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Pan Fried Crispy Rice Paper Dumplings with Vegan Fillings

Happy year of the tiger! Dumplings are a must for me on the Chinese New Year, or Lunar New Year and these rice dumplings are the ultimate lazy and easy version. They're stuffed with a savory and "meaty" tofu veggie filling and then pan-fried till golden crispy. And to make the experience even more satisfying, serve them with some sizzling scallion chili oil!

Rice papers are such a perfect "cheat" to make easy dumplings. No need to mix flour, knead the dough, then roll out the wrappers, simply dip rice papers in some warm water, cut them into shapes, and start wrapping. The texture is more like the "crystal dumplings" you would get at a dim sum restaurant - the skins would be translucent and chewy and if pan-fried, super crispy!

For the fillings, I used a mixture of tofu and vegetables but this is highly adaptable! You can use up any scraps of veggies in your fridge and use any protein base you like - tofu, mashed lentils, or even crumbled tempeh. And if you could handle a little heat, I highly recommend making this super easy scallion garlic chili oil to go with your dumplings! This little dip will elevate your dumpling experience to a whole new level.

I will post a video of how I made these rice paper dumplings on both @veganbunnychef IG and Tiktok and if you're a visual person like me it'd be much easier to just follow the video especially for the wrapping part.


INGREDIENTS:

For the dumplings -
7-8 rice papers
14 oz extra firm tofu
6 oz shiitake mushroom, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 scallions, chopped, separate whites and greens
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
1/2 tablespoon tamari/soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon coconut amino
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
Pinch of salt and white pepper
Sesame oil

For the Scallion Chili Oil -
2 scallions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon Gochugaru, aka Korean chili pepper, or sub more chili powder
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Salt and soy sauce to taste

TO MAKE:

- Prepare the fillings first. In a large non-stick frying pan, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat, sauté the scallion white parts and garlic till fragrant for about 2 minutes;
- Add carrot and shiitake mushroom, cook till soft;
- Use your hands to crumble the tofu into the pan, continue to mash and break apart with your spatula, season with tamari sauce, coconut amino, and vinegar, stir and fold to mix everything, cook till the liquid is mostly gone;
- Stir in the scallion greens and arrowroot powder, make sure the powder is mixed in well and the texture will become stickier, turn off the heat and set aside;
- Dip a piece of rice paper in warm water, quickly for just 2 - 3 seconds, DO NOT SOAK, the rice paper will continue to soften;
- Fold in half, and then cut from the middle, now you have two pieces of double layered wrappers, fold in the corners to make them more round;
- Place 1 1/2 tablespoon to 2 tablespoons of fillings in the middle, lift up two opposite corners and press them together, and start pleating along the sides to close;
- Once the entire edge is pleated, press down all the pleats with your fingers to make sure there's no gap or air bubbles, repeat until all of the fillings are used up;
- In a nonstick pan, heat another drizzle of oil, pan-fry the dumplings till golden crispy, about 2 minutes each side, watch closely and do not overcrowd the pan, this is to avoid the dumplings sticking together;
- Meanwhile, mix all the chili oil ingredients in a separate bowl except the oil, heat the oil in a small saucepan till hot, a good way to tell is to put a small piece of scallion in the oil and if it starts to sizzle that means the oil is hot enough;
- Carefully pour the oil over the rest of the sauce ingredients, everything will start sizzle immediately and release the aroma, wait till the sizzlings quiet down and stir the sauce, season with salt and soy sauce to taste;
- Serve dumplings with the freshly made chili oil, enjoy!

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