

Yield 50 to 54 dumplings

Number Of Ingredients 30

Ingredients

6 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup chopped shallot (1/2 medium shallot)
3 tablespoons tomato paste, such as Hunt's
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon mushroom powder
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 tablespoon chopped garlic (3 to 4 cloves)
2 pounds Wagyu or prime short ribs, bone-in preferred, trimmed and cut into 6-ounce portions (generally 1.5 inches high by 3.5 inches long), silver skin and excess fat removed
1/2 cup olive oil
Two 12-ounce cans coconut soda, such as Coco Rico
1 quart chicken stock
2 cups tomato sauce, such as Hunt's
8 star anise
8 black peppercorns
6 stalks lemongrass, trimmed and smashed
4 large carrots, chopped
Kosher salt
1 1/2 cups peeled and medium diced butternut squash (about 10 ounces)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup heavy cream, warm
2 large eggs, beaten, for the egg wash
1 package (50 to 54 wrappers) round gyoza skins
About 2 tablespoons olive oil
Micro cilantro, for serving
Chili sauce, such as Umamei or Drip, for serving
Edible gold leaf, for serving

Steps:

For the short ribs and marinade: Mix together the cornstarch, shallots, tomato paste, salt, mushroom powder, black pepper, paprika, Chinese five-spice and garlic in a large bowl. Toss the ribs with the paste and marinate for 1 hour, covered, in the refrigerator.
For the braise: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat with the olive oil. Add the ribs, in batches if necessary, and sear until golden brown on all sides, about 12 minutes. Add the coconut soda, chicken stock, tomato sauce, star anise, peppercorns, lemongrass, carrots and excess marinade paste and bring to a boil.
Cover, transfer to the oven and cook until the meat is tender, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Strain the sauce and reserve the ribs in the sauce. Let cool, then hand-shred the meat from the ribs. Set the meat aside and keep the sauce warm.
For the butternut squash puree: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Toss the butternut squash with the olive oil, salt and cumin. Add the squash to a baking sheet and cook until completely fork-tender, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer to a blender with the cream and puree until completely smooth.
For the dumplings: In a mixing bowl, combine the short ribs and butternut squash and season with any additional salt to taste. Reserve in a bowl over ice.
With a small brush, paint the egg wash over each dumpling skin, fill with a heaping teaspoon of the short rib and squash mix and create a dumpling by folding 5 pleats towards the center, making a pleat every 1/4 inch.
In a large nonstick sauté pan over medium heat, add 2 teaspoons of the olive oil. Add the dumplings in batches and sear the bottoms until brown, about 1 minute. Add enough water to cover the dumplings one-quarter of the way up or enough to steam the dumplings to cook them through. Cover with a lid and steam until cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the dumplings and reserve. Repeat with the remaining dumplings.
To assemble: Pour the warm braise sauce on a plate, add the dumplings and garnish with micro cilantro, chili sauce such as Umamei or Drip and edible gold leaf for good luck!