《紐約時報》教你包餃子
Dumplings are said to bring good fortune, and eating them is a time-honored traditional way to celebrate the Chinese New Year, which falls on Feb. 19 this year. So why not rally a few friends for a little homemade dumpling feast?
據說餃子能帶來好運，吃餃子是中國農曆新年（今年是2月19日）的悠久傳統。那麼，何不約上三五好友，來個小小的家庭自制餃子宴呢？I’m not recommending an elaborate dim sum spread at home. That’s a daunting concept, unless you have a kitchen equipped with bamboo steamers and woks, and a small army of skilled cooks with cleavers.
我不是要勸你在家做複雜的中式點心。那實在是令人望而卻步的事情——除非你家裏有蒸籠、炒鍋，以及幾位刀功了得的廚子。
But good dumplings (or won tons) are well within a home cook’s reach and, frankly, are often better than what is served at restaurants.
但是餃子（或餛飩）完全是能在家裏自己搞定的，而且說實話，家裏做的餃子往往比餐館的還好吃。
Don’t misunderstand — there are many fine Chinese restaurants serving impeccable delicate dumplings, the likes of which no amateur could reproduce. But we all know that sad, thick-doughed, stodgy, indifferent dumplings abound. Factory-made and frozen, they are cheap and filling. Dunking them in a spicy dipping sauce makes them edible, barely.
不要誤會：有很多優質中式餐館供應無可挑剔的精緻餃子，那是業餘廚師難以超越的。但是我們都知道，到處都有那種難看、厚皮、硬實、難吃的餃子。它們是工廠加工的速凍餃子，很便宜，也能很快填飽肚子。要在辣蘸汁裏蘸一下，才能勉強下嚥。I’m here to tell you that it’s not that hard to make good ones, so don’t settle.
我在這裏想跟你說的是，做出好餃子並不是很難，所以沒必要將就着吃速凍餃子。If you want to go all out, you can make your own dough — it’s a basic one, made with just flour and water, which you then form into little blobs and roll to a flat circle. But why complicate matters? Opt for store-bought wrappers, then be sure to have a delicious filling. I like a hand-chopped mixture of shrimp and scallops, seasoned simply with ginger, scallions, hot pepper and sesame oil. It takes no time to put together, and can even be prepared a day in advance.
如果你想大幹一場，可以自己做麪糰——這是包餃子必不可少的東西，它由麪粉和水做成，然後你把它分成很多小團，擀成圓片。但是爲什麼要搞得那麼複雜呢？還不如去商店買現成的餃子皮，然後確保你做的餡料美味就行了。我喜歡手剁的蝦和扇貝混合餡料，只用簡單地加入姜、蔥、辣椒和芝麻油。這種餡料很快就能做好，甚至可以提前一天做好。Rope a friend into helping stuff and crimp the wrappers. It’s a surprisingly rapid business. I like to cook a dozen at a time, enough to give four diners a few dumplings to drizzle with a savory chile-spiked vinegar dressing.
找一個朋友幫忙做餡料，包餃子。速度會快得出乎你的預料。我喜歡一次煮12個，夠四個人每人吃上幾個，上面灑一點美味的辣椒醋調味汁。The beauty of it all is this: Once the dumplings hit boiling water, you are a mere four minutes away from a bowlful of pleasure. Of course you’ll want more than one bowlful. Not a problem — simply repeat as necessary.
這一切的迷人之處在於：把餃子放入沸水之後，你只用等四分鐘就能享用一碗美味了。當然你可能還想多來幾碗。沒問題，重複上述過程就行了。INGREDIENTS
配料：FOR THE DUMPLINGS:
餃子配料：• ½ pound sea scallops, roughly chopped
0.5磅海扇貝，粗略切碎• ½ pound shrimp, peeled, cleaned and roughly chopped
0.5磅蝦，去皮，洗淨，粗略切碎• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
1茶匙粗鹽• ½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
0.5茶匙粗磨黑胡椒• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
1湯匙薑末• ⅓ cup chopped scallions
1/3杯蔥末• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1茶匙烤芝麻油• ½ cup chopped cilantro, leaves and tender stems, plus a few sprigs for garnish
1/2杯切碎的香菜（葉子和嫩莖），留幾根梗裝飾用• 1 serrano chile, finely chopped
1個墨西哥辣椒，切碎• 40 round dumpling wrappers, 3 1/2-inch diameter
40個圓餃子皮，直徑3.5英寸FOR THE DIPPING SAUCE:
蘸汁配料：• ½ cup rice vinegar
1/2杯米醋• 1 teaspoon spicy sesame oil
1茶匙辣芝麻油• 2 scallions, thinly slivered
2根大蔥，切成小片
