Gluten-Free XO Stir-Fried Rice Cakes
soft and chewy rice cakes are decadently coated in umami-rich xo sauce made from dried seafood, shallots, garlic, and chilis. tossed with ground pork, shrimp and greens, this dish makes for a quick and texturally satisfying meal.
note - not all xo sauces are gluten-free so make sure to read the labels!
Read MoreMama Lo's Watercress Dumplings for Dump The Hate
join me in fighting against anti-asian racism and violence with my #dumpthehate campaign!
these gluten-free crystal dumplings are stuffed with my mom’s classic filling of pork and watercress and can be made vegan with the use of meatless ground round (beyond or Impossible ‘meat’ work great).
the gluten-free dough may take a bit of practice to master, but once you get a feel for it, these will be your favourite dumplings! they’re delicate and chewy, and crisp up beautifully when fried. when assembling, err on the side of drier dough and only add water as needed. feel free to use pre-made wrappers if you do not have a gluten intolerance.
these dumplings can be eaten steamed or fried and are best served with a vinegary-soy dipping sauce!
Makes about 48 dumplings
Ingredients (Wrapper)
~ 1 1/2 cups water, as needed
1 1/4 cup tapioca starch
3/4 cup rice flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 cup glutinous rice flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsps. neutral cooking oiI, like canola or grapeseed
large ziplock bag
Ingredients (Mama Lo’s Watercress Filling)
4 garlic cloves, minced or grated
2-inches ginger, minced or grated
~1 lbs. ground meat (classic is pork) or meatless ground round
2 eggs, beaten (omit if making vegan)
2 tbsps. tamari
1 tbsp. gluten-free oyster sauce (or another 1/2 tbsp. tamari + 1/2 tbsp. brown sugar)
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 large handful watercress or spinach, thick stems removed, chopped
a handful of scallion greens or cilantro, chopped
few cracks of white or black pepper
2-3 tbsps. neutral cooking oil, like canola or grapeseed
Ingredients (Dipping Sauce)
combo of any of the following -
tamari
black vinegar or rice vinegar
chili crisp or sambal oelek
sesame oil
cilantro and/or scallion greens
Instructions
In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together tapioca starch, rice flour, glutinous rice flour, salt and oil until evenly combined.
Stabilize your bowl with a damp rag and slowly pour in a steady stream of boiled water as you mix with a wooden spoon. Use water as needed. Once the consistency of the dough reaches a somewhat dry shaggy ball, stop adding water and switch to kneading with your hands. You’re looking for most of the dough to form into clumps, with some drier crumbs along the edges of the bowl. Incorporate these dry crumbs as you knead. Dust your hands with rice flour as needed. The dough should be goldilocks, not too dry and not too sticky similar to the consistency of play dough. It is much easier to add water than to fix a wet dough!
Knead dough in the bowl or on the counter for 2 solid minutes, pushing with your knuckles and pulling back with your fingers. Form into a smooth ball, wrap in plastic wrap and rest on the counter for 30 minutes with the bowl flipped upside down as a cover.
Meanwhile, combine all filling ingredients together in a mixing bowl and set aside.
Dust counter with rice flour. With a bench scraper, divide the dough into 48 even pieces (approximately 13-15 grams each) and form into rough spheres. Cover cut dough with a large bowl to prevent it from drying out as you make the wrappers. Cut two 6x6” squares from a large ziplock bag. Using a tortilla press, smush each sphere between the 2 squares of plastic to form circular wrappers. If you don’t have a tortilla press, use a rolling pin to roll out each sphere between the sheets of plastic until wrappers are 3-3.5” in diameter. If the dough is a bit sticky, dust with additional flour. Wrappers should be pliable and sturdy, not easily breakable.
Form dumplings. Add about 2 tsps. of filling per dumpling and fold in half. Press firmly but delicately along the edges to seal. Feel free to research dumpling folding methods if you want to get fancy with the folds :)
Steam dumplings in batches in a parchment-lined steamer basket for 6 minutes per round, making sure the dumplings have plenty of space between them so they don’t stick. Serve immediately out of the steamer basket or transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet drizzled with oil if refrigerating and reheating later. Cover sheet with plastic wrap. Reheat dumplings by steaming for 2-3 minutes. You may also freeze cooked dumplings on a parchment-lined baking sheet before transferring them into a ziplock bag. Just steam for a couple of minutes longer from frozen.
For crispy dumplings, fry in a bit of oil on medium heat until golden brown on both sides. Serve with your favourite mixture of dipping sauce!
Hong Kong Café Style Macaroni Soup
the word fusion may have fallen out of favour, but I love nothing more than when food sits at the intersection of two cultures, bringing different ideas and histories together, and bringing different people together. hong kong style cafes, or cha chaan tangs, are a beautiful example of intersectional cuisine at its homiest and most satisfying.
