Dim Sim Chris Girvan-Brown the Dim Sim Is a Food Icon in Austra- the Deep-Fried Dim Sims Were a Hit, and Lia

The Australian Classic Dim Sim Chris Girvan-Brown The dim sim is a food icon in Austra- The deep-fried dim sims were a hit, and lia. Fondly referred to as “dimmies,” it is a it wasn’t long before every fish and chip physical reminder of our cultural past and shop in Melbourne was ordering them. the integration of Chinese and Greek im- migrants into Australia. When I was a kid, Food rationing during World War II re- every fish and chip shop had a steamer and sulted in a basic meat and cabbage version offered dim sims steamed or fried. We oc- of dim sims which were fed to workers casionally had take-out fish and chips as a making munitions and uniforms for the Saturday night treat, and I always enjoyed war effort. Because of this, the humble two steamed dimmies with a glug of soy “dimmie” became a favorite in every state sauce with mine, while the rest of the family in Australia, and the recipe never went ate their dimmies deep-fried. back to the pork and prawn version. To- day the classic dim sim or a version of it is The dim sim was developed in Melbourne available in every fish and chip shop, pet- around 1945 by Chinese chef William Wing rol station, and lunchbar in the country. Young (father of Australian celebrity TV chef Elizabeth Chong) for his restaurant, As I said, dim sims are usually steamed or “Wing Lee.” Wing Lee went on to become a deep fried, but in our barbecue-obsessed food manufacturing company, and the dim culture, a lot of adventurous cooks have sim was distributed around the country as taken to cutting them in half and grill- one of their flagship products. ing them in their barbecues. Dim sims are also easy to make at home, particu- The dim sim is an open-ended Chinese snack larly if you make smaller ones and use a inspired by the traditional meat dumpling wonton wrapper instead of making the (siu mai ). It consists of pork or other meat, pastry yourself. Making them yourself cabbage, and flavorings, encased in a wrap- also allows you to experiment with fla- per similar to a traditional dumpling used vors beyond those available in the bland in dim sum. However, a dim sim is larger commercial versions: You could go with than its traditional cousin and the pastry the original pork and prawn version, the wrapper is thicker. popular chicken dim sim, or even a veg- etarian version. The origin story of fried dim sim says that William Wing Young’s son Tom went fish- I’ve included instructions below for two ing with his Greek friend Joe one day, and versions. I prefer the silky texture of the they went to Joe’s Fish and Chip shop to first one for steaming, while the second have lunch afterward. They decided to is better for frying or cooking in the bar- cook some dim sims that Tom had with becue. Both these pastries use hot water him, but since there was no steamer in which makes the pastry denser and less the shop, they deep fried them instead. flaky when deep-fried. 35 Pastry 1 Pastry 2 • 2-1/4 cups glutinous rice flour • 2-1/2 to 3 cups flour • 1/4 cup potato flour • 1/2 cup hot water • 3/4 teaspoon salt • 1/3 cup cold water • 1/2 teaspoon sugar • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil • 1-1/2 cups hot water First, make the dough. Sift the flour into the bowl and pour the hot water over it. Mix very well and add the cold water. Make the dough, adding the oil at the end if needed. Work the dough a little until it is smooth and elastic. 36 Wrap the dough in cling film and place it in the fridge to rest for 1 hour. 37 “Classic” Dim Sim • 500 grams (1.1 pound) beef blade (flat • 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice seasoning iron steak) or chicken thigh • 1 cup loosely chopped cabbage • 500 grams (1.1 pound) pork chop or • 4 spring (green) onions, diced scotch (neck) • Carrot • 100 grams (3-1/2 ounces) pork or • 1 tablespoon soy sauce chicken fat • Fresh-ground pepper Place the meat, fat, and carrot into a food processor and pulse it until the carrot is finely diced and the meat is a sticky mince. Add the five spice seasoning, spring onions, soy sauce, and some ground pepper, and give one quick pulse to amalgamate the ingredients. 38 Add the finely-diced cabbage and the soy sauce. 39 Cover the meat mixture with cling wrap and let it cool in the fridge for half an hour. If this does not make it sticky enough, add a tablespoon of cornstarch and mix it through. Roll the dough out thinly on a floured board and cut it into squares. For the large dim sim, I make 10-centimeter (4-inch) squares. 40 41 Take a desert spoon of the meat mix and place it in the center of the pastry square. Fold the four corners into the center to make a parcel. 42 Now make a fist and squeeze the parcel on the sides to force the meat downward, making the classic elongated shape. Don’t be too fussy. A dim sim is meant to have creases in the pastry and look a bit gnarly. 43 Here you can see the difference between my homemade dim sim and one I got from a pack of frozen ones they sell in my supermarket. There are two ways of cooking these: steaming and deep frying. 44 Steaming Temperature control is important here. I just set a cast iron wok in my Big Green Egg and run it at around 125 degrees C (250 degrees F) for a while to get it hot. Water boils at 100 degrees C (212 degrees F), so this ensures that when I add the water, I’ll have a nice simmer and plenty of steam. Pour a couple of cups of water into the wok. 45 For this exercise, I’m cooking two of my dim sim and one store-bought one so we can see the difference. Place the steamer basket in the wok, close the lid of the barbecue, and cook for 20–25 minutes. In the meantime, chop a little chili pepper and pour some soy sauce over it. 46 Here I have removed the dim sims and cut one of each in half so you can see the difference. I know which one I prefer! Serve hot with the chili soy sauce. 47 Deep-Frying This uses the same setup as for steaming: I have a cast iron wok in my Big Green Egg, but I’m running at a higher temperature, around 180 degrees C (356 degrees F). Pour your oil into the wok carefully, so you don’t spill any on the hot coals. Carefully slide the dim sims into the oil. I prefer to be safe and use less oil than normal for deep frying, even if this means I need to turn the food over mid-cook. Close the lid and cook the dim sims for 3 minutes, then turn them over and cook for another 3 minutes. These look great—lovely and moist with a crunchy shell! Serve with the chili soy. 48 49 Sui Mai Ingredients • 500 grams (1.1 pound) boneless pork • 1 tablespoon sesame oil chop • 2 teaspoons oyster sauce • 250 grams (9 ounces prawn meat • 1/4 teaspoons white pepper (shrimp) • 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger • 6 spring (green) onions, finely diced • 1/4 cup shitake mushrooms (optional) • 3 tablespoons soy sauce • 2 tablespoons sugar • 1 tablespoon sake • 2 Chinese sausages, diced v 50 Chris Girvan-Brown (aka Urban Griller) is Australia’s BBQ Guru. He has written numerous BBQ articles for food magazines, instruction manuals, and cookbooks. He also does BBQ cooking segments for local radio and has been running BBQ cooking schools for 14 years. UrbanGriller.com Barbecue Forum.

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