Last weekend, I attended a dim sum cooking class at Las Cosas with Chef Johnny Vee. I worked on the dessert – silken mango pudding. That and the spicy hoisin ribs were my favorite. I learned that the egg rolls could be baked. I did not work on that dish, but recipes involving a big pot of oil are a hassle so I was happy that the baked egg rolls were not bad at all.
Class Description: Just for fun, today we pretend we are lunching in a fabulous big city Dim Sum House in Chinatown. Imagine hanging Peking Ducks and bamboo steamers bursting with dumplings and Steamed Pork Buns. Our eat-til-you’re-stuffed menu includes: Hot & Sour Soup, Shrimp Dumplings, Shiitake Egg Rolls, Spicy Hoisin Ribs, Potstickers, Mu Shu Duck, Scallion Pancakes and Silken Mango Pudding. We’ll even fire up the Pu-Pu grill! All served with copious amounts of hot tea! Join the celebration of this classic dining tradition. (Hands-On)
Per usual, the menu items were divided up among the class members. I worked on Silken Mango Pudding on my own.
Silken Mango Pudding
I got my tray of ingredients – sugar, frozen mango, gelatin, salt, and lime juice. Not pictured cold water and heavy cream.
I started with water and sugar in a sauce pan and heated until the sugar dissolved.
I also started blooming the gelatin with sugar and some warm water.
Then I put the mango in the blender and added the heated sugar mixture.
Then I added the gelatin mixture and the heavy cream to the blender and added the lime juice.
Finally, I pour the mixture into ramekins and they went into the refrigerator to set up.
The Other Menu Items
Hot & Sour Soup – chicken broth, dried shiitake mushrooms, rice wing vinegar, cornstarch, sesame oil, ginger, tofu, bean thread noodles, soy sauce, and crush red pepper.
Shrimp Dumplings & Potstickers – shrimp, rice wine vinegar, cornstarch, sugar, sesame oil, salt, white pepper, scallions, and ground pork.
Both of these were made from the same batch above, but the cooking technique was different. The ones on the left are steamed dumplings. They were steamed in a bamboo steamer. The ones of the right were cooked in a skillet to get the bottoms a little crispy. Then water was added and a lid was immediately placed on the skillet to use steam to continue to cook them. A finishing sprinkle of sugar and soy sauce was then applied.
Shiitake Egg Rolls – oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, salt, peanut oil, ginger, garlic, scallions, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, shrimp, pork, and wrappers.
Spicy Hoisin Ribs – pork ribs, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, Chinese five spice powder, hoisin sauce, and sambal oelek.
Moo Shu Pork – soy sauce, dry sherry, sesame oil, cornstarch, pork tenderloin, shiitake mushrooms, green onions, garlic, ginger, napa cabbage, sugar, black pepper, vegetable oil, eggs, hoisin sauce, and moo shu pancakes.
Scallion Pancakes – flour, salt, boiling water, cold water, vegetable oil, and green onions.
We served some of the dim sum in this pu-pu grill.
If Only This Were Springfield 