I have so many treasured memories of sneaking quiet afternoons at cha chaan tangs in toronto with my dad. ma may not have approved of the sugary drinks, buttery buns and white bread egg sandwiches, but it was always my decadent little haven with pa.
Read MoreSous-Vide Hainanese Chicken Rice
this is my homage to hainanese chicken rice. a ubiquitous dish found throughout parts of east and southeast asia, and a dish that hits close to home.
what I love about hainanese chicken rice is that it’s an incredibly simple dish. skin-on, bone-in chicken is poached in a ginger scallion broth until just cooked through. the broth is then used to cook rice, ‘cause that sh*t ain’t going to waste! the results are tender, succulent meat with glistening skin, paired with punchy dipping sauces and schmaltzy rice. it takes experience to master, but when done right, hainanese chicken rice can be utter perfection.
Read MoreGluten-Free Sichuanese Liang Mian (Noodles with Sesame Chili Dressing)
sichuanese cold noodles, known as liang mian, are zingy, fiery and packed with flave! they should really be called BIG FLAVOUR NOODLES as the sesame chili dressing leaves a party in your mouth after every bite.
I personally like to eat these noodles warm or at room temp, but if it’s a particularly hot day, you can refrigerate them for 20 minutes before consuming for a refreshingly punchy treat.
you can be pretty flexible with the additions in terms of vegetables and proteins, as the sesame chili dressing will enhance the flavour of just about anything.
Read MoreHomemade Gluten-Free Ramen Noodles
a pliable gluten-free pasta that’s transformed into ‘qq’ ramen noodles (with that delightful, toothsome bounce) by cooking them in baking soda water.
Read MoreRed Bean Date Balls
these red bean date balls (that taste like mochi filling!) are a delicious low sugar, high fibre snack that’ll keep you going throughout the week. once the beans are cooked, they come together in a snap and last about 5 days in the fridge.
Read MoreNicoise Chinoise
a classic nicoise salad with a not-so-classic dressing. it’s me, so I have to shake things up a bit.
Read MoreBeef Rendang
if you’ve never heard of beef rendang before, let me tell ya - it is going to blow your mind. originating from west sumatra in indonesia, this braised beef dish is simmered in an elixir of coconut milk, punchy aromatics, and fragrant spices until the concoction has reduced enough to fry itself again. yes, you read that right - the velvety and tender beef that took its sweet time to stew begins to fry itself in its own rendered fat and leaves you with an utterly unctuous and saucy beef that is so flavourful, you’ll want to cry. give yourself an afternoon for this one as it takes about 4 hours from start to finish.
Read MoreEasy Broiled Sichuan Green Beans
there’s just no way a home burner can get hot enough to produce restaurant-quality-sichuan-green-beans. having said that, there is a way to produce restaurant-quality-sichuan-green-beans with the use of your oven broiler! it’s fast, approachable, and even healthier since you’re using less oil. all you need to do is broil your green beans until blistered and charred, then toss them in a flavourful aromatic paste consisting of garlic, ginger, chili paste, along with the quintessential fermented black soybean. so much flavour for so little work. a great side for any occasion - I could crunch on these any day.
Read MoreGrilled Lamb Chops with Minty Nuoc Cham
another favourite from saigon star (see singaporean curry crab post), these grilled lamb chops are served with a minty, sweet, tangy, and punchy dipping sauce. you can definitely change up the protein here, but the classic mint-lamb combo is a classic for a reason as the vibrant mint marries well with the gaminess of lamb. serve as an app, or with some lettuce and rice vermicelli for a more substantial meal.
Read MoreGado Gado Bowl
one of the national dishes of indonesia, gado gado is a ‘mix mix’ of vegetables and rice in a thick peanut sauce. I like to use quinoa at times for a lighter option, but you can sub in other grains as well. you can also make it a heftier meal by adding traditional fixings like boiled eggs, tofu or tempeh. feel free to add whatever vegetable your heart desires as the peanut sauce goes well with just about everything.
Read MoreGluten-Free Dan Dan Mian
‘dan dan mian’, a symbol of sichuanese food, translates to ‘street vendor noodles’ or more literally to ‘carry carry noodles’ as this iconic bowl was sold off of bamboo shoulder poles back in the day.
consequently, it is not a soupy dish and relies on the incredibly savory ground pork for most of its flavour. these are the types of dishes that I want to make more accessible to reid as traditional restaurants will always make it the way its been made. with some minor tweaks to ingredients, asian dishes like this can easily be made gluten free.
we use soba king millet and brown rice noodles as they have the same ‘al dente’ springy texture as ramen.
you can sub the pork for ground round and the chicken stock for veg stock for a vegan version.
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