Super Easy & Delicious! Dumpling Mala Tang
Super Easy & Delicious! Dumpling Mala Tang
Fridge-Clearing Dumpling Mala Tang Recipe
With just one packet of spicy Li Kimura Hot Pot Mala Tang sauce, you can recreate the rich and satisfying flavor of authentic Mala Tang at home. This recipe is a delightful Chinese-style hot pot, packed with fresh vegetables, tender meat, and chewy dumplings – all customizable to your liking! The Li Kimura sauce offers a perfect balance of mala’s characteristic numbing spice without being overly aggressive, delivering a clean and refreshing taste. It’s a ‘flavor-guaranteed’ dish, even for beginner cooks. The sauce packet suggests 70g of sauce with 1.5 liters of water, but I reduced the water to 700ml to accommodate the generous amount of ingredients, and the seasoning was just right. And what’s Mala Tang without dumplings? Adding plenty of frozen dumplings to a pot of Mala Tang makes for a hearty and complete meal. The joy of picking out your favorite vegetables, dumplings, and meat is truly delightful. Feel free to customize your Mala Tang ingredients based on your preferences and what you have in your fridge. Crisp bok choy, fragrant crown daisy, fresh water dropwort, various leafy greens, and mushrooms like king oyster or enoki all pair wonderfully. Both pork and beef add a rich depth of flavor. Enjoying a hearty pot of Mala Tang with a glass of makgeolli on the side is a simple pleasure. Savoring the tender cabbage, mushrooms, and spinach, then scooping out the plump dumplings and flavorful meat, followed by slurping up the chewy Chinese noodles – you’ll find yourself wonderfully full! This one pot was enough for a very satisfying dinner for two.
Main Ingredients- Li Kimura Hot Pot Mala Tang Sauce, 1 packet (70g)
- Water, 700ml
- Small Gyoza Dumplings, 13-14 pieces
- Dried Tofu, 1 piece (approx. 100g)
- Chinese Glass Noodles, 10 strands (approx. 100g)
- Thinly Sliced Pork Belly (Samgyeopsal), 100-150g
- Napa Cabbage Hearts, 4-5 leaves
- Fresh Spinach, 70g
- Oyster Mushrooms, 70g
- Green Onion, 1 stalk
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
About 30 minutes or more before you start cooking, soak the Chinese glass noodles and dried tofu in cold water until fully rehydrated. This helps them absorb the flavors better and become tender.
Step 2
Separate the leaves of the napa cabbage hearts and wash them thoroughly under running water.
Step 3
Cut the washed napa cabbage into bite-sized pieces. Avoid cutting them too small, as you want to retain some texture when chewing.
Step 4
Trim any yellow or wilted leaves from the spinach and wash it clean. Prepare the green onion by washing it well, separating the white and green parts.
Step 5
For the green onion, split the thick white parts lengthwise to help release more flavor into the broth. Gently wash the oyster mushrooms, trimming off the tough ends.
Step 6
Prepare a pot for your Mala Tang. Pour in the measured 700ml of water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once boiling vigorously, add the packet of Li Kimura Hot Pot Mala Tang sauce and stir well to dissolve.
Step 7
Add the prepared napa cabbage, green onion, and oyster mushrooms to the seasoned broth first. Adding vegetables early helps to infuse the broth with their fresh flavors.
Step 8
Cover the pot and let it simmer over high heat for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. This allows the flavors to meld beautifully.
Step 9
After 10 minutes, remove the lid and add the dumplings and spinach. Spinach wilts quickly, so adding it towards the end is best to maintain its texture.
Step 10
Now, add the pre-soaked Chinese glass noodles and dried tofu. You can adjust the amount of dried tofu to your liking; one piece was used here, but adding more is perfectly fine if you enjoy it.
Step 11
Finally, add the thinly sliced pork belly (samgyeopsal). Gently separate the slices as you add them to the pot to prevent clumping.
Step 12
Cover the pot again and continue to simmer until the pork is fully cooked. The pork is done when it turns opaque white and feels slightly firm. Enjoy your delicious Mala Tang!
