Shrimp Shumai

I still remember my first visit to a dim sum restaurant in New York’s Chinatown. My father and I sat—two of the only people in the room speaking English—and watched as a woman rolled a cart up to each table. The cart’s shelves were stacked with dumplings and buns of all shapes and sizes, plus other small bites like boneless spare ribs. To order, customers pointed at the things they wanted to eat.

The dish I’ll never forget from that day was a dumpling called pork and shrimp shumai; I liked it so much that I created this recipe to bring the flavors home to my own kitchen. This shumai recipe includes water chestnuts for crunch, and is flavored with soy, ginger and garlic. The plump dumplings are easy to put together and feature a pleated top that shows off the filling.

What is shumai?

Shumai (there are many alternate transliterations, including siu mai) originated in northern China, and eventually spread across the country and the continent, with various regions developing their own unique fillings. The dumplings are most often stuffed with mutton, pork or a combination of pork and shrimp. The filling is flavored with soy sauce, rice wine, vinegar, sesame, garlic and ginger, and may include other ingredients such as scallion, shiitake mushroom and carrot. Shumai are typically made with round wrappers, pleated at the top so the filling is visible.

If you have a bamboo steamer, you’ll want to use it for this recipe. If not, no worries—there’s more than one way to steam a dumpling.

Shrimp Shumai Ingredients

• Shrimp: For this recipe, look for fresh or frozen raw shrimp that have no added chemicals. If they aren’t already deveined and peeled, clean the shrimp. I prefer to use frozen shrimp after letting them thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
• Water chestnuts: Canned water chestnuts give the dumpling filling some crunch. You’ll have leftovers after making this recipe, so here’s what to do with extra water chestnuts.
• Dumpling wrappers: Look for a wrapper that’s fairly thin. The ideal wrappers for shumai are round, but it’s no problem to buy square wrappers—like wonton wrappers—and trim off the corners.
• Ginger: Gingerroot is a tropical rhizome with a zesty, refreshing flavor. Don’t be afraid to buy a whole hand—that’s what a big hunk of fresh ginger is called—because you can store ginger for a long time.
• Garlic: For this recipe, either mince the garlic or grate it with a Microplane zester.
• Soy sauce: Fermented soy sauce brings umami to the shrimp shumai filling and the dipping sauce. If you prefer the flavor of tamari (I do!), use that instead.
• Mirin or Shaoxing wine: Shaoxing is a rice-based sweetened cooking wine from China, and mirin is a similar ingredient from Japan that’s easier to find in American grocery stores. Either can be used in this recipe, but it’s also fine to omit the wine.
• Rice wine vinegar: Made from fermented rice wine, this vinegar brings a clean, acidic taste to foods from various Asian cuisines. It’s also an important ingredient when preparing sushi rice.
• Sesame oil: Just a bit of sesame oil adds a rich, nutty taste to the shrimp filling. Look for the flavorful toasted version.
• Cornstarch: Flavorless cornstarch is used as a thickener, there to help hold your shumai filling together.

Directions

Step 1: Make the marinade

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In a large bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, mirin (if desired), salt and pepper. Gradually whisk in the cornstarch.

Step 2: Add the main ingredients

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Add the ginger, garlic, water chestnut and shrimp to the marinade. Stir until the filling texture becomes slightly sticky, about five minutes. The goal is to make a filling that’s somewhat sticky, so it holds together inside the dumpling wrapper.

Editor’s Tip: While it’s traditional to use a pair of chopsticks and stir only in one direction, you can use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment to combine the ingredients, or very briefly pulse the mixture in a food processor.

Step 3: Make the dumplings

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Place 1 scant tablespoon of the shrimp mixture in the center of a wonton wrapper. (Keep the remaining wrappers covered with a damp paper towel until you’re ready to use them.) Moisten the edge with water. Place the wrapper with filling into your non-dominant hand. Close your hand slightly to form a cup shape. Using your dominant hand, add pleats to hold the cup shape, leaving 1 inch open across the top to show the filling. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling, placing the completed dumplings on the parchment sheet.

