Siu mai – an iconic yum cha dish. Growing up, I remember braving the long lines on Sunday mornings, once a month for these bad boys; they were definitely a must-order. We would always order multiple baskets because they go down fast in my family.

If you’re tired of the long lines and are looking to spend quality time with your family and friends, the Siu Mai Sunday makes for the perfect weekend activity. Don’t worry, ugly or not, these tiny dumplings are super delicious.

Understanding Your Components

Filling: The success of siu mai relies heavily on proper filling preparation

• Fatty pork provides juiciness. Highly recommend you to buy pork mince with a high fat content. Lean mince will lead to a drier siu mai
• Prawns add sweetness and bounce.
• Mushrooms create umami depth
• Seasonings must be balanced
• Cornstarch helps to bind everything together and prevents the mixture from being watery
• Texture should be bouncy and in order to achieve this, you really need to work your paste. Stir vigorously to create a really sticky and bouncy paste.

Wrappers:

• They are essentially wonton wrappers that you can buy from Asian grocery stores. Some big supermarkets do stock them nowadays.
• Be patient with your pleating, it takes practice and time!
• Water helps to seal edges

Tips

• Chop your prawns instead of mincing it for better texture.
• To make sure your filling is properly seasoning, you could panfry a little bit to taste test.
• Keep wonton wrappers covered to prevent them from drying out.
• Steam in batches and serve immediately

Storage and Make-Ahead Tips

• Can make filling day ahead and keep refrigerated
• Wrapped siu mais can freeze for up to 3 months. Space them out so that they don’t stick and once frozen, you can put them all in a bag in the freezer. No need to thaw, just steam straight away when you’re ready to consume. Might just take a bit longer to cook.
• Garnish after steaming

Ingredients

400g fatty pork mince (don’t use lean)

250g prawns, peeled, deveined & diced

4 dried shiitake mushrooms, hydrated and diced

1 tbsp soy sauce

1tbsp oyster sauce

1tbsp cornstarch

1tsp sugar

1tsp pepper

2tsp sesame oil

Wonton wrappers

Salt to taste

Tobiko/caviar to garnish

You definitely don’t have to go boujee like I did with the caviar. It’s typically tobiko which I couldn’t find at the time and they will do just fine!

Method

1. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients except the wonton wrappers and caviar. 

2. Make a 👌 with your fingers and place a wonton wrapper on top. Spoon in a generous amount of mixture on top of the wrapper and with a spoon, gentle push the mixture and let the wonton wrapper sink inbetween your fingers. Use water and brush it against the wrapper to hold down any excess flaps. Repeat to use up all the mixture

3. You have 2 options: top your siu mais with tobiko/caviar now and steam or after they are done steaming. 

4. Steam the siu mai for 8-10 minutes or until the mixture is cooked through. Serve with chilli oil