taro puffs
4 min readWe have always marvelled at these wu gok: a feathery light and golden lattice surrounding the (‘melt in the mouth’)and fluffy pastry made from taro and split peas, enveloping a saucy pork filling. We believed that wu gok was a dish reserved for talented dim sum chefs and not mere mortals like us! It was Dad who developed this wonderful recipe for homemade wu gok that we just had to include in the book. These little beauties are actually quite simple to make,although they do require patience and careful measurements.
Makes 8-10 vegetable oil, for deep-frying for the pastry 50g dried yellow split peas, rinsed then soaked overnight in cold water 150g taro, fresh or defrosted, cut into 2cm cubes 60g wheat starch 75g lard, softened for the filling 2 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked in cold water overnight 150g pork mince 2 tsp very finely diced ginger spring onion, sliced 14 tsp bicarbonate of soda pinch salt 2 pinches ground white pepper anulat 14 tsp granulated sugar %4 tsp sesame oil 35g raw prawns, peeled and diced for the pastry seasoning 2 pinches salt /2 tbsp granulated sugar 2 pinches five-spice powder tsp ground white pepper ammoni 2.5g ammonium bicarbonate (see here) for the sauce 34 tbsp cornflour 12 tsp light soy sauce 12tsp dark soy sauce 1 Drain the split peas then put them into a steam-proof dish together with the taro and 2 tablespoons cold water. Steam over vigorously boiling water for 40 minutes.
2 Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Drain the mushrooms, remove and discard the stalks and dice the ushrooms and all the remaining filling ingredients, except the prawns, in a caps. Combine the mushrooms a bowl. Cover and chill for 20 minutes.
3 In a small bowl, mix together the pastry seasoning ingredients. Set aside.
Roughly mash the split peas and taro with a fork until soft and fluffy. Turn out onto a work surface and flatten slightly. Sprinkle over the pastry seasoning ingredients. Use a dough scraper or a knife with a wide blade to scrape in underneath the mixture at a 45 angle, then lift up and fold the mixture over on top of itself. Use the heel of your other hand to gently press downwards and forwards, as if you are smearing it across the work surface. Repeat until the seasonings are distrib- uted throughout the dough-it should take a good 7-8 folds. Set aside.
5 Put the wheat starch into a bowl. Pour in 35ml boiling water, then use a pair of chopsticks to vig-orously stir in one direction (e.g. clockwise)until the mixture resembles large breadcrumbs. Turn the mixture out onto the work surface and knead quickly until a slightly crumbly dough forms.
6 Flatten the seasoned taro dough to a 2cm thickness and the wheat starch dough to a 1cm thickness,then put the wheat starch dough on top of the taro dough. Use the folding method described in step 4 to combine the doughs. Keep folding until the doughs are just combined. It will be sticky to the touch. Flatten the dough to a 2cm thickness, then put the lard on top. Work quickly to fold the lard into the dough using the same method until a soft dough forms. Wrap in cling film and chill for 2 hours.
Meanwhile, cook the filling. Heat 2 teaspoons vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a high heat.
Add the pork mixture and fry for a few minutes, or until cooked through, then add the prawns and cook for a further 2 minutes until pink. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool for a few minutes.
8 In bowl, mix all the sauce ingredients with 50ml water then stir into the cooked filling. Return the frying pan to a medium heat and stir until the sauce is thick enough to bind the filling together.
Set aside to cool.
9 Fill a large saucepan two-thirds with vegetable oil and put it over a medium-high heat. If you are using a deep-fryer, set the temperature to 200oC/400F. Working as quickly as possible, wrap and fry two puffs at a time. Roll the pastry into a sausage and cut it into 30g pieces. Form one piece into a ball, then press down to create a 7-8cm disc Put 1 heaped teaspoon of filling into the centre of the disc, then fold the disc in half, pinching the edges to seal.
10 To test that the oil is ready for deep-frying, drop in a small piece of dough. It should fizz furiously, but not brown for at least 5 seconds. Carefully lower the wu gok into the oil and deep-fry for 30 sec-onds. Use a slotted spoon to roll the dumplings, then deep-fry undisturbed for 3-4 minutes until you can see the latticed surface. Remove and leave to drain on a wire rack with baking tray set underneath. For classic Cantonese presentation, sit each puff within a cupcake case.