Editor’s Tip: It’s best to prepare your workspace before diving in. If your dumpling wrappers are square, trim off the corners to make them circles. Cover the pile of wrappers with a lightly dampened cloth. Put a bit of warm water in a bowl, and grab a spoon to scoop up filling. Finally, lay out a piece of parchment to hold your finished dumplings until you’re ready to steam them.

Step 4: Cook the dumplings

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Line a steamer basket with three cabbage leaves. Arrange dumplings 1 inch apart over the cabbage. Place the steamer basket in a large saucepan over 1 inch of water. Bring the water to a boil, then cover and steam the shumai until a thermometer inserted into the filling reads 145°F, 8 to 10 minutes. Discard the cabbage. Repeat the steaming process with the remaining cabbage and dumplings.

Editor’s Tip: You can also use a bamboo steamer to make shumai. Follow the manufacturer’s directions to prep your bamboo steamer for the dumplings. Line each compartment with parchment paper so the dumplings don’t stick. Add at least two cups of water to the pan, but not so much that it will splash into the steamer when it boils. Place the steamer setup over medium-high heat. Some people cook shumai on top of carrot slices instead of cabbage leaves or parchment.

Step 5: Make the dipping sauce

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Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, green onion, mirin (if desired) and ginger.

Step 6: Garnish and serve

When the dumplings are finished, remove the steamer basket from the pan serve the dumplings with the dipping sauce on the side.

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Shrimp Shumai Variations

• Double the recipe: These are great for freezing, so don’t hesitate to double the recipe and stash some shumai in your freezer.
• Add pork: Pork and shrimp are classic dumpling partners. Use half ground pork and half minced shrimp to make your dumpling filling.
• Increase the veggies: Grated carrot, bits of scallion and slivers of shiitake mushrooms are typical inclusions in shumai. Stir any or all of them into your filling. Minced cilantro would also be complementary.
• Add a garnish: Traditional garnishes for shumai include a frozen pea or three added before cooking, a tidbit of grated carrot or a bit of fish roe.
• Skip the dip: If you’d prefer a dipping option with more sweetness, consider hoisin sauce. For some heat, a dab of sriracha, chili crisp or chili oil will work wonders.

How to Store Shrimp Shumai

Can I freeze shrimp shumai?

Shrimp shumai are best frozen before being cooked. Place the dumplings on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze them until they’re solid. Transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or airtight container and eat them within three months. To cook frozen shumai, steam them from frozen until they’re cooked through, 13 to 15 minutes.

How do you reheat shrimp shumai?

If you have leftover cooked dumplings, reheat them by pan-frying, which will make the bottoms crisp. Heat a pan over medium heat and add a tablespoon of oil. When the oil shimmers, add the dumplings, making sure they don’t touch. Pour in 1/4 cup of water, then cover the pan and let them steam for three minutes. Uncover the pan and let the water evaporate. Cook until the bottoms of the dumplings are golden brown.

You could also reheat the dumplings in the microwave.

Shrimp Shumai Tips

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Can you use egg roll wrappers for shumai?

Yes! Just cut the wrappers into squares and then trim off the corners to make the wrappers more circular.

How do you cook shumai without a steamer?

If you don’t own a bamboo steamer, use a vegetable steamer lined with parchment paper. If you don’t have any type of steamer, try placing a flat, wide heat-safe bowl into a pot that has a cover. Line the bowl with parchment, add water to the pot, and steam your dumplings in the bowl. If you use this method, you may need to steam your dumplings in batches, as you don’t want them to touch while they’re cooking. Another option is to poke holes in a disposable foil pan, line it with parchment, hang it inside a pot and cover it with a lid or a piece of aluminum foil. Don’t be afraid to get crafty!