Customer Reviews

The Dumpling: A Seasonal Guide

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Some general notes about the book -

There are recipes for all manner of dumplings, quasi dumplings, steamed breadstuffs desserty puffings, on and on. Brown bread will be found, but not a fritter. Noodle? Yes. Gingerbread? Yes. Puddings? Yes. Fishballs? No. What you will find is mostly things starch based. If you have in mind a meat dumpling, you may not find it here. You will find dumplings - some standard (like spaetzle or cornmeal dumplings) and some odd ducks (like pounded rice dumplings stuffed with strawberries).

Pros:
Although the dumplings are arranged according to month, there is a handy dandy reference hidden in the back to look up your recipe by region, type or content. I mostly used this area to find what I wanted to cook. If I found myself casting about it kitchen looking for a project, I used the monthly reference and used months around my current month.

The other big pro of this book are the four primers up front. One is how to shape and wrap the dumplings. Then there is a full listing of ingredients and everything you need to know about them used in the recipes. Thirdly, an equipment list and what you'll use them for (more on that later). Finally a tips section including all things dough and cooking. All are well written, interesting and valuable, but most importantly the pages are grey tipped for easier reference.

Cons:
The book is a little gimmicky with the sectioning of the dumplings by month. Yes, yes we all want to cook what is in season. You cannot look up the ingredient? Pish!
There are pitifully few photos. While that may not seem like a big deal, it would be nice to have pictures of techniques and what the dumpling should look like before and after cooking or after it.
There are too many recipes for puddings and breads for my taste. This is my review and my opinion only.
There are too many dumplings with butter sauce as the go to medium.
What do I serve with the dumpling? Why is eaten in September? How is eaten?
There should be alternatives to one use equipment if one is available. For instance - a spaetzle maker? It annoyed me that the instructions required one. You cannot use a collander? Someone better ring grannie and tell her she has been doing it all wrong all these years! Don't have banana leaf or bamboo leaf at the ready? Well, you will never be told what you might use instead so those recipes are out. See my point?

About the recipes:
I have not made them all. Some I already knew. Anything that required me to grind anything by mortar and pestal I have not made. Apparently spice grinders and the food processor render it the ingredient inferior, spitoutable junk? Anything requiring that I pluck the coconut from my tree and make pressings and slurried and washes of coconut milk because canned coconut would not do - I did not make.

I have, however, made about a dozen of the recipes. I found them easy to follow, well laid out and referenced and so far no recipes with surprise ingredients showing up in the text.

In particular I enjoyed making and eating: "Chickpea Squares with Mustard Seeds and Spiced Oil" from India. I used frozen coconut. I also made "Potato Dumplings Stuffed with Ham" from Sweden. I had both ham and lingonberry jam on hand so the recipe demanded I make it. We also enjoyed the lamb dumplings in yogurt soup. That recipe spoke to me and I was not disappointed.

So my conclusion. I think you could find a better dumpling book elsewhere. One that would be just dumplings. One that had pictures. One a little less equipment and ingredient stringent (unless it was actually very very necessary).
It is not bad. It is not great.

I love the front portion of this book, which shows you, with very clear drawings and instructions, how to make, fold, wrap, and tie many different kinds of dumplings. I also, for the most part, love the recipes, which are fairly simple to make. What is off-putting to me is the special equipment supposedly needed for some of these recipes. I will NOT buy a spatzle maker just to make spatulas. I would prefer it if (as Happy Girl pointed out) the authors would suggest alternative ways or methods of making some of these dumplings, using things that most people have in the kitchen. Most people do not have spatzle makers and probably have no intention of getting them.

In any case, I do like the recipes though, frankly, I would prefer them to be organized according to type (fish, meat, vegetable) or country of origin. When they're organized by month, searching for all types of one kind of recipe (shrimp, say) is time-consuming.

Pretty good cookbook with a variety of recipes from different countries. Most things I made so far I was pleased with: steamed cornbread, Banh Tet, nine layer coconut tapioca cake. The Nigerian black eyed pea dumplings turned out more bland then what I hoped, but not bad. The sweet pineapple tamales, a TOTAL miss. I live in San Antonio, so I'll just keep helping the local economy by purchasing tamales already made, lol! I look forward to making more recipes. Another good (dare I say better?) book on dumplings is called "Asian Dumplings" by Andrea Nguyen. If you are mostly into asian dumplings, I would get that book instead. What I like about "Asian Dumplings" is that the instructions and tips are excellent, and the ingredients have weights next to them. (I have more success by weighing rather than measuring flours). Still, "Dumpling, A Seasonal Guide" has great instructions and excellent drawings on how to make the different folds. One tip from Asian dumplings I will share: if the recipe makes 12 dumplings, make your filling and divide it into 12 portions first, so you are putting the right amount in. When I made the nigerian black eyed pea dumplings, I had prepared and cut up all the banana leaves. The recipe called for so many rounded tablespoons of filling. Well, I must have rounded my spoonfulls TOO much, and ran out of filling and wasted banana leaves. If I would have divided up the filling in advance, it would've worked.

This is the quintessential dumpling book. Perfect for both the culinary connoisseur and novice, it is a rich encyclopedia that not only carefully details the precise techniques and ingredients of the dumpling, but puts each dumpling in a cultural context. Fresh ingredients are key to crafting a good dumpling, so the seasonal layout I found very helpful. If you are even mildly curious about dumplings or know anyone who is, this book is a must buy.

I just want to say, I love the Black Sesame Cupcakes recipe. Like a fluffy, not-too-sweet Asian angel food cake. The other few recipes I have tried so far also have turned out well. You do need a big steamer for many of them, though.

The dumpling is possibly my favorite food. A daintier, less messy riff on the idea of the sandwich or wrap, it comes in an endless variety of shapes, the only constants being a wrapping and filling. It is portable and equally appropriate as street food or high-end restaurant appetizer. Depending on the filling, it can consist of several food groups. It can serve as both a healthy snack or a rich indulgence. So I am very pleased that this collection came out. The authors are professional chefs and know their stuff.

Every country has its dumplings:Gnocchi and ravioli from Italy, potstickers and various dim sum from China, gyoza from Japan, ravioli from Italy, etc.

Anything and everything you ever wanted to know about dumplings is inside this book. I was always intimidated to make my own but this book makes it easy and fun!! The illustrations and range of dumplings you can make will blow your mind - there is even a dessert dumpling with strawberries inside!! Go dumplings go!