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Cooking
Steamed Bread Dumplings
· 4 servings
Combine the ingredients
Tip the coarse flour into a large bowl and add the salt and dried yeast. Mix these dry ingredients together first. Then pour in the warm milk and crack in the egg. This shortcut saves time so you can move straight on to kneading.
Knead the dough
Knead everything thoroughly in the bowl with a wooden spoon, or let a stand mixer with a dough hook do the work. Knead for about ten minutes, until you get a smooth, glossy dough that pulls away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
Fold in the bread pieces
Cut a stale roll into small cubes, crust and all. Add the cubes to the finished dough and fold them in very gently, just until they're evenly distributed through the dough.
First rise
Cover the bowl of dough with a clean, damp tea towel. Leave it to rise in a warm spot for about an hour, until it has doubled in size. Keep an eye on it, as it may rise faster in a warmer room.
Shape the logs
Turn the risen dough out onto a work surface and knead it briefly into a smooth ball. Divide it into two equal halves. Roll each half carefully into a neat log about six centimetres wide.
Second rise
Place the shaped dumplings on a tray or baking sheet lightly brushed with oil. Cover again with a damp tea towel and leave to rise for another 30 minutes or so, so they plump up before cooking.
Set up the pot and steamer
Pour about two centimetres of water into a wide pot and fit a steamer basket on top. Bring the water to the boil. You can line the steamer with a clean tea towel so the dough doesn't stick to it while cooking.
Steam the dumplings
Carefully place the logs in the steamer, leaving plenty of space between them as they'll expand a lot during cooking. Cover with a lid and steam over strong steam for exactly 25 minutes. Check occasionally that the water hasn't boiled dry.
Slice and serve
Carefully transfer the cooked dumplings to a board. Slice the hot dumplings using a piece of sturdy thread or a really sharp serrated knife, so you don't crush their perfectly light, fluffy interior.